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This Cauliflower Pizza Crust recipe is a delicious way to enjoy your next pizza night! It’s naturally gluten-free and grain-free, plus you’ll get extra veggies in each bite.
I originally posted this recipe back in 2011, when I learned the secret to making a cauliflower pizza crust that isn’t soggy. (You need to squeeze out the moisture from the cooked cauliflower before making your crust mixture!)
Now that we’ve been making this pizza crust for over a decade, I’ve learned some time-saving tricks, like using frozen cauliflower to skip the cooking process. Sometimes you can even find frozen riced cauliflower, which will let you skip using the food processor, too.
Be sure to read all the tips below if you’d like to make a frozen pizza crust that you can use in the future, or if you need to make any substitutions.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Fresh or frozen cauliflower is the base of this recipe, without using any extra flour for filler. As a result, this recipe is low-carb and keto-friendly.
The egg and cheese act as a binder and hold the crust together. Soft goat cheese (chevre) gives the crust an amazing, non-greasy texture and you can’t taste it at all. However, you can also use grated Parmesan cheese or your favorite shredded cheese to create a crust that will hold together.
Adding oregano helps add an Italian flavor you’ll love, and you can also add a pinch of garlic powder if you’d like.
Need an egg-free recipe?
Try my Vegan Cauliflower Pizza Crust recipe, which is made without eggs or cheese.
How to Make Cauliflower Pizza Crust
Preheat the oven to 400ºF and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. If you’re using fresh cauliflower, place the cauliflower florets in a food processor fitted with an S-blade. (Mine is a 12-cup size.)
Briefly pulse the florets until they have a rice-like texture.
Transfer the cauliflower rice to the prepared baking sheet and spread it out into an even layer. Place it in the oven to soften and cook for 15 minutes.
Alternatively, you can place the cauliflower in a covered microwave-safe bowl and cook for 4 to 5 minutes on high to steam it. Or, you can cook it in a large skillet with a 1/4 cup of water for 8 to 10 minutes, until it has softened and the water has evaporated.
Once the cauliflower has cooked, let it cool for 10 minutes, or until you can safely handle it without burning yourself.
Time-Saving Tip
If you buy frozen cauliflower florets, you can simply let them thaw overnight in the fridge before making this crust. They will have a tender texture so you can skip the cooking step altogether! Simply pulse them in a food processor and then wring out the moisture as directed.
Transfer the riced cauliflower to the center of a clean dish towel. Arrange the towel filled with cauliflower over a small bowl, then squeeze as much liquid as you can out of the cooked cauliflower.
It might not feel like there’s excess moisture at first, but you may be surprised by how much liquid is released! (There should be at least 3 to 4 tablespoons of liquid in the bowl.)
Place the cauliflower rice that you just squeezed into a large bowl, then add in the egg, cheese, oregano, salt, and a pinch of black pepper, if desired.
Use a spatula to stir well, until the cauliflower mixture looks relatively uniform.
Arrange a fresh piece of parchment paper, if needed, on the large baking sheet, then place the cauliflower mixture in the center of the pan.
Use your hands to gently press the cauliflower pizza dough into the shape of a round pizza crust, about 10 to 12 inches wide. It will be thin, but there shouldn’t be any holes in the crust.
Tip
Get your hands wet if you find that the crust is sticking to your fingers; wet hands help prevent sticking!
Place the cauliflower crust in the oven to bake at 350ºF for 30 minutes, or until the crust looks golden. Then it’s ready for toppings!
Add a thin layer of pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese, and any toppings you love, like pepperoni, mushrooms, onions, fresh basil, or olives.
Return the pizza to the oven to bake until the cheese has melted, about 10 more minutes.
You can turn on the broiler and watch closely if you want the cheese to turn golden even faster.
Let the pizza cool for 5 minutes, then cut into slices. Because you took the time to remove excess moisture, the crust should be easy to pick up with your hands!
Leftover pizza slices can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Or you can freeze them for up to 3 months.
Looking for more low-carb dinner ideas? Try Cauliflower Fried Rice, Zucchini Lasagna, or Chicken Vegetable Soup for more options.
Ingredients
- 1 pound cauliflower florets (or thawed from frozen; see notes)
- 1 large egg , beaten
- ⅓ cup soft goat cheese (or grated Parmesan)
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF. If the cauliflower isn't already riced, add the cauliflower florets into a food processor and pulse briefly, until it has a rice-like texture. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, then spread the cauliflower rice out in a single layer. Bake for 15 minutes, or until the cauliflower is tender.
- If you're using frozen cauliflower, be sure that it is completely thawed, and process it into a rice-like texture using a food processor. (Alternatively, you can start with frozen cauliflower rice that has been thawed, to skip the food processor step.) There is no need to cook thawed frozen cauliflower so it will save you time! Tip: You can use up to 1 ½ pounds of cauliflower if you want to use two 12-ounce bags. This crust will still hold together well!
- Once the riced cauliflower has been cooked (or thawed), transfer it to a clean, thin dishtowel. Wrap up the steamed rice in the dishtowel, twist it up, then SQUEEZE all the excess moisture out! (Be careful if your cauliflower is still hot; let it cool before handling.) A lot of extra liquid will be released, which will help you avoid a soggy pizza crust.
- In a large bowl, mix up the squeezed-out rice, egg, cheese, oregano, and salt. It won't be like any pizza dough you've ever worked with, but don't worry, it will work!
- Press the dough out onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. (It's important that it's lined with parchment paper, not wax paper, or it will stick.) Keep the dough about 1/4-inch thick. Wet your hands to prevent sticking, if needed.
- Bake for 30 minutes at 400ºF or until the top looks dry and golden.
- Add your favorite pizza toppings to the crust, such as sauce and cheese, then return the pizza to the 400ºF oven. Bake an additional 5-10 minutes, just until the cheese is hot and bubbly. Slice and serve warm.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
If you try this Cauliflower Pizza Crust recipe, please leave a comment and star rating below letting me know how you like it.
Must try this, too cool!!
LOVE IT!!! and bookmarking this now so we can remind ourselves to make this! looks soooooooooo good!
who knew that cauliflower would make a delicious pizza crust, love it
I’ve been waiting for this post for 5 days. I’m extremely excited and look forward to springing this on your neice and nephew tonight.
I hope you guys liked it!
LOVE you for posting this!!!!
That is so interesting! I’m totally going to try it for Friday pizza night! Thanks!
I’ve been wanting to make cauliflower crust pizza for a while now but it’s so time consuming. I thought about buying a crust from the store but they add so many other ingredients. So tonight I decided to give this recipe a try. I did use frozen riced cauliflower to try and save time. My husband and I loved it! He couldn’t tasted the goat cheese at all. I could definitely taste the goat cheese but it was still delicious. I’m curious what other cheese people have used besides goat cheese and mozzarella. Thanks again for the delicious recipe!
I used a half and half combo of mozzarella and parmesan. It was fantastic.
I have used Parmesan cheese- 1.5 cup grated for a 1.5 lb head of cauliflower. My guests thought it was delicious…. I thought so too!
You make the best photo tutorials. This recipe looks like such a healthy “treat” food. I will be breaking our my mini food processor to try it out!
I may or may not be jumping up and down with excitement right now! Pizza is my favorite comfort food. I tried the previous crust recipe and was underwhelmed. This looks so tastey! Thank you!
I felt the same way about the first recipe– hope you enjoy this one!! 😀
Wow this is such a great idea and looks so good! I love tricks that sneak even more healthy goodness into some of my favorites. A must try on my list. Thank you!
Love this idea! I’ll have to give it a try and see if I can fool my husband.
Ha, I hope it works!!
I tried this and it was WONDERFUL. I made two personal size round pizzas and had one for dinner and brought the other into work the next day. Lets just say I should have brought in more than one because a few of my co-workers wanted to try it and they absolutely LOVED IT and immediately asked for the recipe.
The definite key is to Squeeze the excess water out. GREAT tip.
The toppings I used was Sauce, Mozzerella cheese, fresh mushrooms, turkey chopped meat (cooked) and black olives. It was delicious. Thanks so much for sharing.
Karen, just out of curiosity, does it taste much like goat cheese? My husband and I both are not fans of goat cheese but I think it’s the only cheese that won’t make my husband feel sick.
Tracy, I’ve made this and it doesn’t taste like goat cheese. If you’re sensitive to that taste, maybe add more seasonings to it. Hope it works out!
Is it crispy? Can u hold it in your hand w/o it bending? Thx
I use the “herb” goat cheese and toss in a handfull of parmesan and it turns out incredible. the cauliflower really negates the goat cheesy bite
This recipe is a keeper. First time I tried to make the crust. The only issue I had is that the crust was a personal pan size @ 7 inches. I’m not sure how large the crust was supposed be. Other than that very tasty, crisper on the edges than the center. All on aii very good.
In my quest to give up bread, I came across this recipe and was VERY much the skeptic. I made this for dinner last night. OMG! Absolutely delicious, I am completely sold! Next time, I’m thinking after the dough is cooked and before toppings are added, I’ll transfer the dough to a pizza pan with holes in the bottom to see if I can’t get the crust just a bit crisper. Sharing this with everyone I know! Again, absolutely delicious! Also thought this same recipe could probably be used for flatbread for making wraps. NICE JOB MEGAN!!!!
Scott were you able to try this with the pizza pan with holes?? Did it make it crispier?
I’m thinking I didn’t get quite enough of the moisture out of mine, it was great, but I wouldn’t have been able to pick up a slice of it and hold it.
I flipped mine (baked on parchment paper on an aluminum cookie sheet) and baked another few minutes so it was browned on both sides. It was exactly right and you could lift each slice like normal pizza! So good!!
Make sure to squeeze all the water out before baking.
Bake for 40 min. at 400.
Add toppings and put under broiler for 5 min. until cheese melted.
This will give you crispy dough.
Use a black cooking mat. Put the mat on your pan form the pizza…. then carefully slide it directly onto the oven rack. When done carefully slide it back onto your pan and enjoy.. once you use the mat you won’t use anything else
Try using a splatter screen, one with a metal handle. They work great as a “pizza stone”.
absolutely brilliant! I can’t wait to use the splatter screen!!! Also, if you have a juicer, you can eliminate the straining and squeezing step; cook, juice, assemble.
Megan,
What kind of pizza sauce do you use? Or if you have some suggestions of some good pizza sauces I’ve noticed all the store bought pizza sauces I’ve used in the past have been gross.
Aldi has an expanding line of affordable and surprisingly good organic products, including two pasta sauces (marinara and tomato&basil). I buy both of these, and I find that the tomato&basil sauce makes a perfect pizza sauce on my cauliflower crust! It’s flavorful and simple.
I use fire roasted tomatoes. If they are diced I just put them in my bullet for a few seconds. They taste really nice on this pizza !
Rao’s pizza and pasta sauce is Amazing!!!it low calorie and it’s so good you don’t have to Dr it up at all
I have always used tomato paste for my sauce i add italian seasoning to it .
Awesome
Tori, I make a good Keto friendly sauce and actually I’d eat it even if it wasn’t Keto friendly.
I mix it all in a mason jar and put the lid on and shake until mixed. You can mix it any way you wish. Then I baste it on pizza crust. So it usually yields about 3, 10 in pizzas.
6 oz tomato paste
1 cup hot water
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp granulated Stevia sweetener or to taste
2 tbsp grated Parmesan
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ tsp dried oregano
½ tsp dried basil
½ tsp dried thyme
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
½ tsp pepper
salt to taste
wondering whether transferring to a hot stone would work?
I form my crust on a piece of parchment, then slide it on a preheated pizza stone. Bake a few minutes, then flip the crust onto the stone, peel off the parchment paper, add toppings, then finish baking. Nicely crisped every time with the crust firm enough to pick up and eat by hand.
Hi Megan
This is a fantastic recipe. I’ve used it now a few times and we love it!! I have to say though I am still struggling to get it crispy and firm. We have to use a knife and fork every time to eat it as it just can’t be picked up. I’m definitely straining and squeezing the moisture out and I’m cooling the bases a little longer to get them browner at first bake. But still no luck. 🙁 I even put all my toppings on really fast so the sauce doesn’t have much time to sink in.
Is there something else I should be doing? Thanks! 🙂
After I made the cauliflower “rice” and put it in the strainer, I let it sit for a long time, until it was cool enough to handle. I think the trick is that even if you think you have squeezed enough water out, you have to keep squeezing. By the time I was done squeezing, I had reduced an entire head of cauliflower down to a tight ball the size of my fist. I was nervous that I wouldn’t have enough, but I just kept on squeezing (and even changed to a second towel). It was pretty labor intensive, but it paid off because my crust was tight enough to hold up on its own. Good luck!
Maybe you could try using a potato ricer. I’m sure that would get ALL the extra moisture out.
I just put the riced cauliflower in a hot pan for like 15 min on medium-high, all the moisture evaporates! Way easier than using a strainer and/or cheese cloth or just waiting it out.
I cook it the day before, strain it an then refrigerate it. The next day I put it in a towel and squeeze the daylights out of it. Then I have a perfect crust.
I put a tea towel in a colander and pour the cauliflower out of the cooking pot. Then I rinse it with cold water until it’s cool enough to handle. Since it’s not porous, it doesn’t soak up any liquid, it just cools off. Then I wring the heck out of it and I’m ready to go.
My friend turned her pizza over to crisp it up. It seemed to work. I hope this at least gives you an idea. I made the recipe a few weeks ago and right out of the oven it wasn’t as firm as it was a few hours after it came out. Possibly you could make it the night before and see if it firms up.
I just made my first one doing it this way. Looks good, but seems like it’s gonna be soft. I had the same idea. Turning it over and cooking it some more before you top it and bake. I didn’t get enough moisture out of the cauliflower. I’m gonna try again tomorrow that way. Someone was saying to boil it and then juice it to get all of the moisture out. I think that’s a fabulous idea. Wish I had a juicer to try this reverse concept. I didn’t know I was diabetic until about 6 months ago. I think I’m gonna really like this recipe. ?
What if you added a corn starch to it?
My cauliflower looks more like mashed potatoes than rice after being cooked. I might have gotten it too puréed in the processor. Do you think it will still work?
I did that too…it cooked up great.
Maybe too much water in your sauces?
Can I use a hard cheese substitute as not allowed to eat soft cheeses such as goat.
Yes, hard cheese will work well, too– the texture will be just slightly different, but still good!
Holy cow. I’m just now expanding into this beautiful realm of food. Thank you for elevating my pizza game to a whole new level<3
Can I pulse the cauliflower in the vitamix? Thank you
Yes! I am trying this for the first time and just used my Vitamix to rice the cauliflower. It worked great!
My 3 year old will not eat veggies, but he loves this pizza crust. We loaded it with veggies and he ate 3 pieces!!!
If I do not have any parchment paper can I make this without or is there a substitute?
I simply sprayed my pizza stone and made sure I “loosened” it completely before adding toppings. I also substituted regular mozzarella for goat. The crust was yummy!
Why goat cheese for the cauliflower pizza dough? Can you use regular old mozzarella? thanks!! Trying to give up carbs….
The goat cheese just provides a nice texture and is easier to digest than cow’s dairy, but regular mozzarella should work, too!
I’m lactose intolerant. Can this crust be made without cheese?
goat cheese has less carbs than mozzarella. 1oz goat cheese= .3 net carbs while mozz. has .6 net carbs per 1 oz.
what is the calorie count for the califlower pizza
Just made this recipe tonight after visiting the post. It was absolutely delicious. After straining and putting in a towel. I put the towel back in the strainer over the sink and twisted while I pushed down. This got most all the water out. Mine ended up very firm and I could hold my pizza. GREAT RECIPE.
I had cauliflower pizza on Sunday. The family bought it frozen from the grocery store. You can buy Frozen cauliflower pizza dough at Sprouts or Kroger. I have made macaroni and cheese pizza dough for years for my children. I just buy a cheap box of macaroni and cheese dinner at an egg to it and spread it on a pizza pan. I make the mac and cheese according to the directions on the box only I added egg when it’s done and spread it on a pizza pan and continue like this recipe.
Ooooh I’ve been waiting for this one- can’t wait to try!!