Think pizza can’t be healthy? Think again! Below, Kara Stout, a wellness coach and professional counselor, shares her recipe for Arugula Berry Spring Pizza with Cauliflower Crust, perfect for those looking to indulge in a delicious pizza pie loaded with veggies and fruits!
Seriously, who doesn’t love pizza? My husband and I frequently make it at home using fresh, whole food ingredients with lots of veggies. So, I would say that pizza can, in fact, be a healthy food that also delicious!
Cauliflower crust is the hot, new thing in the health and cooking world. Well, not really a new thing, but it has become increasingly popular lately. I decided to try my hand at coming up with a simple recipe for this veggie-based crust, and it turned out great!
Not only does this crust make this pizza gluten-free and grain-free, the abundance of cauliflower provides vitamins C and K, fiber, folate, potassium, beta-carotene, choline and more!
With the addition of the flaxseed in the crust, as well as fresh basil pesto ingredients, plus arugula and berries, this spring pizza proves to be a great source of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, healthy fats and protein. It’s not only healthy, it’s also delicious and easier to make than you may think!
INGREDIENTS
Crust Ingredients:
- 3 cups cauliflower rice (you can find at Trader Joe’s)
- 1 free-range egg
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon flaxseed
Basil Pesto Ingredients:
- 1½ cups fresh basil leaves
- ¼ cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon raw pine nuts
Fresh Pizza Toppings:
- Arugula
- Blackberries
- Raspberries
- Raw pine nuts
- Optional: slices of Parmesan cheese
*Opt for organic ingredients when possible.
DIRECTIONS
- Heat cauliflower rice in a frying pan over medium to medium-high heat for approximately 6-to-10 minutes. This will soften the cauliflower. Let cool for five minutes.
- Whisk egg in a mixing bowl.
- Add Parmesan cheese, flaxseed and softened cauliflower into mixing bowl and mix together well.
- Place parchment paper on pizza pan and transfer dough onto pan.
- Pat dough into the shape of a pizza pie, making it approximately ¼-inch thick.
- Bake crust at 400 F for 20 minutes.
- While the crust is in the oven, make your pesto sauce by blending almond milk, basil, garlic, pine nuts and Parmesan cheese in a high-powered blender.
- Remove crust from oven and let cool.
- Spread pesto sauce evenly on crust and top with arugula, blackberries, raspberries, pine nuts and additional slices of Parmesan cheese if you’d like.
- Note: You can either eat it as is without warming up the toppings or you can place back in the oven for about 5-to-10 more minutes. Either option tastes great! The uncooked toppings give it a crisp, fresh taste, and the melted cheese and warm berries give it more of a comfort food taste (the warm berries remind me of a warm berry pie!). Totally your preference or you can’t go wrong trying both ways!
- Serve with your favorite sparkling white wine and enjoy!
