Cauliflower Pizza Crust

When Keely came home for a visit last week to celebrate my birthday, we thought it would be fun to try a new recipe. She was telling me about one of her friends who regularly makes pizza using cauliflower as the crust. Pizza is one of my favorite foods, so if one can make some healthy, yet tasty substitutions, then why not? At the onset, both Keely and I admittedly had low expectations. We were just planning to enjoy the experience of making something new together and then end up eating what we thought would be "just OK." We were so wrong!

We both took a bite, looked at each other with surprise, and then began the giggles.
"No way!"
"I can't believe this!"
"This is crazy!"
"No one would ever guess this is cauliflower!"
"I'm definitely making this for my kids one day as a way to sneak in some veggies and still have pizza night!"

You're gonna love the simplicity of it, too. Start with a head of cauliflower and "rice" it. That is, chop it so finely until it looks like, well, rice. Be sure to remove the stem and leaves first. If you have a food processor, this step will be easy. Don't over-do it, though, or you will puree it. Since I don't have a food processor, I just used my food chopper.

Next, microwave the riced cauliflower for 8 minutes. To make a 9 inch round pizza crust, you will only need 1 cup of the cooked, riced cauliflower. (I ended up with about 4 cups, so I saved the extra and made pizza again later in the week.) Add 1 cup of mozzarella cheese, 1 beaten egg, 1 teaspoon dried oregano and 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt.

Mix well and pat onto the pizza stone. (For the pizza below, I doubled the recipe, but this isn't recommended. If you make the pizza too large, it has a tendency to get a little soggy in the middle.) I sprayed a little olive oil on top so that the crust browns nicely. Bake at 450 degrees for 15 minutes. Done!

At this point, add your favorite sauce, toppings (pre-cooked), and cheese. Broil for about 3-4 minutes.

Keely and I made two varieties. For the first half, we used pesto sauce, mozzarella cheese, feta cheese, spinach, sundried tomatoes and a little more oregano on top. We figured out that one generous slice was approximately 293 calories, using the MyFitnessPal app. The second half was pretty traditional:  marinara sauce, mozzarella cheese, turkey pepperoni, and a few jalapenos and banana peppers. This version had only 195 calories per slice! A few days later, we made just a plain pepperoni as shown in the first picture above. Have fun trying your own favorite combinations!

Note: Be prepared to eat each slice with a fork. But, this is a small price to pay for a low-carb, low-cal, gluten-free, healthy meal. Shhhhh. Don't tell the kids! :D

Cauliflower Pizza Crust

Ingredients:

• 1 cup cooked, riced cauliflower
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano 
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
• olive oil spray (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Remove the stem and leaves from cauliflower and "rice" it. That is, chop it so finely until it looks like grain. Next, microwave the riced cauliflower for 8 minutes. Mix together all ingredients listed above and pat onto a pizza stone or sprayed cookie sheet. Spray olive oil on top (optional). Bake for 15 minutes.

Add your favorite sauce, toppings (pre-cooked), and cheese. Broil for about 3-4 minutes until cheese is melted.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Fudge

We're almost two weeks into the new year. Did you make any resolutions? Are you still going strong? As a statistician, naturally I was intrigued by some of the stats I ran across online, published by Stephen Shapiro, on this very topic:

• 45% of Americans usually set New Year’s resolutions.
• Only 8% of people are always successful in achieving their resolutions.
• 3 out of 4 people almost never succeed.
• The less happy you are, the more likely you are to set New Year's resolutions. 
• 38% set resolutions related to weight.

Good grief! Depressing, huh? But, wait! Here's the best statistic:

"There is no correlation between happiness 

and resolution setting/success. 

People who achieve their resolutions every year 

are no happier than those who do not set resolutions 

or who are unsuccessful in achieving them."

I love that! So, give yourself a break. And while you're at it, you should treat yourself to some of this chocolate chip cookie dough fudge.

For as long as I can remember, Keely has always loved to sneak bites of raw cookie dough before I ever got a chance to bake it. Oddly enough, I've never been a fan. When I first found this new recipe on Pinterest (Mel's Kitchen Cafe), I thought it would be perfect for her to make and bring to our Christmas gathering at Mom and Dad's house. She quickly agreed. :)

This recipe is definitely a keeper. While it was no surprise that Keely loved it, I was surprised to hear Steve say it was the best fudge he's ever tasted.  He's just never been a fan of fudge. (I know. I know. I'll never understand.) And for someone who has never been a fan of cookie dough, I found it pretty irresistible. Thus the need for New Year's resolutions, I suppose. But, this little piece of goodness tucked inside its adorable Santa suit liner sure made me happy! :D

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Fudge

Ingredients for Cookie Dough:

• 1/3 cup butter, softened to room temperature
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons half-and-half, cream or milk
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Ingredients for Fudge Base:

• 1/3 cup light brown sugar
• 1/3 cup butter
• pinch of salt
• 1/3 cup half-and-half, cream or milk
  
• 5 cups powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips (for topping the fudge)

Directions:
Line an 8×8 baking pan with aluminum foil and set aside.

For the cookie dough, mix on medium speed the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Mix in the vanilla, salt, and half-and-half. Add the flour and mix until just combined. Do not overmix. Fold in 1/2 cup of the chocolate chips. Set aside.

For the fudge base, combine the brown sugar, butter, salt, and half-and-half in a medium saucepan. Stir over medium-low heat until the butter is melted, and the brown sugar is dissolved. The mixture should be smooth and combined. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Gradually stir in the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, until the mixture is smooth and thick. Let this mixture cool completely before proceeding!

Add the cookie dough to the fudge base and stir to combine. Spread the fudge into the prepared baking pan and press into an even layer. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of the chocolate chips on top of the fudge and lightly press them into the batter. Chill until set, about 3-4 hours, before cutting into pieces. The fudge can be made ahead and stored, covered, in the refrigerator for up to a week.