Cheesy Quinoa and Cauliflower Crusted Pizza
It took me a while to jump on the cauliflower crusted pizza bandwagon but here I am. The thing is that I find cauliflower crust doesn't have enough body to hold the sauce and cheese well, it just winds up a little wimpy so I combined two ingredients that people use to make gluten free crusts- cauliflower and quinoa to make the perfect and perfect for Pesach crust. Here you get the best of both worlds- lots of veg in your system from the cauliflower and lots of extra protein and heft from the quinoa. The combo is dynamite! Definitely going to be making this Chol Hamoed and then after Pesach as well for when the craving for pizza over takes me. Lots of recipes call for steaming the cauliflower and then squeezing it dry. That was just too much work for me. Instead, I spread the riced cauliflower out on a baking sheet (the same baking sheet I baked the pizza on) and let it dry out in the oven for about 20 minutes until basically dry to the touch. Worked like a charm! Top with your favorite sauce, cheese, and any toppings you can think of and you are good to go! Enjoy and Happy Pesach!
For the Crust:
Yield: 2 large crusts
1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed very well
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 cup water
Cook the quinoa by placing it in a small sauce pan with the oil and toasting it for about a minute in the oil while mixing. Add the water, and some salt, bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes. Once 15 minutes has elapsed, close the fire and keep the pot covered for another 5 minutes. Exactly how you would make rice. Set aside the quinoa to cool, you should have about 2 cups of cooked quinoa.
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1 small head of cauliflower broken into florets- you should have about 900 grams (about 2 pounds) of florets, which was 8 cups of florets for me.
Preheat your oven to 375 and line the same baking sheet you will bake your pizza on with parchment. Place your cauliflower florets into a food processor and pulse about 4-5 times until the cauliflower is finely chopped and kind of looks like rice. Do NOT over process it or it will become mush. Place the cauliflower on the baking tray and put it the oven to dry out for about 20 minutes or until mostly dry to the touch. Alternatively, you can put your riced cauliflower in a covered bowl in the microwave for about 6 minutes to let it steam and then place the cauliflower in a towel and squeeze all the water out.
Once the cauliflower cools add it to the quinoa. And then add:
3 large eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp ground pepper
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp dried basil
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan
1/2 cup shredded Mozzarella or Yellow Cheese
mix well and press down some of the mixture onto a parchment lined baking sheet in the shape of a circle. Bake at 400 degrees F (205C)for about 15-18 minutes or until the edge is golden brown.
Top with your favorite sauce, cheese and toppings and bake another 10 minutes until the cheese is melted to your liking.
For the Crust:
Yield: 2 large crusts
1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed very well
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 cup water
Cook the quinoa by placing it in a small sauce pan with the oil and toasting it for about a minute in the oil while mixing. Add the water, and some salt, bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes. Once 15 minutes has elapsed, close the fire and keep the pot covered for another 5 minutes. Exactly how you would make rice. Set aside the quinoa to cool, you should have about 2 cups of cooked quinoa.
-------------
1 small head of cauliflower broken into florets- you should have about 900 grams (about 2 pounds) of florets, which was 8 cups of florets for me.
Preheat your oven to 375 and line the same baking sheet you will bake your pizza on with parchment. Place your cauliflower florets into a food processor and pulse about 4-5 times until the cauliflower is finely chopped and kind of looks like rice. Do NOT over process it or it will become mush. Place the cauliflower on the baking tray and put it the oven to dry out for about 20 minutes or until mostly dry to the touch. Alternatively, you can put your riced cauliflower in a covered bowl in the microwave for about 6 minutes to let it steam and then place the cauliflower in a towel and squeeze all the water out.
Once the cauliflower cools add it to the quinoa. And then add:
3 large eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp ground pepper
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp dried basil
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan
1/2 cup shredded Mozzarella or Yellow Cheese
mix well and press down some of the mixture onto a parchment lined baking sheet in the shape of a circle. Bake at 400 degrees F (205C)for about 15-18 minutes or until the edge is golden brown.
Top with your favorite sauce, cheese and toppings and bake another 10 minutes until the cheese is melted to your liking.
Pizzas are one of the most famous dish among all sort of age groups almost. I have never heard of a cauliflower pizza though. I will ask my mother to make it for me. Thanks for the recipe.
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