Lemony Kale and Ricotta "Pizza"
It looks like carbs but SURPRISE! It's cauliflower! If anyone can convince me to cave into the cauliflower pizza crust trend, it's Coley Cooks, one of my absolute favorite food bloggers. She posted a similar recipe recently which left me curious and inspired. I can't lie and say it replaces the real thing, but it's a delicious and much lighter alternative. Coley's recipe called for fresh mozzarella on top, but I used what I had, which meant dollops of ricotta instead. I happened to have Meyer lemons on hand too, so that's what I used. I found that my crusts took longer to crisp up and turn golden, so I adjusted my recipe for that. That being said, despite that golden crispness, this is still much more of a fork and knife kind of pie. Makes 2 pizzas. Serves 2-4.
Ingredients
CRUSTS
1 head cauliflower, trimmed and roughly chopped (about 6 cups)
2 eggs
2 tablespoons almond meal (I use Bob's Red Mill)
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella (not fresh)
1/2 cup grated parmesan
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Olive oil, for drizzling
PIZZAS
1 small bunch kale, stems removed and chopped into pieces
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for drizzling
Zest and juice from 1 lemon
Pinch red pepper flakes, to taste
Coarse kosher salt, to taste
1/2 cup finely grated parmesan
1/2 cup whole milk ricotta (or more, if you like it cheesy)
4 tablespoons thinly sliced basil leaves
Instructions
CRUSTS
Preheat a pizza stone or upside down cookie sheet in the oven at 425 degrees. Set aside two square sheets of parchment paper.
In the bowl of a food processor, add the cauliflower and pulse until very finely chopped - like the texture of fine breadcrumbs. I had to do this in batches because of the size of my processor. You can also by "riced cauliflower" at the grocery store now, so you can always use that instead. Just make sure it's very finely chopped or else send it for a spin in the processor.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, almond meal, mozzarella, parmesan, salt and garlic powder. Add the cauliflower and mix until combined.
Place a piece of parchment paper on the back of a cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Place half of the cauliflower mixture on to the parchment and form it (with your hands) into a large disc about 10-12 inches around. Drizzle with a little more olive oil, then slide it on to the pizza stone/upside down cookie sheet parchment and all, and cook for about 30-35 minutes or until deep golden brown throughout. Repeat with the remaining cauliflower mixture. Coley says: Pizza crusts can be made several hours ahead. (I used immediately)
PIZZAS
In a medium bowl, combine the kale, garlic, olive oil, lemon zest, red pepper flakes and season lightly with salt. Distribute the kale mixture between both pizza crusts, then bake on the pizza stone for about 8-10 minutes or until the kale is wilted and crisp in parts. Remove from the oven and top with small dollops of ricotta. Place back in the oven for 1 minute more. (Repeat with the other pizza). Top with the sliced basil leaves, squeeze some lemon juice over the top, drizzle with olive oil, cut, serve and ENJOY!
