Cauliflower Crust Garlic "Breadsticks"

Would the person(s) in charge of creating a crust made of cauliflower please come forward?!?!?!?!  I seriously need to know who thought of this madness because it is pure genius!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I don’t know about you guys, but I tried the low-carb diet craze when I was in college.  My diet lasted about 6 hours.  I woke up in the morning and made my way to the cafeteria for a wonderfully delicious ham, bacon, and cheese omelet.  I wasn’t hungry until 6 hours later when I perused the salad bar, piling hard boiled egg, chicken, ham, turkey, bacon bits and cheese on my salad and topping it off with ranch dressing.  Low-carb heaven!  Well that’s when I spotted them.....croutons.  Ohhhh man.  Yeah so that’s the moment my low carb diet ended.  

Even in those short hours of dieting, I craved bread...and let me tell you...this cauliflower crust hits the darn spot!!!!!!!  I tested it on hubs and simply said that I had some garlic breadsticks for him to try and he literally didn’t know the crust was made of cauliflower.  Boom!  Husband test, passed!  So anyway, the crust is crispy and chewy and most importantly, cheesy.  Give it a try -- it’s completely and utterly worth the work!  Trust me!

Cauliflower Crust Garlic Breadsticks (Serves 2 to 4)

from An Edible Mosaic

1/4 of a large head of cauliflower

1 teaspoon olive oil

2 cloves garlic, grated or minced

1 large egg, lightly beaten

4 oz mozzarella cheese, freshly grated and divided 

1/2 teaspoon dried Italian herb seasoning, divided

1 pinch each salt and pepper

Cooking spray

Marinara sauce, for serving (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350F and line a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper so that the excess paper hangs over the sides; lightly spray the parchment paper with cooking spray.

To “rice” the cauliflower, grate it on a cheese grater; you should have about 1 1/2 cups (lightly packed) of riced cauliflower.  Put the riced cauliflower into a microwave-safe bowl and microwave (uncovered) until softened, about 6 to 8 minutes, stirring occasionally (don’t add water or anything else); cool slightly.  While the cauliflower cooks, heat the oil in a small skillet over low heat; add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds to 1 minute, stirring constantly; cool slightly.

To the bowl with the softened cauliflower, add the garlic, egg, 3/4 of the cheese (reserving 1/4 for topping later), 1/4 teaspoon of the dried Italian herb seasoning (reserving 1/4 teaspoon for topping later), and a pinch of salt and pepper.  Stir to combine and then spread in the prepared loaf pan.

Bake until the loaf is set and starting to turn golden, about 30 minutes. {I actually baked mine about 40 minutes to get crispier edges}.  Line a baking sheet with a piece of parchment paper; use the parchment paper to lift the loaf out of the loaf pan and carefully flip it over onto the lined baking sheet (so the bottom is on top).  Bake until golden, about 10 minutes.

Preheat the broiler.  Cut the loaf cross-wise into 8 pieces.  Slightly separate the pieces and sprinkle the cheese on top along with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon dried Italian herb seasoning.  Broil a couple minutes until the cheese is melted and golden in spots.  Serve hot or warm.