Cauliflower Pizza Crust

An interesting alternative to traditional pizza this recipe takes a little more work than calling your favorite pizza place - but isn't really any harder than making your own from scratch with flour would be. It's just different.
In the end the texture holds up as more of a foccacia than "pizza" with a sponge-like texture thanks to the egg and cheese, and loses most of the "cauliflower" taste. You can pick it up and eat it with your hands, but I found it easier to eat with a fork. I saw this recipe online and have "tweeked" it a little. You can see the original recipe here. I am still experimenting a little, trying to get a crispier "crust." When I figure it out I will update the post.

The ingredients:

1 cup "riced" cauliflower (see below)

1 cup shredded mozzarella, plus more for toppings

1 egg, beaten

1 tsp dried oregano

1/2 clove of garlic, finely minced or 1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp coarse salt

coconut oil

Make ahead: "riced"cauliflower.

With a head of cauliflower, remove the leaves and stems. Break florets into about 1 inch pieces chop in a food processor until the consistency of couscous. You will want to work in small batches or you will find chunks of cauliflower in the the mix. Don't over process though or it will turn to paste. Put in a microwave safe bowl and cook, uncovered, for 8 minutes. There is enough water in the cauliflower itself to eliminate the need to add more water. This will make about 3 cups and can be stored in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

For the crust:

Mix together 1 cup cauliflower, 1 cup mozzarella cheese, 1 egg and seasonings. (Seasonings can be adjusted to your taste: I found the raw garlic and oregano suggested to be over powering, so adjust to your personal taste.) Once this is thoroughly mixed it will make a thick batter, transfer to a pizza stone (See note below). Using a spatula or spoon work in circles to spread out mixture into a circle that is about 1/4 inch thick. This will make either 1 9" crust or 2 4.5" pizzas. Give your crust a slight lip at the edge and then tuck under the edge. This will help keep the edge from spreading too much and burning during baking. Using a pastry brush apply a light coating of coconut oil to the top to aid in browning. Bake at 450 for 15 minutes or until a golden brown.

Once your crust is done remove from the oven and top with your choice of toppings. Try pesto, grilled chicken, spinach and cheese; Olive oil, pepperoni, spinach and cheese; whatever you like! Toppings will need to be pre-cooked (if needed) because they are only in the oven for a few minutes.
Once your pizza has been dressed pop it back in the oven under the broiler for 3-5 minutes. When the cheese is bubbly and brown it is ready to eat.

*Note: What is the best thing to cook this crust on? This is where I am still experimenting: the first time I made it on a cookie sheet with aluminum foil that was greased with coconut oil. Complete disaster! It stuck terribly and was soggy (although the taste was still good enough to make we want to try again). The second time (shown above) I used a pizza stone for better heat conduction that I covered with parchment paper and again greased with coconut oil. This was a much better outcome but it was still a little greasy. Next time I am going to try it right on the pizza stone, still with a small amount of coconut oil.