What haven’t I done before?

I have heard about using cauliflower as a pizza base but never really gave it much thought until discussing it with a colleague last week – I thought I should give it a go and see what all the fuss is about. It is different but it does work surprisingly well – I think it’s also about all the delicious toppings that you add on (like a normal pizza really).

Ingredients (serves 2):

Pizza base

1 x Cauliflower, blitzed into fine pieces
50g x Parmesan cheese, grated
Chilli flakes, oregano, salt and pepper (to taste)
1 or 2 eggs
Rice flour (optional)

Sauce

150g x Passata
1 x Garlic clove, crushed
Oregano
Chilli flakes
1 x Vine tomato, sliced
1 x Red onion, sliced
1 x Mozzarella ball, sliced
1 x Spring onion, diced
2 x Tbsp sweetcorn
6-8 slices of pepperoni

Method:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
2. Put the blitzed cauliflower into a microwaveable bowl and cook for 5-6 minutes – stir at 3 minutes and then carry on cooking.
3. Wait until cool and then add the Parmesan cheese, chilli flakes, oregano, salt and pepper – mix well.
4. Add in the egg and try to form a ‘dough’ – I found this quite difficult and added another egg but then I needed to use rice flour to reduce the moisture. I would put 1 egg and try really hard to make the dough. If this doesn’t combine then add in another egg and use some rice flour. When you have managed this you will need to flatten into a pizza shape on a lined baking tray (use greaseproof paper, not foil). Bake in the oven for 15 minutes until golden brown.
5. Meanwhile, to make the sauce put the passata, garlic, oregano and chilli flakes into a bowl and mix.
6. When the base is ready, remove from the oven and evenly spread the tomato sauce over the base. Decorate with your toppings and then bake for a further 10 minutes.
7. It can be a little moist due to the sauce so you may not want to put a tomato sauce on but use lots more tomato slices instead.
8. Serve with a crispy salad.