Chef Wendell: Pizza with cauliflower crust

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – Everybody loves pizza! One-third of Americans eat pizza at least once a week.  If you’re trying to avoid fatty calories, white flour and cured meat pizza toppings recently discovered to cause cancer, then this easy, gluten-free, low-fat recipe is a great way to enjoy health and pleasure.Pizza with cauliflower crust

1 medium head cauliflower, washed and cored

¼ cup low-fat mozzarella

¼ tsp. Himalayan salt

½ tsp. each: dried basil, oregano and garlic powder

Pinch of red pepper flakes

1 tbsp. Almond meal / flour

1 whole egg, whisked

1 tbsp. ground flax seed

Preheat oven to 400°

• Place several quarts of water on the stove and bring to a boil.
• Cut out the core of the cauliflower and pull apart the florets and then place them into a food processor. Pulse till the cauliflower is powdery. Do not over pulse.
• Place cauliflower in boiling water for 4 minutes and then drain through a fine mesh strainer.
• After it has cooled down, dump the drained cauliflower into an absorbent dish towel and squeeze out the excess water. This is crucial to the outcome.
• Put waxed sheet paper onto a pizza stone or sheet pan. Lightly apply olive oil by hand or by spray.
• Now, put the cauliflower into a mixing bowl and add the herbs, cheese, flax, pepper flakes, almond flour and egg; mix thoroughly into a ball. Clean hands work best.
• Put the ball onto the oiled wax sheet and form ¼ inch thick round pizza shell. Or leave it on a cutting board to shape and then carefully slide onto the awaiting sheet pan.
• Bake for 35 minutes at 400 ° and remove from the oven.
• Apply pizza sauce, veggies and then top with not-so-much cheese.
• Bake for 8-10 minutes until cheese bubbles and begins to slightly brown.
• Slide onto a cutting board, sprinkle on ground flax seed then use a pizza cutter and spatula to cut it into wedges.
• Serve with a dark leafy green salad full of crunchy veggies.