A couple of weeks ago, on my way home from teaching a workshop at Seattle CoderDojo, I stopped at MOD Pizza to get a salad before grabbing some McDonald’s for my wife and kids.
Let me say now that I love MOD Pizza. Their pizzas are great, and when I’m trying to be a good boy, they offer the best bang for your buck in town when it comes to salads. My family and I have been going to MOD for over a decade.
This time they had a sign on the counter, advertising a cauliflower crust. Intriguing. I asked about the ingredients and about the only thing I could hear above the noise was “like on Oprah.”
As a low-carber / semi-paleo kind of guy (eliminating starches from my diet lets me eliminate insulin needles from my diabetes management), I’ve tried a couple of disappointing attempts at a cauliflower crust pizza. But if MOD was selling one, let’s see what they could do.
When I got it home… Oh baby. Chewy, cheesy, crispy. Seriously, This is the crust I’d serve to God if He came over for pizza. It wasn’t just a great cauliflower crust, it was a great crust period. The taste and texture were so spot-on. I could live the rest of my life having this instead of a “bread” crust and feel like I was WINNING.
I figured there was no way you got this with just caulifloweer, eggs, and cheese, so I went to their web site to look up the nutritional info. It wasn’t there!!!
I contacted their customer service by email, by phone, by email again a week later. I needed to know if I could have this in my life and still maintain my relatively strict diet. Today, I got an apology for not having it online (because it’s in test phase) and the nutritional info with ingredients…
84 grams of carbs (though bravo on only 6 of them being sugars), rice flour, tapioca starch, rice starch, modified food starch, and cultured brown rice. If you’re a low-carber, keto, paleo, this cauliflower crust isn’t quite going to work for you.
If you don’t give a damn about carbs, grains, or starches and you just want a better gluten-free option, it is so damn good and you will feel blessed to put it in your mouth.
Sadly, despite hopes of cauliflower crusting my way through MOD’s menu until I sprouted leaves, this will keep MOD’s pizza a “cheat day” item for me. But when I have a cheat day, it’s going to be this crust. And until that cheat day, I’ll still be a massive fan of the MOD salad.
Thank you Greg for you diligence in finding the ingredients to the Cauliflower crust. I too am a MOD fan, eating there at least 2-3 times a month. I have avoided MOD recently as I have begun working my way into the KETO diet. I was so excited that this could mean I would be able to indulge without guilt. I ordered it today and fell in love. I was attempting to go online tonight to find out what the ingredients were and “wallah” there was you post. I knew it was too good to be true. Oh well, I agree it will just have to be my cheat day pizza. š
I was so disappointed and mad as well!! When I looked up the nutrition facts and found that the cauliflower crust actually has more carbs and sugars than the regular crust!! š¤
My sentiments exactly! I was actually pissed off because the thought of a keto crust MOD Pizza had me eagerly anticipating the opening in my town for weeks! The discovery that the cauliflower crust is a marketing hoax was a major disappointment! More starchy carbs than a wheat crust pizza!
84 grams of carbs in a slice? Or the whole pizza?
The whole pizza (not including sauce and toppings).
Thank you!!
Kind of mad at myself for having this cauliflower crust pizza now. Oh well thanks to you I will stick to the salads and roasted veggies at MOD pizza.
This was my exact journey today. I ditched my low-carb salad plan thinking I would happily pay $2 for a pizza that low-carb and healthies. The sign clearly states +100 calories, but I was in denial thinking it was only 100 calories. I looked it up as I waited and was shocked. Sigh. To your point, it was darn tasty and will be saved for a cheat day…
Just went to Mod for a fund raiser and asked, since I eat keto, what are ingredients. Was told cauliflower, egg, and cheese. Googled before eating crust because the cauliflower pizzas at store are not keto due to starches and such. Glad I saw this post! Would be nice if places actually researched before promoting something.
Ugh ā- another one bites the dust. Iāll simply stick with MOD salads.
Super yummy crust but not sure if it’s worth the calories etc. It say $2 more +100 calories, I thot there is no way more than the regular so must only be 100 cals, not the deal.
Thanks for looking this up! I too had this the other day and was amazed and immediately thought there was no way this is keto safe and had the same issue you had. I just figured until I knew it would stay as a cheat meal.
Just looked up the regular Mod crust and it is 85 net carbs. Well that is just all together disappointing. I should just have the regular on a cheat meal I suppose.
Omg thank you so much! Iām so š¤š¤
I too was lured in to trying the cauliflower pizza crust. One bite and I knew it was not low carb. One of the employees asked if it was good. I told her yes very good but itās not low carb. She yes it is, it gluten free. š³š
Iām so sad to read this! Iām eating the cauliflower crust right now!!! It is not low carb. If it tastes too good to be true, itās prob not that good for u. Iām also dairy free and realizing all these faux ice creams arenāt good for u either. Thanks for your post.
Jill, what do you mean, faux ice creams? How about Sola, and Enlightenment ice cream and ice cream bars? Are these bad?
Sola bloats you with gas, causes diarrhea, etc. NOT worth it!!
If you want a REAL ice cream that works on low-carb/keto and tastes like magic, try REBEL ice cream. It’s A-MAZE-ING!
Thank you for sharing on the cauliflower crust. There is a recipe for a cauliflower crust that used Parmesan cheese instead of Mozzarella by sugarfreemom.com that is really tasty and sturdy enough to eat out of hand. My husband loves Mod pizza cauliflower crust but he likes this one and has asked for it again. He is a die-hard bread eater so going keto has been hard. This is a keeper, just grate your own cheese to miss the starches they use to stop clumping.
Had it tonight. I asked the guy before I ordered (because I planned on getting a salad) and he said it was eggs, dairy and cauliflower… I knew better… Still got it. (I didn’t have my phone with me to look up the nutritional information – so I trusted the guy – My brain knew better but I wanted to believe!) It was fantastic, but it was more carbs than I allow myself over four days! š© I would have been better off just getting a mini regular crust. Why can’t anyone offer a fathead crust?! WHY?!
Does anyone have any idea how many WW points?
19 points for the cauliflower crust and 14 for the regular. What?! Just because itās vegetable based doesnāt make it healthier.
I love Mod , but on Keto, – I use the crust as a plate to eat the toppings. Sometimes I get tired of cold salads – a call what I eat there a hot āpizzaā salad. Itās all good without the crust – donāt pay the extra $2 to throw it away!
Ugh! I knew it was too good to be true. I ordered it tonight thinking it was Keto. Something made me second guess my choice and then I found this article. Thankfully I only ate 2 pieces. It was really good, too good to be Keto.
š© I’m so sad about the carbs! This crust is SO wonderful … I knew it was too good to be true. I hope they keep trying!!
Thought it was delicious but decided to look up nutritional information. Was told by MOD employee it was cauliflower, mozzarella cheese and herbs. Yeah right! I ate more carbs by eating it than I eat in days! Definitely NOT Keto friendly. š„
Thank you for the WW point info on this cauliflower crust. I had 20 points left for dinner tonight, so ordered this crust with red sauce, cheese & some veggies. I thought Iād be ok point wise by ordering this āveggieā crust, but 19 points for just the crust? Yikes! Next time Iāll get a mini regular crust instead. š (But it was good!)
Don’t pay for the mini size, it is about three times per square inch the cost of the mod size. Just get a mod size and half of it or maybe 1/3 of it and take the rest home to eat later.
Bummer. I just ordered one. I knew when they got it out of the fridge it wasn’t just cauliflower.
Well I won’t get another one.
Come on Mod Pizza, really! People who want a cauliflower crust want low carb, not a fat filled gluten free option. Get with the program and do your customers right. No bait and switch! Offering a cauliflower crust with 84 grams of carbs plus $2 extra is just WRONG…Your regular crust has less carbs. Please!! Your pizza is fantastic, do not ruin your reputation by trying to pass off this pizza as low carb by advertising it as āCauliflower crustā knowing people will think itās low carb. I am sorry to all who bought this pizza crust believing they were not ruining there eating plan.
The trouble is that it has to meet MOD standards, taste-wise…and has to be mass-produced, and be able to be cooked with a paddle in the wood-fire stove. Plus MOD is a nut-free facility, if anything had almond flour itās automatically out. I would encourage you to write to mod though and suggest this, they really do listen to these complaints.
I am sorry but if youāre keto or low carb, you should know to look up the info before ordering or ask for the info (the actual, written infoānot word of mouth from employees they donāt make them memorize ALL the ingredients or nutrition facts. I only know because I wanted to be better-informed for my customers) I would think the general rule if youāre eating out would be that pizza isnāt a realistic option.
Had a girl today say she was on whole30 and couldnāt have cheese but the 156 gram carb 17g sugar gluten-friendly crust was A-OK. I didnāt have the heart to tell her, maybe I shouldāve…idk. I probably wouldāve if Iād started her order out.
Blaze pizza has a keto crust, folks. Try them out. They are just as good as MOD
I think itās safe to say the only low carb crust option is the fathead recipe huh? It takes some diligence and effort, but worth it. Any thoughts on fathead?
I have made the “fathead” pizza crust at home several times and it’s great!
Making a homemade cauliflower pizza crust will be truly low-carb/keto, and there are some pre-made ones out there that will fit keto macros, but a lot of packaged foods have ingredients that don’t fit, and those ingredients are really processed and far from their original state. Minimizing processed foods is a good goal š
Crust was amazing and tasted to goo to be true. Looked it up after I got back from lunch and the crust alone was more calories that a regular mini. Not a healthy alternative other than gluten free. Saw the +100 and started thinking is the crust a 100 calories or is that add a 100 calories to any pizza, guess it was add lol
Blaze pizza is pretty much the same as Mod has a cauliflower crust (not low carb) also a keto crust for $3 more which is low carb. I had it it’s not as good as the real thing but it’s nice to have a keto option
I totally agree with the posts of disappointment with the cauliflower crust. I was at MOD for my first time last night and loved the cauliflower crust, my first thought was, this is too good to be true” and sure enough it is. MOD, why not have a real cauliflower crust? It will bring me back for another try, call it Keto crust??
I too fell for their false claims and for the first time in a year have been knocked out of ketosis. Pretty frustrated to know I just ate ingredients I avoid like the plague.
I appreciate the time you spent sharing this information because I was convinced I was eating bread and not cauliflower, eggs, and cheese and come to find out I was right!
My bigger concern is for someone who might have an allergy to one of these ingredients not advertised.
Not for those on keto diets.
Thank you for offering this cauliflower crust for gluten sensitive people!!!
Thank you so much for this research. This is the first post when you google MOD cauliflower crust review and is the only one I needed to confirm my suspicion that there is no way this is a keto friendly item.
I just fell for their bait and switch last night. Who would sell a cauliflower crust that has that many refined carbs in it??? What’s the point? The only answer is they are scamming people on low carb and keto diets in to thinking it’s an option. I ate more carbs in one meal than I normally do in two days. I felt so sick and dizzy afterwards. There are some modified starches in it as well. Frankenstein food just like the new meatless burgers coming out. DON’T EAT THIS! I’m done with MOD after this. I don’t trust them…
Today was barely my 3rd day on Keto and to know that i cheated without knowing makes me feel very upset! Mod pizza shouldnt be promoting their cauliflower crust pizza without having the amount of carbs next to their calorie sign. SMFH
I just had mod pizza and got the cauliflower crust and I was told I had more carbs in the regular pizza as I was eating the pizza I’m just going to stick with Uncle Bo’s and Arlington Texas actually have cauliflower crust pizza keto friendly.
Weāve been Keto for the last couple of years and had to eliminate MOD from our dining out options. I too was elated to find they have a cauliflower crust only to be shocked at the carb content and that is is HIGHER carb count than their standard crust! What a joke. They just donāt get it.
I’m sad to hear about the cauliflower crust ingredients too. I tried it for the first time today before fully knowing the ingredients. It was good, but I too will be consider it a cheat food in the paleo world and not partake very often. Too bad… š
So is there any Cauliflower in the crust?
Yes. There’s also lots of starchy non-wheat carbs.
My husband and I are doing the no carb keto diet. We ordered the cauliflower crust pizza with sauce, cheese, veggies and meats, thinking we were eating healthy and sticking to our diet. While eating it, we looked up the nutritional facts and realized we would have been better off having 2 big mac’s.
I am so disappointed too….I cheated…this was too good to be true!!!
Delicious food. Cauliflower crust was amazing. Very angry and upset that you don’t disclose the carb count.
I was just wondering if they could do a hot salad, I love this idea.
If you’re looking for a good gluten-free option ,which is always my nemesis , then the cauliflower crust is the bomb!