Cauliflower Pizza Crust With 4 Toppings

DIFFICULTY
Easy Easy
COOK TIME
Under 2 Hrs. Under 2 Hrs.
SERVES
2-4 2-4
Cauliflower Pizza Crust With 4 Toppings
Main ingredients
  • Vegetables
Ingredients
Method

Ingredients

Pizza base:
  • 250g cauliflower florets
  • 125ml water
  • 2 slightly heaped tablespoons ground almonds
  • 2 slightly heaped tablespoons chickpea flour
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 teaspoon light olive oil
Topping one:
  • 100g Taleggio cheese, sliced
  • 100g prepared grilled artichokes in oil, halved
  • 3 slices Parma ham
Topping two:
  • 1 tablespoon light olive oil
  • 200g aubergine, sliced into1½ cm thick rounds
  • 60ml jarred tomato basil sauce
  • 100g mozzarella, sliced and placed on kitchen paper to absorb excess liquid
  • 10g grated pecorino cheese
  • 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1½ teaspoons chopped basil
Topping three:
  • 60g shaved asparagus
  • ½ teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
  • Salt and pepper
  • 125g ricotta
  • 10g grated Parmesan
  • 1 teaspoon lemon-infused olive oil
  • 1/8 teaspoon chilli flakes
Topping four:
  • 80g sun-blush tomatoes (semi-dried marinated tomatoes in oil)
  • 8 anchovy fillets, sliced in half longways
  • 50g pitted black olives
  • 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 small clove garlic, crushed
  • 1 teaspoon oregano leaves, chopped
  • 20g rocket

  • Method

  • 1
    Preheat oven to 220˚C / Fan Oven 200˚C / Gas Mark 7.
  • 2
    Process the cauliflower quite finely. Place in the Le Creuset Cast Iron Skillet with 125ml of water and cook over a low to medium heat until soft and most of the liquid has been absorbed. This will take about 5 to 8 minutes. Alternatively, cook in a bowl in a microwave, covered, with a couple of tablespoons of water. Place in a fine sieve over a bowl to drain. Press lightly to remove any excess liquid.
  • 3
    In a bowl, whisk the ground almonds and chickpea flour together to remove any lumps. If very lumpy, then sieve. Add the egg and extra virgin olive oil to the bowl and whisk until smooth. Mix this with the cooled cauliflower and season well.
  • 4
    Place your skillet back onto a low to medium heat with the light olive oil and when hot, add the cauliflower mixture, which should sizzle, and spread it over the base and about an inch up the sides of the pan quickly, aided by a spoon. Cook it for about 5 minutes until lightly browned and set underneath, then transfer to the second shelf from the top of the oven and bake for about 10-12 minutes until it is nicely coloured. You may need to turn it half way to cook it evenly.
  • 5
    Remove from the oven and place on your toppings of choice.
  • 6
    Topping one
  • 7
    Place the Taleggio cheese slices and the artichokes on the pizza and return to the oven for about 5 minutes until the cheese is nicely melted. Remove from the oven and top with roughly torn Parma ham.
  • 8
    Cook's Notes
  • 9
    This also works very well with speck instead of Parma ham if you can get it. It is a lightly smoked cured ham form the Alto Adige region of Italy.
  • 10
    A drizzle of rosemary oil is also nice. Mix a teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil with ½ teaspoon of finely chopped rosemary and place it on the pizza either ahead or after cooking.
  • 11
    Another option is to cook a small red onion sliced into rounds in a teaspoon of light olive oil in the skillet ahead of cooking the pizza base. Add the onion with the taleggio and artichokes before finishing with the ham and the rosemary oil, if liked.
  • 12
    Topping two
  • 13
    Cook the sliced aubergine (which will probably need to be done in two batches) in the skillet ahead of cooking your cauliflower base till nicely browned and put aside. Then proceed from Step 4 above. Place the tomato sauce, mozzarella and then the aubergines on the pizza and put back in the oven for about 8 minutes until the mozzarella is nicely bubbling. Whilst it is cooking mix the olive oil with the chopped basil. Remove the pizza from the oven and drizzle with the basil oil and sprinkle the pecorino cheese over and serve.
  • 14
    Topping three
  • 15
    Season the ricotta with salt and pepper and spread it on the pizza base. Mix the shaved asparagus with the extra virgin olive oil and season and place it on top of the ricotta. Bake for about 8 minutes and then remove from oven. Drizzle the lemon oil over then sprinkle with the chilli flakes and Parmesan cheese.
  • 16
    If you can find fresh marjoram, the flavour works well here. Mix about ½ teaspoon of chopped marjoram with the seasoned ricotta before spreading it on the pizza base.
  • 17
    Topping four
  • 18
    For this topping, you will need to bake the pizza base a little longer before adding the topping. Bake the base for 15 minutes at step 3. Once cooked, mix together the oil with the garlic and oregano and spread this over the base. Place the anchovies, sun-blush tomatoes and olives on the pizza and bake for about 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle the rocket leaves over.
  • 19
    This pizza works well with mozzarella too. Bake the base for only 10-12 minutes in the initial phase. Use about 75-100g of sliced mozzarella and place it on the base then proceed with the rest of the toppings and cook for about 8 minutes until the mozzarella is bubbling. Then finish with the rocket.
  • 20
    Another option is to sprinkle over 10g grated pecorino or Parmesan before serving.