Why does a pizza need bread? That is the question that started this one. This crustless pizza bakes everything I love about a slice into one dish, and it comes in around 5 grams of net carbs a serving. A regular slice can run past 30 grams of carbs, so you keep all the flavor and drop most of the count, which is why it fits keto, Atkins, and gluten-free eating.
I developed this recipe after going out to eat Crustless pizza with some friends and I ended up with a pile of pizza crust on my plate because I just ate the toppings off about 4 pieces! I decided it would be a lot less wasteful to just make a casserole consisting of some of my favorite pizza toppings.
Why a casserole, not a meat crust
Most Low Carb crustless pizza recipes have you brown a base of sausage and cheese and press it into a skillet like dough. I keep it simpler than that. The toppings go straight into a casserole dish, with no base to flatten and nothing to balance toppings on. I have found the casserole reheats better too, since there is no pressed meat crust to turn rubbery the next day. It is the one I reach for on a busy weeknight when I want a Low Carb dinner without the extra step.
How to keep crustless pizza from getting watery
A casserole holds more moisture than a skillet, so a few little steps keep it from going soupy. Brown the sausage and drain the fat before it goes in. Pat the mushrooms dry, or give them a quick saute, since raw mushrooms let out a lot of water as they bake. Spread the marinara in a thin, even layer instead of a pool. I have found that a thin smear of sauce keeps both the moisture and the carbs down, and you still taste it in every bite. Skip fresh tomatoes here, they water out the most, and reach for a thick marinara over a runny jarred one.
Net carbs and what drives them
Built with sausage, pepperoni, ham, mushrooms, olives, and cheese, a serving lands around 5 grams of net carbs and about 400 calories, with roughly 24 grams of protein. Your marinara will move those numbers, so treat them as a close guess. Most of the carbs come from two places, the sauce and the black olives. If you want it closer to zero, thin the sauce or leave it out and let the cheese and the meats carry the flavor. A homemade marinara keeps the count lower than most jars, which sneak in added sugar.
Low-carb toppings and swaps
Feel free to top this however you like. Italian sausage in place of breakfast sausage gives it a more traditional flavor, and ground beef or shredded chicken both hold up. For vegetables, stick to the low-water ones like bell peppers, jalapenos, or spinach you have squeezed dry. The cheese is open too, a mozzarella and provolone blend melts the cleanest for me, with a little cheddar for color. One thing I love to do is bake it in small individual dishes so everyone fills their own with the toppings they like. It turns a weeknight dinner into something the kids want to help build. If you like a Low Carb Italian bake, the zucchini lasagna uses the same idea of swapping the starch for vegetables and cheese.
Make it ahead and store it
This keeps in the fridge for up to 4 days in a sealed container, and it reheats so much better than leftover pizza slices. For meal prep, let it cool all the way and portion it into containers. It freezes well too, wrap individual portions and warm them in the oven or air fryer so the top crisps back up instead of going soft in the microwave. Keep an eye out for more Low Carb dinner recipes you can prep this way.
Sources:
USDA FoodData Central, nutrient reference for pork sausage, pepperoni, mozzarella cheese, and tomato marinara
Sugarfreechic test kitchen, homemade low-carb marinara
Atkins, net carbs guidance for low-carb diets
