Oven Roasted Cauliflower

I make this ALL the time but have been forgetting to take pictures and post the recipe. It's super easy and versatile. I've listed the ingredients that I used this past time and that you see in the picture but I've also mixed it up with mexican seasoning, cheese, italian seasoning, sriracha and ginger, and other stuff. Basically whatever seasoning you like. Also this is a GREAT staple to substitute pastas/rice. For a quick dinner the other night I made this,heated up some chicken meatballs, and added a little sauce. It was tasty, filling, and satisfying without all the extra carbs.

Ingredients

• Cauliflower (has better taste if you use it the day, or soon after, you buy it. Sometimes it can taste funny after sitting in the fridge for a few days.)
• Olive oil - couple tablespoons for each half head of cauliflower
• Seasoning: salt, pepper, garlic powder, dash of cayenne pepper
• Parmesan Cheese

Directions

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees
• Cut cauliflower into florets
• place in pan or on baking sheet
• Coat with olive oil and seasoning of choice
• Bake 7 min. Take out and toss. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and place back in oven
• Bake additional 7 minutes or so and remove. Top with a little bit more cheese and enjoy

When I do it my florets look like this...

And the final product!

Cauliflower Pizza Attempt #1 and #2

So I've been wanting to try this cauliflower pizza recipe for awhile and my friend and I finally attempted it the other night.... We will say attempt because although it turned out pretty tasty I would like to make some changes and try it again soon. I followed these directions from Eat-Drink-Smile.com

Ingredients

• 1 cup cooked, riced cauliflower
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp crushed garlic
• 1/2 tsp garlic salt
• Olive oil (optional)
• Pizza sauce, shredded cheese and your choice of toppings* (We sautéed chopped onion, red and yellow peppers, and mushrooms and then added spinach, mozzarella, and a little cheddar cheese when we put on all of our toppings. )

Directions

To "Rice" the Cauliflower:

• Take 1 large head of fresh cauliflower, remove stems and leaves, and chop the florets into chunks. Add to food processor and pulse until it looks like grain. Do not over-do pulse or you will puree it. (If you don't have a food processor, you can grate the whole head with a cheese grater-this is what we did).
• Place the riced cauliflower into a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 8 minutes (some microwaves are more powerful than others, so you may need to reduce this cooking time). There is no need to add water, as the natural moisture in the cauliflower is enough to cook itself.
• One large head should produce approximately 3 cups of riced cauliflower. The remainder can be used to make additional pizza crusts immediately, or can be stored in the refrigerator for up to one week

To Make the Pizza Crust:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
• In a medium bowl, stir together 1 cup cauliflower, egg and mozzarella. Add oregano, crushed garlic and garlic salt, stir. Transfer to the cookie sheet, and using your hands, pat out into a 9" round. Optional: Brush olive oil over top of mixture to help with browning (didn't do this step, it "browned" just fine haha)
• Bake at 450 degrees for 15 minutes.
• Remove from oven. To the crust, add sauce, toppings and cheese. Place under a broiler at high heat just until cheese is melted (approximately 3-4 minutes). (Not that high/long!!)
• Enjoy!
• Note** toppings need to be precooked since you are only broiling for a few minutes.

My Take on the Recipe 

So I would use a little extra cauliflower rather than one cup or plan to make a smaller pizza cause ours got pretty thin. Also do not broil for 3 min. Maybe 1 or 2 max. What I think I will do is leave it at 450 but put under the broiler or on the top rack for a few min. Broil made it burn and thankfully I set the timer for 3 and not 4 min. I will also use my pizza stone next time (love that thing! The bf made a Digorno pizza on it while we made this one haha) Minus the very thin crust and burnt edges it was really good!! The crust was still pretty bread-y tasting. We had to eat it with a fork since it was so thin and kinda fell apart but like I said it was great! I look forward to attempt number two! Here are some pictures of our results!

Before baking...

poor little burnt edges...

But..... VERY tasty final product!

**2nd Attempt Update**

I made this again and it turned out better. I made the crust with just over a cup of cauliflower and about 3/4 shredded cheese (2% fat but that probably doesn't make a big difference). When I spread it out it this time I made it smaller in diameter, about 8 inches and thicker. Cooked for normal time, added topping and then put back in on regular/middle rack at a slightly higher temp (500) for a few minutes rather than under the broiler. It didn't burn and turned out more pizza/bread like. The more you let it cool the more it will set as well.

Turned out SOO good!