All the taste of pizza without the carb overload! These keto pizza bites have a crust entirely made out of mozzarella. Crispy, easy and ready in no time at all!!
I often make simple cheese crisps in the frying pan by melting grated cheddar. They are a delicious quick savoury snack and keep me from gorging on potato crisps.
And one day, I thought to myself... how about using the same principle and adding a few toppings? This is how these crustless low carb pizza bites were born.
The genius thing about this super easy Keto snack recipe is that it does not contain any wheat whatsoever, but still tastes just like pizza. It's simply grated mozzarella that forms the base!
My carb-loving kids go absolutely crazy for keto pizza bites. When I told my daughter on the way home from school yesterday I had made twelve of them, she declared, "I'll have all. Two for snack and the rest for dinner."
There you go. It's not just me!
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Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you'll need:
- Mozzarella - You need grated, firm mozzarella for this recipe. Fresh white mozzarella contains too much liquid. I like to buy mine pre-shredded, but some people like to buy a mozzarella block and shred it at home.
- Marinara Sauce - Use my keto pizza sauce or make a super-quick no-cook marinara with tomato passata, 1 garlic clove, salt, pepper, and Italian herbs.
- Salami or cured ham - I used a few slices, cut into small pieces.
- Fresh basil leaves - Not essential, but makes the snack feel 100% healthier, looks pretty and tastes good.
Instructions
It is so easy to make keto pizza bites. Here are the basic steps. For the full recipe with ingredient amounts and nutrition information, scroll down to the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
1.) First, drop little mounds of mozzarella onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Place them in the oven underneath the grill to melt and brown them.
2.) When your mozzarella crusts are browned and look like this, take them out of the oven. They'll be soft at first, so make sure you let them cool down before you handle them! When they've cooled down a bit, they firm up nicely.
3.) Now make the Marinara sauce. You've got several options here. The super quick one is to open a can of quality canned tomatoes (use only the tomatoes, not the sauce) or passata, add 1 garlic clove, a small handful of fresh basil leaves (or an Italian herb mix), pepper and salt and blend. You can use this sauce as is, without heating it up.
Alternatively, heat this sauce on the stove and let it simmer to reduce it. This way the flavours become even stronger and your marinara topping is thicker.
4.) Next, cut the salami or ham slices and fry them until they are nice and crisp. Even bacon would work well here - the choice is yours.
5.) And now it's time for the assembly! Your mozzarella bases have cooled down and turned into crispy-crunchy bite-size Keto pizza crusts. You put a bit of marinara sauce on each, and top with salami or ham. If you want to push the boat out, decorate them with a basil leaf!
Variations
If you don't have a broiler or a grill, make the pizza bites in a frying pan over medium heat. You don't need to oil the pan - simply drop the mozzarella mounds into the pan, leaving some space around the edges so they can spread, and let it melt and brown.
For a cheesier base, add grated parmesan to the mozzarella.
If you wish, you could also use half mozzarella and half cheddar to make the pizza base.
Recipe FAQs
Yes. Line the air fryer basket with parchment paper and preheat it to 180C or 350F. The cheese takes around 5 minutes to melt and crisp up.
I have experimented with making a large mozzarella base that looks just like a regular pizza, which I then cut into slices. The problem with this was that the tomato sauce weighs it down too much. Therefore - keep your pizza bites, well, bite-size. That way they canย hold their shape even after you add the toppings.
Prepare the cheese crisps in advance and add the toppings right before serving.
Serving Suggestion
Pizza bites are great as a keto-friendly snack, as an appetizer or as part of a party spread, alongside other small dishes such as cauliflower hummus, spinach balls, low carb onion rings and keto chips.
Storage
These crustless pizza snacks stay fresh in the fridge for 3-4 days. Store them in an airtight container.
Cheese freezes well. Therefore, it's possible to freeze pizza bites in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
More Keto Pizza Recipes
Do you love pizza? Me too! Here are more low carb pizza recipes to try:
- Almond Flour Pizza Crust40 Minutes
- Low Carb Keto Pizza Rolls45 Minutes
- Low Carb Pizza18 Minutes
- Crazy Good Low Carb Keto Calzone35 Minutes
Last but not least, another way to make a crustless pizza is this cottage cheese pizza bowl recipe!
Tried this recipe? Give it a star rating below!
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Recipe
Low Carb Pizza Bites
from Sugar Free LondonerNote: The servings slider only changes the first amount in each line and not any subsequent amounts. Please make your own calculations where necessary.
Ingredients
Pizza Base
- 2.5 cups pre-shredded mozzarella 300g
Toppings
- 12 teaspoon Marinara Sauce ***or make a quick version as described in the recipe notes
- 5 slices of salami and/or parma ham cut into small pieces
- 12 fresh basil leaves
Instructions
- Set the grill/broiler to medium heat.
- Place small handfuls of the mozzarella on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Leave space around the edges so the cheese can spread. Grill in the oven until the cheese has melted. Remove from the oven once the tops are browned.
- Let the mozzarella pizza bases cool on the tray so they can firm up.
- In a pan, brown the diced salami/ham.
- Add a teaspoon of marinara on every pizza and decorate with salami and ham pieces.
- Scatter over the basil leaves and serve.
Video
Notes
- Drain the liquid from the can and use only the tomatoes. Or, use tomato passata.
- Blend the tomatoes with the garlic, salt, pepper and Italian herbs.
- For a no-cook sauce, use as is. For a thicker, more aromatic sauce, cook the mixture on the stovetop over medium heat until the sauce thickens and the liquid reduces.ย
Wren Passerine
Sooooo sooooo good. Made just four for myself and had that pizza craving fully satisfied. Great recipe. Mozzarella cheese as a bread base? Who knew!
CindyP
I have made these a couple of times now. They are super easy and very tasty!! Highly Recommend!
Beverly
Hi Nicoletta
Iโm wondering how far in advance you think I could make the mozzarella rounds. Iโd like to make, store for a couple days and then finish them off the day theyโll be eaten. Do you think the rounds will stay crisp if stored in an air tight container?
Thanks,
Beverly
Katrin
Hi Beverly, I have never tried it with this particular recipe, but I have stored my low carb chips in an airtight container and that was fine.
Cathy
This recipe sounds great. I have a question - you keep mentioning a "grill". I don't think you mean the oven. Are you referring to the BBQ grill or possibly a toaster/oven? Thanks for all your great recipes.
Katrin
Hi Cathy, it's not a barbecue, it's an oven function. It's the hot wire/coil at the top of the oven that browns and crisps up food. I hope this makes sense - what do you call it over in Canada??
Sue
In the US it's the broiler
Katrin
Thank you!!! I shall add it to the recipe so I don't confuse anyone any more ๐
Patty
I was in a big hurry so I just fried the mozzarella cheese in a non stick pan, flipped it over and topped with some microwaved leftover pizza sauce. Loved it! This will become one of my go to favorites!
Katrin
Hi Shirley, I recently removed a few old recipes that do not fit the direction of my blog any more. The bread is one of them. Do check out my Rustic Paleo bread - it's my new favourite!
Chasidy
Just made these and wow they are amazing! I am a pizza lover and its my weakness, now I can have these anytime without the bloat and feeling yucky. I did add to slices of pepperoni to each one and might make them again with some peppers or fresh slices of tomatoes.
Thank you for sharing!
Maxine
I love these mini pizzas..satisfaction right off. Thanks again.
Bethany
Wow these pizzas are genius!