Norwegian Aqua Review: Spa, Food, Balcony Room

Norwegian Aqua Cruise Review: Spa Experience, Dining, and Balcony Stateroom

I’m back from a relaxing 5-day Bahamas cruise on the Norwegian Aqua—but honestly, we barely left the ship. This trip was all about unwinding in the spa. It was our first time sailing on the Norwegian Aqua, and I had promised I’d share a full review.

5 Day Spa Cruise

We’re heading off on a five-day spa cruise to the Bahamas—leaving Sunday and back by Thursday—and I'm excited.

Mega Ship

Nori Seaweed Wraps

Nori is the type of seaweed that comes in flat dry sheets in packages. It is perfect for making wraps, eating toasted, adding to soup or salads. It has been a staple in Asian cultures for hundreds of years, and it is the seaweed that is used to make sushi. 

Nori is one of the mildest and tastiest seaweeds. 

Easy Frozen Cauliflower or Broccoli Recipe

Pressed for time? Think frozen broccoli or frozen cauliflower which can be ready in minutes!! Just don't forget to eat your vegetables on a daily basis!

This simple, yet delicious, side dish provides lots of antioxidants which may help protect us against degenerative diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and Inflammatory diseases. 

I try to include vegetables at every meal (including breakfast)- but sometimes I'm just lazy to prep the fresh vegetables. I have found that storing a few bags of frozen cauliflower, broccoli, and green beans in the freezer is convenient and time saving for me. There is no waste, no mess, and supposedly frozen vegetables provide almost the same nutrients as fresh vegetables. 

I used a large dutch oven type skillet, a bag of frozen broccoli or cauliflower, a pint of cherry tomatoes, and any other vegetable I may have in the fridge or I just use the bag of frozen vegetables and tomatoes with the seasoning.

I know this post is barely a recipe; it's more like an idea! However, how many times do you skip making a vegetable because it's too much bother to clean and prep the vegetable. Want to consistently eat vegetables- try using frozen especially in the winter. 

In the summer, I do like fresh produce that I usually get at a local organic farmer's market! 

Ingredients: 

1 bag of frozen broccoli or cauliflower

1 pint of red cherry tomatoes or multi colored cherry tomatoes

Generous amounts of cracked salt, pepper, garlic powder and turmeric 

Directions: 

Empty a bag of frozen vegetables into a skillet. Add the entire pint of cherry tomatoes into the heated skillet. Cook on medium for about 10 minutes- stirring if needed to prevent burning. Add 1/4 cup of water at a time to help the vegetables cook. Season with generous amounts of cracked salt, cracked pepper, garlic powder and turmeric (if you like it)

My Notes: 

1. I like my vegetables on the soft side, so I cook them for about 15 minutes. 

Eggplant Tofu Lasagna

If you are looking for a tasty plant-based meal because you are running out of ideas, try my eggplant tofu lasagna.

Homemade Falafel- Vegan and Gluten-free

Homemade falafel tastes the BEST! 

It's fresh, delicately spiced, absolutely delicious and can be made relatively easily in your very own kitchen! This is our favorite plant-based recipe that can be eaten for lunch or dinner.

Moroccan Quinoa -Easy, Tasty, and Healthy

Moroccan cooking is all about the spices! This super easy Moroccan quinoa dish won't disappoint. Whether you serve it as a warm side dish for dinner or a cold salad for lunch, you'll enjoy this versatile, easy, nutritious, and plant-based recipe dusted with cinnamon, cumin, turmeric and pistachio nuts.

A Peek At My Week 6/4

This week my husband and I "flew the coop" from our condo in South Florida to begin the 19 -hour ride home to Pennsylvania. Between the Coronavirus and the unrest in the cities right now, we were a little nervous, to say the least. In this post, I'm sharing a book review, movie reviews, and vegan Pad Thai and a fabulous cherry tomato, avocado, and chickpea salad.

Crispy Baked Tofu Cutlets

Got tofu ?  This recipe is delicious!
I wanted to make something that was different and more interesting than my usual tofu stir fry. This crispy baked tofu cutlet is full flavored, delicious and satisfying.

I baked/roasted the tofu on a parchment covered cookie sheet.

Vegan Pad Thai

This vegan Pad Thai is not only delicious, it is easy to make. I am a fan of Asian food, but I have to admit that I am not very knowledgable about how to replicate the vegetarian dishes that enjoy in Asian restaurants. 

Broccoli Parmesan- one skillet dish

One skillet broccoli parmesan is one of those recipes that follow the rule that necessity is the mother of invention. 

I went out with my family one night to a local Italian restaurant. Although they had gluten free pizza and gluten free pasta on the menu, I just didn't want to eat a high carbohydrate meal. Being a vegetarian, there was little else I could eat. I asked the chef if he could make me a dish with broccoli, marinara sauce, and cheese. He did and it was delicious!

Loaded Vegetarian Black Bean Nachos Are A Meal

Loaded vegetarian nachos makes a quick and easy meal or appetizer any night of the week!
It is easy to assemble and is both nutritious and delicious!

It calls for simple vegan ingredients like black beans, chopped tomatoes, chopped cucumbers, salsa, fresh herbs, and seasonings piled on top of one another on a bed of crunchy nacho chips! Sprinkle generously with grated cheese or vegan cheese and bake for just 10 minutes.

My Gluten Free Dinner and trip to New Hope, Pa

Have you heard of New Hope, Pa? We recently visited  and I had a great gluten free dinner in the area.

New Hope is a tourist town in Bucks County, Pennsylvania with street-side shops, interesting restaurants, antique shops, boat rides, the famous Bucks County Playhouse Theatre, and many outdoor cafes for coffee and ice cream.- a real tourist attraction.

It is on the banks of the Delaware River on the Pennsylvania side.

On the other side of the Delaware River is the  New Jersey side where there is another tourist town called Lambertville that also has interesting restaurants with music on the weekends and other events in the area.

There is a pedestrian and automobile bridge that connects the two tourist areas.

People walk back and forth across the bridge to enjoy the restaurants and other attractions in the two cities. 

People walk across the bridge and enjoy the fun on both sides of the river.

The Delaware River in the late spring/early summer

The car ride to New Hope from our house is beautiful.

We drive about a half hour along the Delaware River viewing beautiful foliage, magnificent homes, picturesque scenery, farms, bed and breakfasts, shady paths, flea markets, antique stores,  and popular restaurants.

Home of The Famous Bucks County Playhouse

Although we only went for the evening, many tourists from distances spend the weekend in area hotels and quaint bed and breakfasts. From the hotels, they can walk to restaurants, the famous and old Bucks Country Theatre where many famous actors got their start  ( Dick Van Dyke, Tyne Daly, Grace Kelly, Angela Lansbury, Imagene Coco and Walter Matthau to mention a few ) .

Dick Van Dyke

Grace Kelly

We Ate Dinner in Historic Lambertville on the
New Jersey Side of New Hope

We ate at Caffe Galleria which has indoor and outdoor seating. The restaurant is in an old
house.  The rooms are charming and the outdoor wraparound porch is delightful on a sunny 
day or pleasant evening. Sometimes on the weekends they have live music outside near the 
porch. The restaurant likes to promote artists in the area. They often have a local artists work 
displayed or a local band playing.

Lots of Gluten Free and Vegetarian Choices

The restaurant had gluten free pasta on the menu and other gluten free and vegetarian 
options.  In addition they also serve many fish, seafood, chicken and meat dishes. 

I was deciding between the eggplant rollatini and the Zorba Tofu eggplant. ( I find no matter 
I eat, I make sure the wait person knows I'm gluten free and double checks the prep of the
food.) 

I finally decided and enjoyed my generous portion of their eggplant rollatini served with gluten free
 pasta in a marinara sauce which was delicious. They also served me gluten free flat bread which was sort of hard
thin and not particularly to my liking. 

My husband ordered regular pasta primavera that he said was very tasty and he enjoyed his
 regular bread that was served in a basket.

We sat in the indoor front dining room near the windows and had a pleasant view. 
The service was good and all in all we enjoyed the meal. 
It's probably best to make a reservation as they do begin to get busy on the weekends.
Did I mention that it is a BYOB? 

After dinner, we walked from the New Jersey side of Lambertville  across the bridge to the 
Pennsylvania side to New Hope, Pa and browsed in the many different stores,

including a very interesting old bookstore ( Farley's Bookstore) which carries a large variety of books in other

of books including many in other languages. 

 We bumped into four different people that I knew but hadn't seen in years

The warmer sunny weather must have brought out all the locals.

 Ice Cream is a Must in New Hope

New Hope has always been popular for it's many choices of ice creams. When I was a little girl, my father used to take us to New Hope just to get some ice cream on a hot summer day. I remember how it melted so quickly and would drip down my arms. I learned to lick the cones on all sides and eat
quickly.

Fireworks on the 1st Friday

We intended to stay for the fireworks, but we had done a lot of walking and we  started to 
get tired out by 9:00 PM We just didn't feel like hanging around another half hour.

The first Friday around 9:15-  9:30 PM there are fireworks! You can stand on the bridge to 
watch or stand on the banks of either side of the river. The fireworks last about 10 minutes. 

We had such a wonderful evening. 

If you are in the Bucks County area- New Hope is a great place to visit. It is about 40 minutes from Princeton, New Jersey and about 50 minutes from Philadelphia, Pa.

By getting there early around 5:30 , we found metered parking on the street for just $1 /hr. 

We had a great meal, a beautiful walk across the bridge over the river, fun browsing the touristy shops, and some darn good ice cream.

Have you ever been to New Hope? Where do you go? 

Shared on West Metro Saturday Snapshot Linky

Baked Ziti The Way Grandma Made It

Old Fashioned baked ziti is a comfort food that brings back great memories of family get togethers! Although there are as many baked ziti recipes as there are grandmas, this recipe is the one I always use. It is easy, requiring only 5 basic ingredients and it's a real crowd pleaser. In addition, it freezes beautifully (before or after baking) , and is absolutely lip smacking either way!

Do you need to be Italian to love baked ziti? 

No, it seems like everyone loves it, so it's a perfect recipe to make for company. I always make it when my daughter- in -law, Jackie, visits because she is a pasta lover. Of course once it's made, everyone else enjoys it too!

The recipe is so simple and basic, I never thought of posting it before. However, when I looked through my cookbooks, I couldn't find a recipe for baked ziti. So, I decided to make it easy on myself and record my recipe right on my blog. Of course I found hundreds online, but they were not as simple as grandma's recipe.

So, if you like baked ziti, or are looking for a dish to make for a crowd- this is it! Now you know where to find the recipe (and so do I).

 I used gluten free penne which is available at Trader Joe's for $1.99 a bag or available now in most supermarkets!

I don't make recipes with this much cheese and eggs very often and truthfully, I didn't really eat it!!  My husband and kids loved it and so did my other company. So, If you eat and like cheese and eggs- Enjoy! It's so easy to make.. and lends itself so well to gluten free eating too.

ricotta cheese mixture

I combine the ricotta cheese mixture, some sauce and  the cooked penne noodles before layering it 

I divided the baked ziti into two deep baking dishes. 

Start to layer the sauce, pasta, cheese mixture, repeat in each baking dish

Author: Judee Algazi @ Gluten Free A-Z Blog
Prep Time: 10minutes
Cook Time : 20 minutes for the noodles
Bake Time: 55 minutes

Ingredients: 

1 pound box of gluten free penne 

1 15 ounce jar of your favorite marinara sauce ( I use BJ's brand bc no added sugar) 

1/4 cup of chopped fresh parsley

15 ounce container of ricotta cheese

2 eggs, beaten (might be able to omit

1 bag of Italian shredded cheese combination
1/2 cup of shredded or freshly grated parmesan cheese 

Directions

Boil the penne according to the instructions, drain, rinse and set aside

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a large mixing bowl, mix eggs, parsley, ricotta cheese, 1 cup of sauce and 1/2 bag of the cheese and 1/4 cup of parmesan.

Mix with the cooked penne.

Pour 1/4 cup each of sauce over the bottom of 2 deep baking dishes. Add a layer of noodle mixture, some sauce, noodle mixture, some sauce and the additional cheese. 

Bake for 55 minutes

My notes: 

1. You could probably leave out the eggs in this recipe and it would still be good.
2. This is a crowd pleaser
3. If you prefer not to use any grain, you could spiralize zucchini in place of the pasta and bake-

Shared on Beth Fish Reads

Gluten Free and Vegetarian Passover Seder Recipes

Happy Passover! Looking for easy vegetarian and or gluten free Passover Seder ideas?

I've dived into my recipes and created a traditional Kosher for Passover Seder menu for you that is both GF and Vegan! Choose from the recipes listed below.

Hope you get some inspiring ideas and enjoy a delicious meal. If you are not vegan or GF the recipes are still delicious and make a great parve ( non dairy)  side.


Passover Seder Recipes

• Charoset  ( vegan and GF)
• Matzo Balls ( vegetarian and  GF)
• Matzo Ball Soup ( tastes like chicken type broth) (Vegan and; GF)
• Horseradish Soup  -Light and creamy with a slight kick ( Vegan and GF)
• Mock Chopped Liver ( Vegan and GF)
• Stuffed Tomatoes and Stuffed Peppers ( Vegan and GF) 
• Quinoa stuffed Peppers ( Vegan and GF) 
• Mini Potato Kugel Muffins
• Honey Roasted Brussel Sprouts Vegan and GF) 
• Moroccan Carrots with cilantro and lemon dressing
• Healthy Chocolate Pudding ( vegan and GF)
• Chocolate Dipped Strawberries 
• Fudgy Brownies- vegan and gluten free
• Fresh Fruit Sorbets - vegan and gluten free

These Passover Sorbets are made with frozen fruit and your blender. They are easy to make and delicious!

Did You Know ? 

The Conservative Movement Overturned an 800-Year-Old Passover Ban on Rice and Legumes( see article)- Now you can eat it.. Everyone is happy but especially vegans!

I've included recipes that contain rice! All of the recipes are vegan except the matzo balls and mini kugels which have eggs.
Check out all my recipes at a glance : Bloglovin 



Pin It Please leave a comment so I know you stopped by. Scroll down to the end of the post and click on comments.

Chick Pea Vegetable Salad ( Weight Watchers)

Need a quick Weight Watchers lunch idea? Chick Peas are high in protein, flavor, fiber, and vitamins- ! This simple vegan chick pea vegetable salad is REALLY easy and FAST to make and is delicious.

I just opened a can, lightly mashed the chick peas with a fork, added some chopped red onion, a little chopped celery, chopped red sweet pepper, parsley, dill, lemon juice and spices, and topped it with a flavored balsamic vinegar ! A healthy rainbow packed lunch in minutes and it's filling, fast, and hearty. Yet, kind to my waistline- with only 2 Points Plus.

I made this recipe for one. Why? Because I'm trying to follow WW and I wanted it to be very low in points. On Weight Watchers the chick pea mash is about 2 points Plus per serving. ( which is the entire recipe) Want to serve more people, just double, triple or quadruple the recipe.

The best part of it is that you can eat the chickpea mash on a romaine lettuce leaf instead of bread. I know there are delicious gluten free breads and gluten free crackers - if you have some - go for it..it will taste fabulous.  But, I prefer to eat grain free, so I'll be using romaine lettuce leafs as my base. Yum!!

Flavor without calories
 I used flavored vinegar that has very few calories ( 15) but lots of flavor to give the salad a kick- I did not use oil, but it didn't need it!

     You can buy flavored vinegars in some supermarkets, specialty shops,  or order online. 
They are a little pricy, but so worth it 
Order online: . Infused Balsamic Quartetto - Raspberry, Blackberry, Green Apple & Mango (Pack of 4 x 150ml)

You can use this same recipe to make a smooth spread

If the salad doesn't interest you , you can make it into a fabulous chick pea spread by just putting all the ingredients into the food processor but with 1 teaspoon of olive oil but omit the flavored vinegar. It will come out a humus consistency that you can eat as a spread ( The oil will increase the points)

You can vary the veggies as well: 

• sliced scallions
• chopped dill
• diced tomatoes 
• chopped fresh cilantro
• diced cucumber

This is a wonderful plant based lunch that is gluten free, vegan, and delicious. If you make it in advance, it is even better as the flavors have time to mingle. I like to eat mine always at room temperature. It's filling and remember it's only 2 Points Plus on WW!! Amazing!!

Author: Judee Algazi from Gluten Free A-Z Blog
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: None

Ingredients:
1/2 cup cooked chickpeas, drained and smashed
1/4 cup of chopped red onion
1/4 cup of chopped cucumber
1/4 cup diced tomatoes
1/4 cup of chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 teaspoon of cumin
salt and cracked pepper to taste
1/4 cup of flavored vinegar

Directions: 
Put the chickpeas in a bowl. Using a fork or spoon smash the chickpeas along the side of the bowl. When they get to the consistency you like, toss the chickpeas with the rest of the ingredients.

Want to make it a meal? Add a Weight Watcher type soup! 
Eat it with my 
WW style egg drop soup ( only 1 PP and take 5 minutes to make)
or my 15 minute Green Pea soup

I Will Be Linking this recipe to my Daily Blog Carnival List 

Disclaimer: I am an affiliate for Amazon- If you click to Amazon from my blog and make a purchase- I may receive a very small compensation which helps me defray the costs of running a blog. Thank You.

Pin It Please leave a comment so I know you stopped by. Scroll down to the end of the post and click on comments.

Spaghetti Squash Chow Mein ( vegan)

Do you love chow mein? I do, and I really loved this low carb recipe even more because instead of high carb noodles, it uses spaghetti squash!  

I was really intrigued when I saw this recipe on Pinterest using spaghetti squash. I'm always looking for new recipes to use my spaghetti squash! I ordinarily make an Italian type recipe with tomato sauce ,but this is the first time I'm using my spaghetti squash in a Chinese style recipe.

I have to tell you , it was one fabulous recipe! It could be eaten as a delicious side dish or over brown rice ( if you don't mind the carbs) to make it more filling as a meal. ( Of course you could add a protein of your choice as well) 

Without the rice, it is a relatively low calorie/low carb recipe with about 2 Points Plus per generous serving ( basically from the olive oil). And it's a powerhouse of antioxidants from all the veggies, fresh garlic, and fresh ginger. 

Don't overcook the vegetables as they taste good with a little crunch and the spaghetti squash is on the soft side. For an additional crunch try adding some 

slivered almonds!
Naturally gluten free and vegan- makes a great dish for company.

Author:  Judee Algazi/ Gluten Free A-Z Blog

Adapted from the recipe on : Little Bits of Real Food

Prep Time: 10-15 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes for the recipe; 35 minutes for the spaghetti squash

Ingredients: 

1 medium spaghetti squash, baked and scooped out ( set aside) 

2 teaspoons of olive oil or use olive oil spray generously

1 medium- large onion, sliced

3 stalks celery slice on a diagonal 

1/2 cup of chopped green scallion

3 cups of cabbage slaw mix in a bag or 

3 cups of chopped cabbage

1/2 cup of shredded carrots

optional: 1/4 cup of slivered almonds

Ingredients for Sauce: 

3 cloves of garlic, pressed

1-2 teaspoons of freshly grated ginger ( depending on if you like ginger alot)

1/8 cup of gluten free soy sauce ( or more to taste- it's very sodium high) 

1 Tablespoon of coconut sugar crystals ( or sweetener of your choice)

1/4 teaspoon of white pepper 

Directions: 

Make the sauce by combining all ingredients and set aside. Saute the onions and celery in a large skillet for about 2 minutes in the olive oil or oil spray. Add the scallions and coleslaw mix ( or cabbage and carrots) and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. Add the cooked spaghetti squash, the sauce and the almonds at this point. Stir well and cook for 30 seconds. Remove and serve.

 How to Cut and Bake a Spaghetti Squash: 

My notes: 

• You can make the spaghetti squash the day before and store in the refrigerator and then the prep is much faster.
• Trader Joe's sells frozen cubes of fresh minced garlic and fresh grated ginger in their freezer compartment. You can substitute 2 cubes of each if you don't have fresh in the house. ( I keep the frozen in the freezer at all times for a pinch- it comes in very hand) They also have basil and cilantro.
• This recipe is delicious by itself or eat over quinoa or rice

This post will  be shared on  

My blog carnival list 

Food is my passion. I am gluten intolerant, busy. and strive for a healthy balanced lifestyle. It has taken me many years to develop and discover easy healthy recipes that meet gluten free, vegetarian and real food standards. On my blog I share my journey, my struggles, my discoveries, and my new recipes. I hope you find ideas, resources, and recipes that will be helpful to you. Come Back soon.

Pin It Please leave a comment so I know you stopped by. Scroll down to the end of the post and click on comments.

Low Carb Zucchini Lasagna ( GF)

Are you a lasagna lover? This zucchini lasagna is made with sliced zucchini strips instead of pasta noodles and is absolutely so delicious you will not even miss the noodles.

Quick, Easy, Healthy

But what you'll love most about it is how quick and easy you can prepare it.  You can assemble it the night before and cook it when you get home from work.

It's always a challenge to find healthy recipes for your family that fit into your busy working schedule. This is an easy recipe which cuts down on carbs but not flavor.  Truthfully, this recipe was very fast and easy to make and helped me use up some of the abundance of zucchini that I have right now. How much zucchini do you have ??

Loaded with Zucchini ?

I received 8 medium-large organic green and yellow zucchini from my CSA farm. It was truly a challenge to eat them all before they went bad. So, I made a variety of zucchini dishes this week. Each recipe was different from the others, and each was really delicious!
 Zucchini is low calorie, low carb, and very diverse as you can see.

We enjoyed the following recipes this week: 

• I've used my spiralizer to make raw Zoodles in Pesto Sauce for lunch-yum
• Baked Parmesan Zucchini Spears as a side dish
• Nona's zucchini quiche was a good dinner one night

However despite my zucchini frenzy, I still had 2 nice size zucchini left. 

So, I took out my mandolin slicer ( love it)  and quickly sliced up the remainder of my zucchini into thin strips. I didn't even pre cook the strips. I just lined them uncooked in a pyrex pie plate, layered in some ricotta cheese mixture, some more zucchini slices, some marinara sauce and some shredded cheese. Baked my lasagna for 55 minutes and enjoyed a meal for dinner!

I actually made two of lasagnas and put cooked broccoli raab in one of them .
I'm froze that one !
You could add any cooked veggies of your choice-
The prep for the recipe is a very fast and easy and it then bakes for about an hour

Author: Judee Algazi - Gluten Free A-Z Blog
Prep Time: 10-12 minutes
Cook Time: 50-60 minutes ( depending on your oven)
Pre-heat : 350 degrees

Ingredients:

1 medium/large zucchini, sliced thin ( I used a mandolin slicer)
2 cups of ricotta cheese
1/4 cup chopped parsely
1 egg, beaten
1/2 -3/4 cup of marinara sauce
1 cup of shredded cheese ( I used cheddar - could use mozzarella)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix ricotta cheese, egg, parsley and 1/4 cup of the marinara sauce in a medium bowl and set aside.
Spray a 9 inch pyrex pie plate with cooking spray and then line thin zucchini slices to cover the bottom of a 9 inch pyrex pie pan.
Spread  the zucchini with the ricotta cheese mixture.
Spread the ricotta cheese layer with another layer of zucchini slices.
Spread the remaining 1/4 cup of marinara sauce over the layer of zucchini and cover with the shredded cheese. Bake in 350 degree preheated oven for 50-60 minutes.

Make this layer twice

End with cheese topping; then bake

Pin It Please leave a comment so I know you stopped by. Scroll down to the end of the post and click on comments.

Cauliflower Crusted Mini Pizzas

Low carb individual sized gluten free mini pizza crusts are great to eat for a healthy lunch, dinner, or snacks. Once you get the hang of ricing cauliflower in your food processor ( very easy in 5 minutes) , this recipe is a cinch! Cauliflower is a low carb yet nutrient rich vegetable that you can substitute for grain in most recipes and it tastes great this way.

 I can make these mini pizza crusts without using any flour. That means I can eat not only a healthier crust but also eliminate the high carbohydrate content of regular dough .
That works for me!

The recipe makes 12 mini pizza crusts. I calculate that each crust is just 1 Point Plus on WW+ the topping. Yes,- I'm back counting points on Weight Watchers after a long time partying! I put on some weight, struggling with my clothes, and realize it's time for me to start counting those points again and eating more consciously.

 I need to start my day with a food plan. It's just that simple- otherwise the little kid in me can make some very poor choices.

 Cauliflower pizza crusts fit into a healthy diet plan. They can be topped any way you like them.
 They are gluten free and grain free.

These are some of the toppings I've used for my mini pizza crusts :

• Marinara sauce, shredded cheese, mushrooms
• Chopped summer tomato, red onion, chopped cucumber
• Large slice of tomato covered in shredded cheese and a basil leaf

There is no limit to your creativity when it comes to toppings- top the crusts with whatever you like!


Author:      Judee Algazi
Prep Time: 10-15 minutes
Bake Time: 15 minutes + 5 minutes again
Equipment: Food Processor
Preheat Oven: 450 degrees
Makes : 12 mini pizza crusts

Ingredients: 

1 head of cauliflower chopped ( then riced in the food processor- see below)
2 large eggs, beaten
1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Freshly cracked pepper to taste
optional: add garlic powder is desired

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees

How to rice your cauliflower : 
Place 1/2 of the cut up cauliflower in a food processor using the metal blade. Whiz a 2-3 times very quickly ( on off , on off, on off) until the cauliflower resembles rice. Remove from the processor and place in a large mixing bowl. Repeat with the other half of the cauliflower.

Cook Your Cauliflower whether you make your own or buy it in a bag 
Place the riced cauliflower in a large skillet  that has been sprayed with olive oil, and cook on med high for 3-5 minutes, stirring frequently so it doesn't burn. Taste cauliflower to see if it is cooked but not overcooked. Remove from heat and return to the mixing bowl. Add the eggs, shredded mozzarella cheese, salt and pepper and mix well with a spoon.

Bake Your Pizza Crusts: 
Cover two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Spray well with cooking oil spray.
Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, scoop out 12 scoops onto the cookie sheets .
Flatten each scoop with the palm of your hand to make a small round circle.
Place in oven (450 degrees) for 15 minutes until the pizza crusts begin to brown.

Remove from oven. Place toppings on Pizza crusts and put back in the oven for 5 more minutes.

Or ** Remove from oven, allow to cool, and save for later. Top and heat just before you would like to eat them.

Scoop 1/4 cup of the cauliflower and egg mixture into mounds onto cookie sheets

Flatten with palm of hand and bake for 15 minutes

My Notes: 

1. If you don't want to or can't use a food processor, you can grate the cauliflower with a hand grater. It will be more time consuming. 

2.  Prepare and bake the crusts in advance for the 15 minutes and then top them and bake again for 5-10 minutes before eating

3. My parchment paper is brown because I use an all natural parchment that has not been chlorinated.

4. These pizza crusts are not as crunchy as a non grain crust, but still really work well. Try my plantain pizza crust for a crispy crust

Will be linking this post to my

My blog carnival list

Blog Author: Judee Algazi
Pin It Please leave a comment so I know you stopped by. Scroll down to the end of the post and click on comments.