Hey Everyone! I'm excited to share a trendy low carb meal option - meat-crust pizza!
It's everything you know an love about pizza.
Cheesy
Tomatoey
Customizable to your tastes
- but low carb.
The problem is that it's so filling it's hard to eat more than one slice!
The Ingredients
lean ground beef
ground almonds (or breadcrumbs if not opting for low carb)
garlic powder
onion flakes
thyme
oregano
sage
salt
toppings of your choice, but I used:
tomato paste (because that's what I had and that's what I used as a kid making toaster oven pizzas.. but definitely use marinara if you prefer)
goat cheese
cheddar
chopped mushrooms
olive tapenade
red onion slices
There's some debate out there as to what type of meat to use.. beef, chicken, Italian sausage? .
I opted for nutrient dense lean ground beef and an assortment of spices to season it.
The toppings are my own selection but use what you'd like.
Stir it up
The initial filling ingredients to into a bowl and you simply mix them up until the ingredients are well distributed.
If you want to taste for seasoning at this point, form a table spoon into a flat disk and sear it onto the stove. Taste it and if you think it needs more seasoning, go for it and mix it in.
Roll it out thin
I've tried different iterations of this recipe and I've found it east to make it and even crust by rolling it between two sheets of parchment paper.
You could use your hands to press down but I find it more difficult.
From here you place it into a preheated oven and bake it until it begins to turn golden brown, turning once half way through
Baking and Topping
Once you remove it from the oven, you'll need something to put the excess liquid out into.
I suggest a used jar or container. Make sure it's heat safe!
Carefully tip the sheet pan into it.
Or let it cool and remove the liquid if you find it's safer to do it that way.
This is a great recipe that can be pre-made up until this point and saved for topping and baking later. At this point, transfer the crust carefully onto a clean sheet of parchment paper (so.. much.. parchment) so that it bakes up nice and firm.
Top it generously with sauce, cheese and additional toppings. This really does benefit from having plenty of cheese because the meat can get a bit dry on the spots that remain exposed to the air of the oven.
Enjoy!
Low Carb Meatzza
This isn't your typical takeout pizza. Meat crusts are all the rage in the low carb world. Try this indulgent recipe whenever you're feeling the pizza urge creeping on.
Course: Dinner, Lunch
Servings: 4
Equipment
12" x 17" sheet pan with a lip
Parchment Paper
cooking spray
Ingredients
Meat Crust
2 lbs lean ground beef
⅓ cup ground almonds or breadcrumbs if not low carb
1 tsp garlic powder
1½ tsp onion flakes
1½ tsp dry thyme leaves
1 tsp dried oregano leaves
1 tsp dried sage leaves
2 tsp kosher salt
Toppings
¾ - 1 cup marinara sauce or tomato paste
200 g cheddar cheese, shredded
100 g goat cheese, crumbled
½ cup fresh cremini mushrooms, chopped
½ cup black olive tapenade
¼ cup red onion, peeled and thin sliced
Instructions
Preheat oven to 450F.
Place all of the meat crust ingredients in a medium bowl and stir. I suggest using a wooden spoon but feel free to use your hands. Try to avoid over mixing.
If desired, taste for seasoning by taking 1 tbsp meat crust mixture and searing it in a non stick pan.
Measure two sheets of parchment paper, large enough to cover your 12" x 17" baking sheet.
Place one sheet of parchment paper onto a counter and top with meat crust mixture. Form roughly into a rectangle. Place other sheet of parchment paper on top and roll thin until it becomes a 12" x 17" rectangle.
Remove top parchment paper off of the meat crust and fit the meat crust onto the baking sheet. It should remain on top of the lower sheet of parchment paper.
Bake in the preheated oven for 7 minutes. Rotate the pan in the oven and bake another 7 minutes.
Remove carefully from the oven and set aside to cool for 5 minutes.
Drain excess liquid that cooked out of the meat crust carefully into a heat safe container. You can discard the liquid.
Measure out a new sheet of parchment paper that is the length of the meat crust. Carefully slip the cooked meat crust off of the old sheet of parchment paper onto the new one. This requires some finesse as you don't want to break it. Use a wide spatula to assist you or let the meat crust cool completely before you transfer it.
Now, it's time to top it with your fave ingredients! Spread the tomato paste or marinara over the entire surface of the meat crust. Top with cheese and then top with remaining toppings. If using chopped raw vegetables like the ones listed above, spray them lightly with cooking spray to give them a kick start browning.
Place in the oven and bake until the toppings become golden brown, approximately 7 minutes, checking occasionally.
Remove from oven and cool for 5 minutes before cutting and serving.
