Garlicky White Pizza with Cauliflower & Kale

Preheat the oven to 375 F. Put your pizza stone (if using) into the cold oven before preheating it. This will allow your pizza stone to get nice and hot.

Toss the cauliflower in a bowl with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Lay it out in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon of the kosher salt. Roast the cauliflower for about 10 minutes, turning the pieces over with a spatula halfway through. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and set it aside.

While the cauliflower is roasting, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for about a minute. Let it turn a toasty brown but be careful not to burn it. Turn the heat on the burner to low and just let the oil soak up some of the garlic flavor for another minute. Scrape the garlic and oil into a small saucer or ramekin and set aside.

Add the kale to the oily skillet (if there’s not enough room cook it down a cup at a time). Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon of the kosher salt, and cook over medium high heat until it’s wilted.

Bring the oven temperature up to 450 F.

Lightly flour a clean work surface (such as a cutting board or a pizza peel). Toss a bit of cornmeal onto the flour. Split your dough into two equal sized pieces and set one aside.

Stretch the pizza dough into your desired shape. Make sure not to press it down into the flour/cornmeal. You want it to rest on top of the cornmeal so that your pizza slides easily into the oven. I learned this the hard way. More than once.

Spoon or brush half of the garlic and oil over the crust, all the way to the edges. Spread half of the cooked kale over that. Sprinkle half of the mozzarella cheese over the garlic and kale. Lay half of the cauliflower over the cheese, sprinkle with half of the shaved Parmesan, and then sprinkle with half of the crushed red pepper.

Take your pizza (on the pizza peel) over to the oven, open the oven and carefully slide the pizza onto the pizza stone. Bake for about 8 minutes, or to desired level of crisp. I like my crust to be chewy and crispy.

Repeat the assembly/baking procedure for the second crust.

*Note: I used One-Hour Whole Wheat Pizza Dough from Averie Cooks for this recipe. You can use your favorite recipe or purchase pre-made, but I love her recipe. You should try it.