veggie

Spinach Cauliflower Pizza

Spinach Cauliflower Pizza is a favorite of ours. We eat mostly grain free and with pizza being my favorite Sunday night meal, I was determined to find an alternative. One thing I didn’t want to do was spend every Sunday afternoon prepping dinner, so I’ve shortened the process from other cauliflower crust recipes. The whole steaming of the cauliflower and wringing it with a tea towel was not for me. I eliminated that whole mess of a process pronto, as you will see in the recipe. If you have a pizza stone you will get even crispier crust results. Topping the pizza with large leaf spinach or Swiss chard sauté (recipe below) makes it a wonderfully healthy and flavorful. You are invited to have your own traditional pizza night, like we do, with this cauliflower pizza and feel great after eating it!

Cauliflower Pizza Crust

3 cups riced cauliflower
1/3 cup fresh parmesan cheese
1/3 cup almond flour
1 tsp. basil
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes (opt.)
1/2 tsp. pink salt
2 eggs

Preheat oven to 200 C/400 F. Place pizza stone in the oven while preheating. To rice cauliflower- place cauliflower florets into a food processor and whir till it is rice size pieces of cauliflower. Measure 3 cups into a medium size bowl. Add parmesan, almond flour, basil, oregano, red pepper flakes and salt. Mix well with a spoon. Add the eggs to the side of the bowl and stir to break up eggs and then mix into the rest of riced cauliflower mixture. Lay a piece of parchment paper on a flat-sided large cookie sheet. Pour Cauli mixture onto the paper. Spread a little with a spoon, then pat out the “dough” with your hands, shaping it into a large oval pizza crust. This will not be like dough at all, since it has no flour in it. Try to make the crust base fairly thin. You don’t want it thick or it won’t get crisp like. Form a little crust around the edge. Make sure that this will fit onto the stone that is in the oven. When you are finished shaping your crust place it in the oven on your cookie sheet, but if you have a stone~ you will slide the parchment paper with the crust onto the pizza stone in the oven to bake. Bake for 25-30 minute until nicely browned. Now slip the crust onto the cookie sheet and flip it over. Remove the parchment paper and slip the crust back into the pizza stone in the oven for a 5-6 minutes to brown up the bottom. (If not using a stone, just remove the crust on the cookie sheet from the oven, turn it over and peel off the parchment paper and place it back into the oven to brown up the underside of the pizza for 5-6 mins.) Watch it carefully so it doesn’t burn. Next, remove it from the oven and slide it onto a cooling rack to cool crust before topping it.

Spinach & Toppings

2 tsp. oil
6-8 cups large leaf spinach or swiss chard, chopped
pink salt to taste
red pepper flakes, opt.
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 Tbl. olive oil
1-2 cups shredded cheddar or mozzarella cheese
2-3 Tbl. tomato paste
oregano
6 baby tomatoes (cut each into 4ths and roast while crust is baking)

While pizza crust is baking, oil large skillet with 2 tsp. oil. Over medium low heat, place spinach or swiss chard (my favorite) in the skillet. Season with a little pink salt and red pepper flakes and cover. Check frequently and flip the spinach over until softened. Try not to let the moisture on the lid into the spinach. You don’t want it too wet. Shred cheese.

To Assemble:

Place cooled pizza crust onto your cookie sheet. Drizzle olive oil on crust. Spread with fingers around crust. This will prevent the crust from getting soggy. Top with tomato paste, spreading thinly to near edge, leaving a crust. Sprinkle with oregano. Next top with the swiss chard or spinach. Using a garlic press, crush garlic over the spinach. Top with the desired amount of cheese.

Push topped pizza off of the cookie sheet onto the pizza stone that is still in the oven, or just simply place the crust on the cookie sheet in the oven. Cook until the cheese is melted. Remove, cool slightly and cut into 12 slices.

I hope you have as much fun munching away on pizza as we do on Sunday nights:)

Foodie Mama

Veggie Eggplant Lasagna

I made this lasagna while my niece Sophia was visiting me here in South Africa. It was a really fun bonding experience being able to cook together. After making it we shared this flavorful dish with my husband Terry and friends. It was a hit! This is on my keeper list of recipes that I make often. You can also make this ahead and cook it the next day.

Vegetable Noodles

2 large eggplant, peeled & sliced longwise into 1/4 inch slices
salt and pepper
baking paper

Ricotta Mixture

2 cups ricotta cheese (my homemade ricotta here)
2 eggs
3 spring (green) onions, chopped
3 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2 cup fresh parmesan, shredded

Veggie Sauce

2 onions, chopped
2-3 carrots, chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
4-5 medium zucchini, sliced and halved
1 red bell pepper, chopped
any leftover eggplant, chopped
1/2 Tbl. oregano
1/2 Tbl. basil
1/2 Tbl. thyme
1/2-1 tsp. red pepper flakes
300 grams/ 10 oz. frozen, chopped spinach
1 cup dry red wine
350 ml./ 12 oz. tomato sauce
1 can (390 gm.) diced tomatoes
salt & pepper
2 Tbl. oil (I use macadamia nut oil because it can endure high heat)

Preheat oven to 220 degrees C/ 425 degrees F. Line cookie sheet with baking paper and lay out eggplant slices side by side. You may need 2 trays. Season with salt and pepper. Bake 5 minutes then flip each slice over and bake 5 more mins. Remove from oven and set aside. Lower oven to 190 C/ 375F.

To make cheese mixture: blend ricotta, egg and green (spring) onions.

For veggie sauce: saute onion and carrots in the 2 Tbl. oil until it begins to soften. Add garlic, zucchini, red bell pepper and leftover eggplant, if any. Cook about 5 minutes till softened. Add spinach, tomatoes, spices and wine. Simmer uncovered for about 15-20 minutes until all the vegetables are soft and sauce has reduced a bit. Season with salt and pepper.

To Assemble: 1-Spread 1/3 of veggie sauce in bottom of 9″ x 13″ glass or stone pan. 2-Layer 1/2 eggplant slices, 1/2 ricotta mixture, 1/3 mozzarella and parmesan. 3-Repeat layers. 4-Add the last layer of sauce, then top with mozzarella and parmesan. Spray some foil with cooking oil spray and cover dish with foil, oiled sided down. Bake at 190C/375F for 1 hour. Remove foil and bake 10-15 mins more to slightly toast cheese. Let sit for about 10 mins before cutting into squares to serve.