We could all stand to get more veggies in our lives, right? One of the easiest ways to accomplish this task without having to think about it is with pizza. Yes, pizza. That wonderful crusty dough continues to show its versatility as riced cauliflower, broccoli, sweet potato and kale are being incorporated to produce crispy pizzas loaded with vegetables that promote eating well.
By transforming what is normally thought to be too high in carbs and fat into a healthful option, pizza has turned the corner, becoming more than just a weekend or Friday-night splurge. Whether you are short on time or lacking dinner inspiration, pizza is a crowd pleaser, but now its healthful benefits outweigh any guilt parents might have felt serving it in the past.
Here are our top picks for gluten-free pizzas and pizza crusts loaded with veggies:
1. ALDI
In the deli refrigerated case at ALDI are two take-and-bake cauliflower crust pizzas—Uncured Pepperoni and Three Cheese. These 12-inch pizzas offer the most bang for your buck, coming in at under $7 per pie. Made by Mama Cozzi, each pizza is certified gluten free and is held together with only cheese, cornstarch, potato starch, olive oil and sea salt, producing a crispy, cheesy pizza that makes seconds a sure thing.
2. Caulipower
Leave it to Caulipower to introduce the first-ever frozen Paleo cauliflower pizza crust. This grain-free, gluten-free, dairy-free crust makes the perfect pizza base for a low-carb and high-vegetable pizza option—and no one will taste the difference. The company also has the first-ever personal-size cauliflower crust pizza, too. Each takes only minutes for hungry kids (and adults) to bake and delivers a crunchy pie bursting with flavor, protein and fiber.
3. Costco
Stop by Costco to stock up on Milton’s Craft Bakers cauliflower crust pizzas in three flavors: Roasted Vegetables, Four Cheese and Margherita Four Cheese. Mozzarella, provolone and Parmesan cheeses, Roma tomatoes and basil top these thin and crispy crusts, made with a combination of rice flour, cheese and tapioca starch. Sold in a two-pack, these pizzas are a steal at less than the typical cost of one cauliflower crust pizza.
4. Spinato’s
Finally, a way to eat spinach without getting it stuck in your teeth. Spinato’s broccoli crust is made from a blend of broccoli (first ingredient), rice and tapioca flours, and cheese. Topped with aged cheeses, slow-roasted tomatoes and crispy vegetables, the pizzas are available in four styles: Mediterranean Supreme, Margherita, Primavera and Aged Asiago, Romano & Mozzarella.
5. Trader Joe’s
Trader Joe’s two vegetable crusts, cauliflower and kale and broccoli, serve as perfect pizza bases suited to your busy lifestyle. And each veggie-filled crust, made with a short list of ingredients, is also free of dairy and eggs. With a base of riced cauliflower, corn flour and potato starch, the cauliflower pizza crustis a picture of modern nutrition waiting to be dressed. Or maybe the broccoli and kale pizza crust, with broccoli, black kale, corn flour, cornstarch and potato starch, makes a better base for your family. Any way you slice it, these crusts offer a vegetable canvas that stands up to a boatload of toppings.
Bonus: We haveheard that Udi’s Gluten Freeis getting into the vegetable fun with two new grain-free sweet potato crust pizzas in Barbecue Chicken and Four Cheese. Sweet potatoes for the win, seriously! Sweet potato makes an excellent base for quiche, so we can only imagine what a wonderful crusty combination it will create with pizza dough.
