I know what you are thinking. ‘Cauliflower crust pizza? That is so overplayed.’ And yes, I agree that there are thousands of variations of this super trendy pizza. But if you haven’t tried it, I have to tell you it is played-up for good reason. While this is still “pizza” it is definitely much healthier than it’s not-so-distant cousin, regular flour-crust pizza. While I wouldn’t recommend making this all of the time because of the cheese, I do think that it is a great way to indulge a little, as long as you can tolerate dairy okay. After all, who doesn’t love pizza? Come on.

I’ve tried numerous recipes for cauliflower crust pizza, and after lots of trial and error, I finally have refined a recipe that is delicious, holds together pretty well, and still makes you feel like you are eating healthy. You can pretty much put whatever you want on the basic crust recipe below, but I have to say that figs and prosciutto are one of my favorite flavor combinations.

While I was shopping on my lunch break the other day, I was excited to see that there were some good looking fresh black figs. Unfortunately, they aren’t always in season, but when I see some that look good, I definitely buy them. One of my other favorite things to do with them is make an appetizer by stuffing the figs with a pecan (and maybe some gorgonzola), wrapping it in proscuitto and then BBQ’ing till golden. Talk about a bite of heaven.

Anyways, let’s get back to the pizza. I also like making a pesto sauce and topping it with salami and sautéed mushrooms. Another variation I love is BBQ chicken. Organicville makes a great BBQ sauce that is perfect for a recipe like that. Get creative and let me know what some of your favorite pizza flavor combinations are.

Fig and Prosciutto Cauliflower Crust Pizza

Makes one medium pizza

For the cauliflower crust:

• 1 head cauliflower, broken into florets
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano

For the toppings:

• 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1/4 parmesan cheese, shredded
• 4-5 black figs, sliced
• 1.5 ounces prosciutto, thinly sliced
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• Drizzle of good balsamic vinegar

Directions:

1. To start with the pizza crust, preheat your oven to 400ºF.
2. Get out your food processor and use either the grating attachment or pulse the cauliflower florets until it represents rice. I personally like using the grating attachment and feeding it through the tube. I also like to use it for getting my cheese ready. Twofer.
3. Nuke (or steam) the riced cauliflower till cooked, about 5-8 minutes.
4. Transfer the cooked cauliflower to a clean dish towel and spread it out so it can cool. After about five minutes, wrap the cauliflower in the dish towel (like you would if you were draining spinach) and ring all the moisture out. This should leave you with a ball of fairly dried cooked cauliflower.
5. Add the cauliflower, egg, 1 cup mozzarella, 1/4 cup parmesan, salt, and oregano to a bowl and mix well to combine.
6. Transfer the mixture to a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (important!). Form the mixture into a disc-like pizza shape, fairly thin. At this point, it won’t feel like it will hold together. It is not your typical pizza crust, but have faith.
7. Bake at 400ºF for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.
8. Now it’s time to get your toppings ready. After you remove the cauliflower crust from the oven, top however you would like. Get wild. Or just use the yummy fig and prosciutto toppings, except the vinegar.
9. Place the pizza back in the oven for about 10 more minutes or until cheese is melted and toppings are cooked to your liking.
10. Transfer the pizza to a cutting board, drizzle with balsamic (if desired) and slice away. Closest thing to sinful pizza that you’ve ever seen. Mangia!

Cauliflower after it has been pushed through the grater of a food processor. You could do this by hand, too.

Form your mixture into a round disc on a parchment lined cookie sheet.

What the pre-baked crust should look like.

Topped with goodies and ready for round two of baking.

The finished product. Dig in!