Cauliflower Crust Pizza

I will start by saying this cannot be compared to actual pizza. However, if you crave pizza like I do, this is a really good weekday substitute and you are eating tons of veggies!

You will need:

• 2 heads of cauliflower
• 2 eggs
• 1-2 tsp salt
• Lots of shredded mozzarella cheese (TJ’s light mozzarella has the lowest calories)
• Pizza sauce 
• Toppings – I did one turkey pepperoni and red onions, and one veggie with red peppers, red onions, and black olives

Processed cauliflower with cheese and eggs

Cut the cauliflower into big chunks (one head at a time) and blend in the food processor. It will come out looking sort of like dry grits. Microwave for 7 or 8 minutes, until softened. At this point, a lot of the things I read say to put the mush into a dishtowel and wring the water out. That sounded annoying, so I did not do it. 

Beat the 2 eggs and pour into the cauliflower pulp, along with 2 cups of mozzarella and salt, mix well. Spray a sheet of parchment paper with oil, and place on a baking sheet. Working in chunks, either with your hands or a rubber spatula, spread the cauliflower out to about a 10-inch circle that is about 1/4 inch thick. Don’t make it any thicker or it will be too mushy.

Precooked

Cooked - edges are browned

 When I do this the next time, I will cook it on higher heat to begin with. What I did was cook the crusts for 10 minutes on 350, flipped them (this was not easy) and cooked them for a total of about 20 more minutes on 400. If I was going to do it again, I would cook them on 400 for 20 minutes, and try putting them on a cookie rack (still on the parchment paper) for the second 10 minutes to see if it cooked the other side a little more. I stopped baking them when the edges got dark – I probably could have left them in even longer to see if they toughened up more, but I was hungry.

Spread sauce on the cooked crust; I like a lot of sauce but too much will make it mushy. Add cheese and toppings. As far as I can tell, there is no such thing as too much cheese. If using veggies, cut them up pretty small, otherwise it will be too heavy.

Bake until cheese is melted – about 10 minutes on 350. Eat one million pieces!

Chicken and Potato Chowder

All good soups start with bacon! You’ll need:

• 3 strips (I used center cut) bacon
• 1/2 medium sized white onion
• 1 1/2 - 2 TBS butter
• 1/4 cup plus 1 TBS flour
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup whole or 2% milk
• 3-4 cups chopped yukon gold potatoes
• 1 lb chicken (I use boneless skinless thighs), chopped
• 1/2 cup frozen corn
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Bay leaf
• Nutmeg

Cut the bacon into small (slightly bigger than bacon bit size) pieces with kitchen scissors into a soup pot. Cook on medium for a few minutes until it starts sizzling. Meanwhile, dice the onion and add to the bacon. Cook for a few more minutes until the onions are translucent. Add the butter (unless you’re using full fat bacon, in which case you probably won’t need the butter) and stir until melted. Add the flour and whisk until combined. It kind of looks like a congealed mess at this point but that’s ok. Continue to cook while whisking for a couple more minutes, but don’t let it burn.

This is how much nutmeg to use.

Add the chicken broth and whisk until smooth; add the milk and whisk to combine. Add diced potatoes, chicken, salt and pepper, nutmeg and a bay leaf. I forgot to measure how much nutmeg I put in, so I took a photo before I stirred it. Go easy on the salt until you taste it later, especially if you used full sodium stock.

Simmer for 1 – 1 1/2 hours on low, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon so that it doesn’t stick to the bottom. Don’t sit reading your kindle and drinking wine and forget about it! Once the chicken is cooked, taste it to see if you need more salt and pepper. Add the frozen corn and cook for another 10-15 minutes. Turn off the heat and let cool for about 10 minutes before you serve.

This did not make as much soup as I was hoping (I like leftovers), next time I would probably double it. It made 2 big servings which we ate for dinner, plus one smaller leftover serving.

Since there are no veggies in this, I made a mixed green salad with shaved asiago, grape tomatoes, and lemon honey dressing. I forgot to measure exactly how much of everything I used in the dressing, but it was good. Approximately, it was the juice of one lemon, a heaping teaspoon of honey (thank you Bridget and Aaron) and probably 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil. Shake well!

Based on rough calculations dividing it into 3 servings, this is about 530 calories per bowl. You could skip the bacon (which would be crazy), use a lower-fat milk (I did whole), and/or use boneless skinless chicken breast, all of which would lower the calorie count a bit. Still, at 530 calories it is very filling, and still far less than a chowder you would get at a restaurant. Serve with red wine!