Cauliflower Crust Pizza | Simply Quinoa

Why Cauliflower Makes the Best Pizza Crust

Cauliflower! Who knew?! Here’s why you should swap your regular pizza crust for this cauliflower version.

• Naturally grain-free and gluten-free. Just taking the all-purpose flour out of a pizza crust often leads you down a rabbit hole of having to pick up a ton of different flours and gums and binders, but this recipe keeps it simple, with wholesome ingredient swaps.
• Budget-friendly. Making your own cauliflower pizza crust is much less expensive than buying prepared grain-free pizza crusts at the grocery store.
• Absolutely delicious. No, it doesn’t taste like cauliflower! This crust is cheesy, toasty, and totally tasty. I think I even prefer it to traditional crust.

What You’ll Need

Here’s a list of the ingredients you’ll need to make this cauliflower crust pizza. Scroll down to the recipe card to find the ingredient quantities and recipe instructions.

For the Crust:

• Cauliflower – You can use a bag of pre-cut cauliflower to shave some time off the prep if you’d like.
• Egg – This helps bind the crust together.
• Cheese – Shredded mozzarella cheese also helps provide structure to the crust, while Parmesan adds flavor.
• Salt
• Dried Italian herbs

For the Toppings:

• Pasta sauce – Or pizza sauce.
• Mini mozzarella balls – If you can’t find these, you can dice a larger ball of fresh mozzarella.
• Olives
• Parmesan cheese
• Fresh basil – Optional, for garnish.

How to Make Cauliflower Crust Pizza

It’s pizza time! Let’s get started.

• Steam the cauliflower. Place the cauliflower in a pot and cover it with water. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Add salt and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until tender-crisp. Drain and cool.
• Process. Add the cooled cauliflower to a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped.

• Squeeze it. Transfer the cauliflower to a cheesecloth or clean kitchen towel. Hold it over your sink and squeeze hard to extract all the excess liquid.
• Finish the crust mixture. Add the cauliflower to a bowl and stir in the egg, mozzarella, Parmesan, Italian herbs, and salt.
• Bake the crust. Shape the crust mixture on a parchment-lined pan, patting it into a thick crust. Bake at 400ºF for 20 minutes.

• Top it. Spread the sauce onto the cauliflower pizza crust, then layer on the cheeses and olives. Bake for 20 minutes more.
• Serve. Add the basil, then slice and serve.

Tips for Success

These additional pointers will help you make sure your cauliflower crust pizza turns out perfect!

• Drain the cauliflower super well. Make sure you remove ALL the excess water from your cauliflower to get a crispy crust. Squeeze, squeeze, and then squeeze some more!
• Don’t make it too thin. Your crust should be just a little less than ¼-inch thick. If you make it too thin, it won’t support your toppings.
• Add the basil at the end. Basil is a very delicate herb, and baking will burn it. 

More Topping Ideas

You can make this cauliflower pizza crust the base for any pizza, but it’s best not to load it up with lots of heavy toppings. Keep it light and simple and you can’t go wrong! Here are a few more ideas to try.

• Swap the tomato-based sauce for my Everyday Vegan Pesto.
• Instead of olives, add pepperoni or crumbled sausage.
• Add shaved zucchini or asparagus for a light veggie topping that won’t weigh down the crust.

How to Store and Reheat Leftovers

• Refrigerator: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
• Freezer: Freeze leftover cauliflower crust pizza in a freezer bag or airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before reheating.
• To reheat: Warm leftovers in a 425ºF oven until heated through. You can also use the microwave, but the crust won’t be as crispy.