Broccoli pizza crust

I'll share a little secret - I love cooking but I don't love planning out what I will cook for the week. During regular times, this used to result in more hastened take-out orders for dinner than I'd like, or at the very least a last minute grocery trip to pull together a last-minute dinner plan. Things improved considerably with a small hack: daily themes for dinner. It gives me a framework for easier planning and the kids a sense of familiarity and rhythm -this last part was a suggestion from Kids Eat in Color, and it totally works! But more about that later.

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All this to say, Friday is pizza night at our house. Usually paired with a movie, and the kids really love that part. For the fastest busy work night version there's of course delivery or frozen pizza, but we're not here to talk about that :) At the other end of the spectrum is sourdough pizza crust made from scratch on Thursday, rested overnight in the fridge and lovingly shaped in an artisan pie then baked on the hot pizza stone. Lately the Friday night special has been somewhere in the middle - variations of quick pizza dough (45 min rise, freeform shaping, quick bake on the pizza stone), often using sourdough starter discard for extra flavor. I've also been trying different versions of alternative doughs, both for experimentation for its own sake and to find a lighter option for our usual fix. Trader Joe's freezer section stocks these wonderful cauliflower crusts and broccoli and kale crusts that I stocked up on a while back. As I ran low, I started playing with the idea of making my own so here we are.

I decided to mix broccoli and cauliflower for a milder flavor profile and to forego the egg and cheese mix that is usually a signature of vegetable based crusts. I also wanted to keep things relatively simple and the number of tools to a minimum. The idea of the perfect home vegan pizza emerged.

First step is to cut up the broccoli and cauliflower evenly so they all cook at about the same time - I measured 4 cups with roughly half of each one, but I included more precise measurements below since size of the cuts can make a pretty big difference in what can fit in 4 cups. Then, measure out all the other ingredients - I'm a big advocate of mise en place to streamline cooking: ground flax seeds, spelt flour, salt, garlic powder and oregano. A well seasoned (salt) and flavored (garlic powder, oregano) crust is important in bringing balance to the pizza overall.

Now, steam the broccoli and cauliflower together until very soft - I used a steamer basket in a regular stove top pot with an inch of water and lid on top, but you can use your favorite steaming method (microwave, bamboo steamer, instant pot) or even boil them, but you'll lose some flavor and end up with more water to squeeze out of the vegetables later. You can see in the pictures that the broccoli lost a bit of color - that's ok, though I could have probably pulled it off the heat a minute sooner and gotten a brighter result. You can check for doneness with a small pairing knife - poke the a couple of florets in the thickest part of the stem gently to test for resistance, they'll be done when you feel no resistance and you can twist the knife with little effort, that way you know they'll be easy to puree for the crust. 

Dump out the veggies on a kitchen towel and let cool for a couple of minutes so they're safer to handle. Then, gather the towel around them and squeeze as much water out as you can. I find that folding the towel from four sides into a rectangle and pressing down with my palm is easier on my wrists than the classic cheese cloth pouch squeeze (you know, where you gather all the edges in one hand). The aim here is to control the moisture in the dough, so the drier the better, but if you feel like you aren't quite there yet just hold back on some of the water in the later step and add a little at a time until appropriate consistency is reached.

Puree the broccoli and cauliflower with the 2.5 Tbsp of ground flax seeds and 1/4 cup of water - I found that a stick blender works quite well, a small food processor or even a fork and some elbow grease would work fine. Incorporate the 40g spelt, salt, garlic powder and oregano until you get a very thick paste like consistency - somewhat drier than tomato paste is what you're aiming for, you should be able to pick it up and have it mostly stick together. Set it on a sheet of parchment, cover with another one (or use cling wrap on top if you want to see what you're doing), then gently and evenly roll it out into a circle - you should get 11-12" out of the quantities in this recipe for a thin crust. You can go a tad smaller if you like a thicker crust, but too thick and it might fall apart.

Remove the top sheet and place dough, still on the bottom parchment, in a preheated oven (pizza stone or sheet pan works fine) until golden on the bottom on mostly set, about 15-20 minutes. Carefully slide the dough off the parchment on a cutting board and flip over to bake on the other side for a bit longer, about 5 minutes. It should be lightly golden and hold up pretty well to being picked up by the edges when it's done, see picture below for reference.

This is where the fun and art of pizza begins - choosing and arranging your toppings. You can go classic with tomato sauce and cheese as starting point, or more unconventional. A word of caution, you want to be mindful of the amount of moisture you're introducing here. Since we're not dealing with a classic bread-like crust a sauce that's too wet will soak into it and affect its structural integrity. Not a deal breaker, but you may end up eating your pizza with a fork. Store bough pizza sauce does tend to be thicker than marinara, so that works well, but if you make your own or want to use a pasta sauce cooking it down some would be helpful. On this particular day, we went with a his/hers split so we could each choose our toppings to match the current mood and inclinations. On the left, you can see mine - a delicious and garlicky sauce on the bottom (5 Minute Liquid Gold from Minimalist Baker, it's so versatile!), dotted with marinara sauce and topped with an assortment of vegetables (spiraled zucchini, thinly sliced red onion and mushrooms). On the right is a more classic approach - tomato sauce, cheese, veggies (same as mine). He added some last minute ham strips on top, as you'll notice in the finished shot below.

Put pizza in the oven for the final bake until toppings are cooked, crust is golden brown and crispy and cheese (if using) is nicely melted, 10-12 minutes. 

Slide that beauty on a cutting board and slice up to serve - you can add some finishing touches at this point to taste (fresh chopped herbs like oregano or basil, fresh extra virgin olive oil or chili flakes come to mind). Since trapped heat can create condensation, waiting too long to slice and serve may soften the bottom of the dough, see warning about marinara sauce that's too wet. But don't worry, it won't last very long anyway so this should not be a problem :)

This was a satisfying and incredibly light dinner, it was the first time in family pizza night tradition that half an hour after dinner I felt like going for a run and then did! The variations are endless, almost any vegetable or protein can work here. For starchier/slower to cook things, consider pre-cooking them (like oven baking winter squashes or fingerling potatoes, yum!). What will you put on your veggie crust pizza?

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Broccoli Cauliflower Pizza Crust

Ingredients:

2 cups broccoli florets (160g)
2 cups cauliflower florets (180g, I used green cauliflower)
2.5 tbsp ground flax seeds

1/4 cup of water
40g spelt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp oregano

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400F, place pizza stone in cold oven if using.
2. Cut up broccoli and cauliflower, measure out all your ingredients.
3. Steam vegetables until really soft and squeeze out as must moisture as possible.
4. Puree vegetables with the flax seeds and water.
5. Mix in spelt flour, salt and flavors.
6. Roll out thinly between two sheets of parchment.
7. Baker for 15-20 minutes until set, flip over and bake for 5 minutes longer on the other side.
8. Top with toppings to taste, then bake for 10-12 minutes until cheese (if used) is melted and crust edges are golden brown.
9. Slice and serve immediately.