Helen and Melissa Eat Pizza, What!?

No, they didn’t go “off the wagon”, what they did do is come up with a couple of really great options to cut down the starches and make a great tasting pizza that doesn’t have to be loaded down with a bunch of junk!

After all there’s a lot of great things to be said about a Pizza topped with fresh tomato sauce, loaded with veggies and topped with some fresh mozzarella cheese. The magic of these two recipes is they go a step further and add some unusual (and tasty) crust options.

Now don’t be fooled into thinking you can eat all you want, because calories still count, but put away your skepticism and give them a try – in fact we have had a number of clients who made Helen’s recipe and they could not believe there was no bread, and neither could their family – it’s that good!

Helen’s Pizza Crust

Helen, one of Get Fit NH’s finest, talked up this recipe so much we had her send it to us to make. Its a hit with our family too.

Helen said, “Here’s a pizza recipe with 1.7 grams of carbs! Well, that’s if it serves 8…. In our house, it doesn’t but you can do the math. And, the kids couldn’t even tell the difference! This is the only pizza in our house and I don’t miss the “regular” at all.”

Crust Ingredients:

• 3 cups shredded mozzarella
• 1 cup shredded Colby and Monterey jack cheese
• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. basil

Combine above  – this is the crust. Honest! Use a 13 x 9 pan.

Bake this ‘crust’ at 450 degrees until browned to desired crispness/doneness, about 25 minutes.

It does not stick to the pan.

Then top with ¼ cup pizza sauce, more or less to your taste or your carbohydrate load. Add any mix of toppings that you like. You can also add additional cheese on top. Place under the broiler until the cheese is melted to desired point.

Cauliflower Crust Pizza

Melissa, a superstar in Epsom, found this recipe and tweaked it a bit to make it her own. Amy and I made this for our family at  lunch. A hit enjoyed by all.

Ingredients:

• 1- 1/2 cup cooked, riced cauliflower
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 6-8 crushed garlic cloves
• pizza sauce, shredded cheese and your choice of toppings

To “Rice” the Cauliflower:
Take 1 large head of fresh cauliflower, remove stems and leaves, and chop the florets into chunks. Add to food processor and pulse until it looks like grain. Do not over-do pulse or you will puree it. (If you don’t have a food processor, you can grate the whole head with a cheese grater). I used a Vitamix blender and placed the cauliflower in three small batches to achieve the desired grain appearance.

Place the riced cauliflower into a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 8 minutes. There is no need to add water, as the natural moisture in the cauliflower is enough to cook itself.

One large head should produce approximately 3 cups of riced cauliflower. The remainder can be stored in the refrigerator for up to one week.

To Make the Pizza Crust:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray. I used peanut oil in a spray bottle and spread it around with my finger tips.

In a medium bowl, stir together 1 to 1/2 cup cauliflower, egg and mozzarella. Add oregano, and crushed garlic, stir. Transfer to the cookie sheet, and using your hands, pat out into a 9″ round. I made three pizzas with 1 cup cauliflower in each. It was a bit too thin to hold the crust like a pizza without folding it over. Next time I am going to use the larger amount of cauliflower.

Bake at 450 degrees for 15 minutes.

Remove from oven. To the crust, add sauce, toppings and cheese. Place under a broiler at high heat just until cheese is melted (approximately 3-4 minutes).

Melissa said she added spinach and mushrooms to her pizzas while we added a mix of peppers, mushrooms, olives, and red onions. The toppings are endless. next time I’d love to make tomato slices and fresh basil or spinach, garlic and feta.

Can anyone come up with other topping ideas?

Coach Nancy