Making a good paleo pizza can be exciting for anyone on a paleo diet. Every now and then, even paleo eaters want some version of pizza (without having to cheat) so I set out to try and make a decent one that would satisfy my craving and satisfy my friends.
But that wasn’t all. I also have friends with allergies and I wanted to not only make a pizza I wanted to eat, but also one they could eat, which limited my options even more. For example, the first crust I considered from The Lucky Penny Blog had cauliflower as a main ingredient so that was out. Then, the inspiration for this recipe came from The Art of Paleo Entertaining, but it used almond flour, another no-no.
I ended up trying a mixture of ground cashews and walnuts (thanks to my new mini food processor) with a pretty successful result. The crust was sweet but not too sweet. It sort of had a ritz cracker consistency but the herbs and spices helped it work as a crust. Add in the sauce and toppings and presto! A very successful recipe that my friends and I gobbled up.
This recipe also features coconut oil from Tropical Traditions, who we generally love (see why here.) Coconut oil is one of our favorite things to add to dishes because it’s so versatile – we have even started throwing it in our smoothies.
Pizza Crust
Ingredients:
About 2 cups cashew meal
About 1/4 cup walnut meal
1/2-3/4 cup arrowroot flour
2 teaspoons gluten-free baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons dried oregano (or 2 tbsp fresh oregano)
1 teaspoon dried basil (or 2 tbsp fresh basil)
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
2 eggs
Directions:
1.) Preheat oven to 325.
2.) In a large bowl, combine cashew meal, walnut meal, arrowroot flour, baking powder, salt, black pepper, oregano, basil, marjoram, garlic powder, onion powder, coconut oil and eggs.
3.) Mix until dough forms (We had to add a little more arrowroot flour, cashew meal and walnut meal in order to get a thicker, more dough-like consistency. You want to be able to make a dough-like ball out of the mixture.)
4.) Spread dough out onto a large baking sheet until it’s about 1/4 inch thick.
5.) Bake the dough for about 30-35 minutes until it becomes firm.
6.) While crust is baking, make your sauce and toppings.
Pizza Sauce
Ingredients:
1 7-8 oz can organic tomato sauce
1 5-6 oz can organic tomato paste
2 tsp dried minced onion (or 2 tbsp fresh onion)
1 tsp dried basil (or 1 tbsp fresh basil)
¾ teaspoon dried oregano
¼ tsp garlic powder or granulated garlic
Directions: (continued)
1.) Combine ingredients and simmer on low while crust is cooking.
Pizza Toppings
Ingredients:
1 pound ground turkey
1 pack sliced mushrooms
½ onion, peeled and cut into slices
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp pepper
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp coconut aminos
*optional: fennel seeds
Directions: (continued)
1.) Set sliced mushrooms and chopped onion aside.
2.) Mix ground turkey with the seasoning, coconut aminos and fennel seeds, if desired.
3.) Ball the mixture into small quarter-sized meatballs (about 1 inch in diameter). 4.) Sautee the meatballs in a little olive oil. Be sure to sear the sides until you get a nice brown crust. Then set them aside (they will also bake once in the oven on the pizza).
Final Directions:
1.) Add sauce and toppings to your pizza
2.) Bake for 30 minutes. Onions should be a little crispy. For the last five minutes, turn the heat up to 400.
Have you ever made paleo pizza? How do you do it – and what’s your secret to a crispy crust?
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