Cauliflower Crust Veggie Pizza

Enriching your diet with fibre and vegetables doesn’t mean you have to give up simple pleasures. In fact, those guilty-pleasure creations can be transformed into amazing, fibre-rich, and healthy alternatives. One of our most adored creations is this green veggie pizza with a no-grain cauliflower crust and an abundance of greens. It’s perfect for vegan, vegetarian and Paleo protocols, but trust me, anyone looking to enjoy pizza with a fresh, green twist will love it too!

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Ready to shake up your pizza night with something healthy and totally tasty? Our Green Veggie Pizza on a cauliflower crust is a game-changer. Picture this: a crust that’s crispy outside, chewy inside, and totally gluten-free thanks to cauliflower and coconut flour. Topped with artichokes, zucchini slices, snap peas, and crispy kale chips, it’s a veggie lover’s dream come true. Plus, there’s creamy cashew cheese and a basil-packed vegan pesto that add layers of flavour you’ll crave.

A good idea is to whip up some kale chips or batch of pesto beforehand. They’re not just for pizza; they jazz up salads, wraps, or make for a fibre-rich light snack on their own.

Whether you devour it fresh out of the oven or savor the leftovers, this pizza proves healthy eating can be fun and seriously delicious. So, grab your apron and let’s get cooking – pizza night just got a whole lot greener and tastier!

Cauliflower Crust Ingredients:

• Cauliflower: a perfect versatile product that can be used as a base for many dishes. In this Veggie Pizza recipe, we use it as the main ingredient for the crust.
• Coconut Flour: A great gluten-free flour alternative. It absorbs a lot of moisture from other ingredients, making it a good addition to vegetable-based dishes. If you have an allergy to coconut, you can replace it with almond flour or pumpkin seed flour.
• Flaxseeds: rich in fibre and work as a binding agent for the dough.
• Turmeric: adds a pinch of antioxidants and gives the crust a nice golden colour.
• Garlic Powder: adds a touch of umami flavour to the veggie crust.
• Coriander: enhances the complexity of the flavour.
• Fenugreek: we love it as an accompaniment for savoury baked pastries or baked starchy vegetables, which makes it a perfect addition to Cauliflower Crust.
• Nutritional Yeast: adds another umami note that, combined with all the other spices, creates an amazing aroma profile.
• Salt: just a pinch of good-quality sea or Himalayan salt will serve as a natural flavour enhancer.

Pizza Topping Ingredients:

• Canned Artichokes: add a delightful and tender briny note to your pizza.
• Raw Zucchini: provides a light, refreshing crunch that complements the other toppings.
• Snap Pea: whether raw or blanched for just a minute, snap peas add a burst of colour and a satisfying, lightly sweet crunch to your pizza.
• Kale: when oven-roasted at a low temperature to become chips, it adds a slightly bitter taste and extra crunch.
• Cashew Cheese: creamy and dairy-free, it adds a rich, savoury flavour, perfect for a vegan pizza. Our absolute favourite for this Vegan Pizza Recipe is Spread’Em Cashew Cheese.

Vegan Pesto Ingredients:

• Basil Leaves: bring a vibrant, herbal flavour to the pesto, which is essential for its classic taste.
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil: adds a luxurious texture and depth of flavour. Opt for the best quality and truly extra virgin olive oil.
• Nutritional Yeast: provides a cheesy, umami touch without dairy, enhancing the pesto’s richness and complexity.
• Pine Nuts: slightly toasted they bring a signature nutty flavour and buttery richness.
• Lemon Juice: brightens the flavours of the pesto, adding a tangy citrus note.
• Salt: just a pinch enhances the overall taste, bringing out the flavours.

Step-by-step:

1. Break a clean cauliflower head into small florets and steam (or boil) for 2 minutes. Don’t cook the cauliflower completely – just let it soften a bit to help form the crust. Once ready, set aside to cool down to room temperature.
2. Place the pre-cooked cauliflower florets in a blender and pulse several times until you get a crumbly texture. Do not over-pulse – you don’t want it too smooth and creamy. Aim for an even but still crumbly texture.
3. Squeeze out the excess moisture from cauliflower crumbs using a nut milk bag or a cheesecloth. Combine the dry cauliflower crumbs with coconut flour, ground flaxseeds, and all the spices. Massage the mixture and form a ball of dough. This amount will make two medium-sized pizza crusts.

4. Form the pizza crust on parchment paper and bake at 180°C for about 15 minutes or until the edges become golden brown.

5. Make the vegan pesto: place basil leaves, extra virgin olive oil, and slightly roasted pine nuts into a food processor and pulse. Add lemon juice, salt, and nutritional yeast, then pulse again for a smooth pesto texture.

6. Prepare the Toppings:
   • Artichokes: Drain excess water from the canned artichokes and cut them into halves.
   • Zucchini: Slice raw zucchini using a vegetable slicer.
   • Snap Peas: Use them raw or blanch for just one minute.
   • Kale: Cut off the hard stems and tear the leaves into pieces. Sprinkle with salt and oven roast at 120°C for about 15 minutes or until dry and crispy. This may take a bit longer or require adjusting the temperature depending on your oven – be careful not to burn the kale.
7. Assemble the Pizza. When the crust is ready, spread the basil pesto evenly over it. Arrange all the toppings – artichokes, zucchini slices, snap peas, kale chips, and cashew cheese crumbles. Finish with a sprinkle of pine nuts. For extra crunch and warmth, bake for an additional 10 minutes.

Some handy tips to enhance your Cauliflower Crust Veggie Pizza:

• Cooking everything from scratch in one day can be time-consuming. However, prepping some of the ingredients like kale chips or vegan pesto ahead of time can save you a lot of time on the day you plan to cook. Plus, these ingredients can be used on their own to accompany other dishes.
• Squeezing the excess moisture from the cauliflower is a game-changer. It really helps to form a solid dough ball and shape the crust. Steaming the florets is also important as it softens the cauliflower and makes it more sticky when used as crumbs.
• If you’re feeling a bit lazy, you can use store-bought frozen cauliflower rice. Just let it thaw and squeeze out the excess moisture.
• We find that a cast iron skillet is perfect for baking this crust as it helps to cook it evenly, though it’s not a must. You can use a pizza stone or just a baking tray as well.
• After assembling the toppings, you don’t need to bake the pizza again. However, we love to give it a final touch with a torch to add an extra crisp to the veggies.
• If you want to make it extra special, try bringing your kale chips to a new level! Tear the leaves into pieces, toss them in a big bowl with a pinch of salt, 1 tablespoon of nutritional yeast, 1 tablespoon of raw tahini paste, and 1 tablespoon of coconut aminos. Massage the mixture and oven roast until crisp at around 120°C.
  You’ll get slightly chewy and crispy chips with a nutty and umami touch.

Storage:

This Veggie Pizza is definitely at its best when served and consumed straight after cooking. Considering how delicious and light it is, it’s not hard to enjoy all of it right away. However, you can still store it in an airtight container in the fridge for 1-2 days.

Alternatively, you can prepare your crust in advance and freeze it for up to 1.5 months. When you’re ready for your next pizza adventure, simply bake the crust at 180°C for about 35-45 minutes or until slightly golden brown crust (you’ll need additional time compared to the original step-by-step instructions due to starting with a frozen crust). After baking, top it with the veggies and pesto.

Tips for serving:

It’s better to cut this Cauliflower Crust Veggie Pizza after letting it cool a bit but while it’s still warm. This helps the crust hold together better and makes slicing easier.

Experiment with different toppings and sides to create your perfect meal with these delicious green pea patties!

Storage:

To store these green pea patties, cool them completely after cooking. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3-4 days or freeze for up to 2-3 months. Reheat in the oven at 180° C (350° F) until heated through.

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