Green Pizza with a Cauliflower Base

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It struck us that we haven’t posted a pizza recipe here in a while. Which perhaps had you thinking that we don’t eat pizza very often in our home? Well that’s not actually true. We eat lots of pizza, but most of the time it’s not the super greasy kind. For us, pizza can actually be a quite fun and fresh way to eat vegetables. It’s of course also one of the easiest ways to cook together with your kids. (Right after we were done shooting this, Elsa did a self portrait pizza; tomato eyes, zucchini mouth and basil hair. So funny!). We often do rye or spelt pizzas (like our Rustic Potato Pizza!), but this here is an entirely different thing. Say hello to a completely grain free pizza base made on … Cauliflower!

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The recipe is originally from our book. If you don’t have the book yet, we hope that this recipe might convince you. You can buy the UK version here. The US version here. And the Danish version here.

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To make this unconventional pizza base you just mix raw cauliflower into rice-like consistency. Add almond flour, eggs, oregano and salt & pepper. Spread it out on a baking sheet and pop into the oven to pre-bake.

It’s actually much simpler than making a traditional pizza base, since it doesn’t require any kneading or time for the dough to rise. We won’t claim that it tastes and feels exactly the same, because it doesn’t. Traditional pizza has a flaky crust – the cauliflower crust is definitely softer. But it holds together very well and has a really nice and almost sweet flavor. You should all give this a try – it’s a keeper!

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Green Pizza with a Cauliflower Base
makes 1 pizza

We wanted to make a green and leafy topping with lots of flavor. So we made a traditional tomato sauce, added spinach and thinly shaved zucchini before it was baked. And then threw on even more green leaves, a few generous drips of a herb and lemon sauce and some pecorino slices post-baking. It’s always nice to add ingredients both before and after a pizza is baked – it looks better, tastes more intense and give the pizza a more complex texture.

Pizza base
florets from 1 cauliflower
80 g / 3 oz / 3/4 cup ground almonds (almond flour)
1 tbsp dried oregano
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 organic eggs, beaten (or see tip for a vegan alternative)

Topping
1 zucchini, shaved with a potato peeler
2 handfuls fresh spinach or leafy greens of your choice
pecorino cheese, shaved with a potato peeler

Preheat the oven to 200°C / 400°F and line a baking tray with baking paper. Coarsely chop the cauliflower, place in food processor and blend until it is a fine rice-like texture. Measure 600 ml (3 cups / 20 fl oz) of the cauliflower ‘rice’ and place in a mixing bowl. Add the ground almonds, oregano and seasoning and mix with your hands. Make a well in the centre and add the eggs. Use your hands to pull the dry ingredients towards the middle until everything is combined and you can shape it into a ball. It should be more loose and sticky than a traditional pizza dough. Transfer to the baking paper and form into a pizza base by flattening the dough with your hands. Make the edges slightly higher. Pre-bake for 25 minutes or until golden. Meanwhile, prepare the pizza topping. Remove the crust from the oven. Cover it with tomato sauce, shaved zucchini and spinach and put it back in the oven for 5-10 more minutes. Take it out the oven and top with Basil & Lemon sauce, shaved pecorino, fresh herbs and green leaves. Serve.

Tip: For a vegan alternative, replace the eggs with this chia mixture: Measure 30 g / 1/4 cup /1 oz of chia seeds into a bowl and add 175 ml / 3/4 cup / 6 fl oz of water. Stir well and place in the fridge for 15 minutes before use.

Basic Tomato Sauce
makes around 1 litre / 4 cups / 34 fl oz

2 tbsp cold-pressed olive oil, coconut oil or ghee
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/2 tsp dried chili
3 x 400 g (14 oz) cans whole plum tomatoes
5 sprigs of basil, leaves picked
sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Heat oil in a saucepan on medium heat. Add onion, garlic and chili and sauté for a couple of minutes until golden. Stir in the tomatoes, basil, salt and pepper. Use a wooden spoon to crush the tomatoes. Lower the heat, cover and gently simmer for about 20 minutes. Use immediately or cool and store in an air-tight glass jar in the fridge. Keeps for about a week.

Basil & lemon sauce
makes about 1 cup / 250 ml

2 cups tightly packed basil + extra for topping
1/2 cup cold-pressed olive oil
1/2 lemon, juice
2 tbsp shredded pecorino cheese
1 pinch of sea salt

Place all ingredients in a mixer and blend until smooth. Use immediately or store in an air-tight glass jar in the fridge. Keeps for about a week.

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TGK_VE

Ps! If you have already bought our book we’d be super grateful if you could leave a short review of it on Amazon. Thank you!!

113 Comments

  • Henriette
    Har lige et enkelt spørgsmål: Kan man bytte mandelmelet ud med cashew?
    • Ja det tror jeg godt at du kan, men mængden kan være anderledes. Mandelmelets funktion er at 'suge' væsken, prøv dig frem :-)
  • Hey! This looks like a wonderful pizza. I'm wondering if you've tried a oatmeal based pizza crust? Check out the version I tried on my blog! Egginon.wordpress.com
  • Julie
    Hi , Just received my book a few miniutes ago !!!! I'm sooooo super happy , I had to wait for a few very long months to receive it as I leave in Mauritius ! What a beautifull book ! It's already my no 1 favarite cookbook. With love Julie
  • Your creativity constantly amazes me. This little bad boy looks gorgeous - can't wait to try this recipe with the cauliflower base.
  • Ally
    Since eliminating gluten from my diet, homemade pizza is one thing I just haven't brought myself to make, so I'm thrilled to have this totally different take on pizza now! It turned out fabulous, thank you@! xo Also, we topped ours with a little olive oil, figs, chevre, prosciutto, arugula, and a light dusting of pecorino.
  • Excellent recipe with gorgeous photos. Cauliflower base will be delicious and nutritious. I cannot wait to try your pizza recipe. Thank you!
  • Pizza is very popular in our house. My boys will love this!
  • I made this a few weeks ago using the recipe in your wonderful cookbook. As an experiment I tried it with the chia seeds and was pretty happy with the result. I made a really simple tomato base with just a few roasted cherry tomatoes blended and then topped it with lots of leftover goodies from the fridge! Cauliflower is so incredibly filling and definitely an under used and underrated vegetable. Thanks again for another brilliant recipe, stunning pictures and inspiration in abundance :) /Linn
  • Adele
    i made this for dinner last night, added tuna in spring water for some protein as we aren't vegetarian and i don't think i ground the cauliflower enough and i substituted mixed oats for some of the almond meal and used a combination of the two - but it was still delicious,ill definitely be making again!!
  • Val
    O. M. G. I am eating this right now and I am happier than I have ever been. I didn't follow the recipe exactly except for the crust so my advice is be adventurous! Have fun! Our local farmers market was this morning so while the very extraordinarily yummy crust was baking, I cubed some Japanese eggplant, pimento peppers, zucchini, onion, garlic, mushrooms(the shrooms were not from the market but I had them in the fridge), tossed everything with some EVOO and roasted the mixture in the same oven. When the crust came out, I used homemade tomato sauce, but I think you could use store bought as well as long as it's Rao's!. I did put a smattering of fresh mozzarella and reggiano, fresh tomatoes, and fresh basil on top of the veggies. Baked 10 minutes more and finished with some pepper flakes. Holy Toledo! This is good! Haven't even finished it and can't wait to make it again! Thank you!
  • Luise, this is so inspiring! Thanks, going to try it! Puss & Kram Lina
  • Made this tonight and it was really lovely! I puréed the tomato sauce and reduced the amount I'd be using for the pizza because it looked a little watery. Perfect!
  • This is a cracking pizza. I have always loved cauliflower, especially with a cheese sauce, but never thought to use it on pizza.
  • Gorgeous and amazing! Thanks so much for posting the chia seed options as an egg replacement. This recipe is definitely going in my arsenal!
  • I'm not sure I'll be able to convince my boyfriend that it's quite as good as takeaway pizza, but since I'm a coeliac vegetarian and he's a meat lover this pizza base would be customisable for both of us! It sounds delicious.
  • This was delicious! The proportions for the crust were perfect even though I thought it was a bit wet when it hit the parchment raw. It baked beautifully golden. Topped it off w/ roasted cherry tomatoes, pesto, smoked mozz, raw herbs/greens + chicken sausage crumbles. Amazing! Thanks : )
  • Jessica
    I just bought a purple cauliflower at the farmers market and am looking forward to making this. The colour contrast should be gorgeous and I am sure it will taste delicious.
  • I just made a variation of this recipe I used chia eggs instead of regular eggs and the crust was still amazing ! I was very impressed with it as I am with all of your recipes. You guys are really phenomenal everything i have ever made of yours has been a success and David is such an amazing writer I really admire your work so much and tell everyone about your blog. Any one who doesn't read doesn't know what they're missing out on!
  • Suzanne
    I made this from your book just last week - the chia seed version. Only, mine turned out more mealy/crumbly (ate it with a fork) than something we could pick up and eat as a typical slice like in your photo. But the taste was good. Do you exclude absolutely all of the stalk? Do you have any troubleshooting pointers if it's coming out crumbly?
  • I've used the cauliflower mixture for tortillas and they were delicious, if a little delicate! I love the idea of using it for pizza too - your photo is so completely inviting :-)
  • Yet another amazing recipe from you guys - cannot wait to give this one a crack! So thank you yet again. And again, for the stunning photos. X
  • Ruxandra
    Wow, this recipe sounds amazing! Thank you for sharing, I'll definitely start making homemade pizza! :)
  • I saw a cauliflower crust pizza recipe on pinterest and I'll admit I had my doubts, but with your seal of approval I'll definitely give this a try! Beautiful pizza!
  • Looks amazing! I think I definitely need to start being more creative and healthier when it comes to making homemade pizza.
  • Adding cauliflower to pizza is new to me.. Love the crust.. Excellent clicks.. Will surely give it a try..
  • We are in the process of planning an earthen outdoor pizza oven and this will have to be our first!!! Just wondering if you have tried an egg alternative in this recipe that works...?
    • Hi Amy, you can replace the eggs with chia seeds. If you look closer at the recipe you'll find the instructions at the end. Happy cooking! /David
  • This is really brilliant... Perfect for Paleo followers or just anyone tried to up the nutrition and lower the grain. Thank you!
  • What a lovely combination of delicious looking and healthy! I would never have thought you could make a pizza base like that from cauliflower. Saw Jamie Oliver using ground cauliflower instead of rice with a curry recently, what a wonderfully versatile veggie!

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