This cauliflower pizza crust is low carb and dairy free, and made with 4 ingredients including fresh cauliflower and almond flour for a blast of protein and anti-inflammatory power.
Cauliflower pizza crust is egg free, dairy free and even gluten free. Finding a low carb pizza crust that everyone can eat, including vegans isn't easy. But thanks to cauliflower, this crust is vegan, gluten free as well as full of nutrition. Cauliflower is full of antioxidants known to be disease fighters, supporters of the brain and heart, and high in vitamins.
And like my almond flour pizza crust, it's easy to make with 4 ingredients that are probably in your kitchen right now. And the pizza toppings for this cauliflower base pizza are limited only by your imagination and can include anything from my Italian chickpea meatballs to my fresh green olive tapenade.
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Why You'll Love This
Crispy crust. This cauliflower pizza base is crispy thanks to a few tips I provide, including using a pizza stone, but even if you use a baking pan, it can still be crisp if you follow my tips to dry brown the cauliflower.
Exceptional nutrition. This pizza crust made with cauliflower as the base is lower in calories and fat than any traditional pizza crust. In addition, it is higher in protein and fiber and nutrients. Cauliflower alone is high in anti-oxidants, as well as a source of protein, vitamin C, vitamin K, beta-carotene, and boosts optimum digestion and detoxes as well!
Low carb pizza crust. With only 19g carbs and 11g of fiber, this pizza crust is considered low carb.
High in protein. Thanks to the use of almond flour, the crust provides 11g of protein.
Ingredients
- Cauliflower. I recommend buying a head of fresh cauliflower and ricing it yourself in a food processor. You can buy frozen cauliflower rice but extra steps are needed to dry it.
- Flax seed eggs. Mix 3 tablespoons of ground flax seeds with 9 tablespoon water and let stand 5 minutes.
- Almond flour.
- Flavorings. Salt, basil, oregano, nutritional yeast
See the recipe card at the bottom for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Substitutions
1. Almond flour can be swapped for oat flour but carbs will rise and crust will be dryer because almond flour has more fat, so you might need to add a tablespoon of melted coconut oil.
2. Flax seed eggs can be swapped for chia seed eggs. Use the same seed to water ratio.
Step by Step Instructions
For more detail, visit the complete recipe at the bottom of this post, but here are general steps.
- Step 1: Make flax eggs, and process the cauliflower raw into rice. Do not cook it.
- Step 2: Stir together ingredients, and form circles on parchment paper on pizza stones or use a baking sheet.
- Step 3: Bake 15-20 minutes or until edges are browned.
- Step 4: Top with veggies and bake again for 5 minutes.
Recipe Tips
1. The dough is not stretchy like a white-flour-based dough, instead it will be a crumbly, formable texture. To achieve the flat circle shape, you'll need to press it into shape.
2. It's important that your cauliflower rice be dry before you add it to the mixture, so it's best to process a dry head of cauliflower in your food processor or blender. If chunks remain on the first go rough of processing, remove them, and pour out the riced cauliflower in a bowl, add the chunks and process those into rice.
3. To use frozen riced cauliflower, be sure to buy unflavored, and then thaw it and toss it into a dry frying pan, and stir on simmer until the wet rice stops sizzling and is a bit browned. Let it cool and add that to the mixture.
4. If the final dough is too crumbly and isn't formable, add a tablespoon of coconut oil and mix again. After that, add water in 1 tablespoon increments.
5. Use a pizza stone to ensures a crispy crust without worrying too much about drying the cauliflower.
Best Toppings
You probably have your own ideas on how to top it but here are few options:
Italian meatball pizza. Add my tomato-based chickpea meatballs.
Green olive tapenade pizza. For the sauce use my green olive tapenade and top with more olives and artichoke hearts for an antipasto type pizza.
Storage
The crusts are easy to pre-make and freeze. Just be sure to allow them to fully cool, then wrap each one tightly in plastic wrap, and store in a sealed storage container. Frozen cauliflower pizza crusts will last for three months frozen. Thaw them to room temperature before baking.
More Cauliflower Recipes
- Cauliflower Smoothie
- Cauliflower Popsicles
- Cauliflower Shiitake Stir Fry
- Cauliflower Ice Cream
- Cauliflower Protein Snacks
- Cauliflower Brownies
If you tried this recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
📖 Recipe
Cauliflower Pizza Crust
Ingredients
- 2 cups cauliflower rice a medium head of cauliflower
- 3 flax eggs (mix 3 tablespoon ground flax seeds with 9 tablespoon water and let stand 5 minutes)
- ¼ cup almond flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon basil
- 1 tablespoon oregano
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
Instructions
Prep
- .Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. If you are using the ceramic pizza stones, put them on the oven rack so they preheat with the oven.
- Make flax eggs (stir together 3 tablespoon ground flax seed and 9 tablespoon of water)
- Chop the cauliflower into chunks.. Remove the leaves and stem. Process the cauliflower raw into rice. Do not cook it.
Make Cauliflower Crust
- Now stir the ingredients together with a spoon until well mixed. It will seem rather pasty and that's fine! At this point you can add seasonings you have on hand and that you like in a pizza crust - we often add some variation of basil, oregano and nutritional yeast.2 cups cauliflower rice, 3 flax eggs, ¼ cup almond flour, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon basil, 1 tablespoon oregano, 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
To bake with ceramic pizza stones
- Cut parchment into circles or use circular parchment paper that fits the stones (linked in ingredients).
- Divide the pizza crust mixture between the two stones and form circles about ½ inch thick, and keeping the edge about ½ inch from the parchment edge.
- Open the oven door, pull out rack with ceramic pizza stones and settle each crust on each stone. Don't burn yourself on the hot stones.
- Bake 15 minutes or until they are brown around the edges or as you like it.
- Pull out rack with the stones on it, top the pizzas with what you want! We spread on tomato sauce, and topped with chopped tomatoes, peppers, olives, artichokes and lots of chickpeas (garbanzo beans), and then we sprinkled on more nutritional yeast.
- Push the rack back in the oven and bake another 5 minutes at 400 degrees F or until toppings are hot.
To bake with a baking sheet
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Form two pizza crusts at least two inches apart.
- Bake for 20 minutes, checking at 10 minutes to be sure edges aren't burning. If the center is soggy, but the edges are darkening, lay a loose sheet of foil over it for the rest of the baking session.
- Once cooked, flip each over and bake for 5 more minutes so the other side crisps up.
- Remove them, top and bake topped but uncovered pizzas for a few more minutes to heat the toppings.
Storage
- The crusts are easy to pre-make and freeze. Just be sure to allow them to fully cool, then wrap each one tightly in plastic wrap, and store in a sealed storage container. Frozen cauliflower pizza crusts will last for three months frozen. Thaw them to room temperature before baking.
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