This easy Fathead Dough recipe makes the best keto pizza crust. It’s chewy and tender, just like the real thing. And it holds up to all of your favorite toppings!
Fathead dough is pretty remarkable stuff. And it’s an absolute game changer for anyone who loves pizza. It has all the elasticity and stretchiness of real pizza dough, but with a fraction of the carbs.
I never would have come up with using mozzarella cheese as a base for keto pizza crust on my own. And I am grateful to the Fathead creators, and Tom Naughton of the Fathead Movie for making it famous.
And it’s so versatile too! I’ve made everything from keto garlic knots to spinach artichoke calzones. You can even make it sweet for recipes like keto cinnamon rolls.
Of couse, one of the most oft-requested recipes for keto beginners is pizza. It’s really just the ultimate American comfort food. And fathead dough has filled the void like no other.
Why this recipe is the best
I have put my own unique spin on it, to make it a little sturdier for keto pizza crust. I use butter in place of cream cheese, a bit of coconut flour for added structure, and baking powder to help it rise and puff up nicely.
The resulting dough is buttery and rich, and even a little flaky. This stuff really is magic and can be used for so many different keto recipes, from savory to sweet.
But if you’re new to fathead dough, then pizza crust is a great place to start. It’s easy and you get a feel for how the process works. And it only takes about 20 minutes, start to finish.
Best of all, this recipe has only 3.3g net carbs per serving.
Reader Testimonials
“I have tried a lot of fat head dough, however this hands down is my favorite. I gave a slice to a friend of mine who cannot eat flour and yeast. She also thought it was amazing. Thanks so much!!” — Cheryl
“This is by far the most superior recipe for fathead dough that I’ve used yet! Using butter makes it so much better than using cream cheese, in my opinion. My pizza crust was flavorful and was not dry at all.” — Pam K
“WOWZERS with a capital W!! devoured by hubs and me – we are both very impressed! Shared widely. congrats on such a great adaptation – so light considering the ingredients and so easy to find in a regular supermarket. hooray!” — Alice
Ingredients you need
- Shredded mozzarella: Pre-shredded, part skim mozzarella works best for fathead dough. It usually has some added fillers but this actually helps the consistency of the dough. But it does not have to be full of extra starches. I usually purchase organic cheese that has vegetable cellulose as an anti-caking agent.
- Butter: Most fathead dough recipes use cream cheese, but butter makes it lighter and flakier. And more buttery!
- Blanched almond flour: You must use finely ground almond flour and NOT almond meal. Almond meal is more coarsely ground and often contains the brown skin of the almond. Those coarse particles don’t combine with the cheese and butter very well and don’t absorb enough of the oils leaving you with a dough that falls apart.
- Coconut flour: The addition of coconut flour adds more structure, making the dough sturdier and yet still flexible.
- Kitchen staples: Egg, baking powder, garlic powder and salt.
Step-by-step instructions
1. In a large saucepan, combine the cheese and butter over low heat. Stir until they are melted and can be mixed together.
2. Remove the pan from heat and add the almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, garlic powder, and salt. Add the egg and stir everything together until a cohesive forms. Use a rubber spatula to really knead the dough together in the pan.
3. Turn the dough out onto a work surface dusted with almond flour and knead until uniform. This will only take a little kneading. If your dough is still very sticky, add a tablespoon or two more almond flour and work it in.
4. Roll the dough out between pieces of parchment paper to 12 inches (or use a silicone mat on the bottom). Transfer the parchment with the dough on it to a cookie sheet or pizza stone. Bake at 350ºF for 10 to 15 minutes, until starting to brown and firm up.
5. Remove and top with your favourite toppings and bake another 7 to 10 minutes, until the toppings are melted and bubbly.
Expert Tips and FAQs
Fathead dough is amazing, and it’s easy to make once you get the hang of it. Here are some added tips and tricks for getting it right.
Low heat: When melting the cheese and butter together, keep the pan over the lowest heat you can. If you have an electric stove, you may want to take the pan on and off the heat a few times to keep it from getting too hot.
Adding the egg: Add all of the dry ingredients before adding the egg, so that they protect it from the hot cheese. You don’t want the egg to cook before you have a chance to incorporate it into the dough.
Kneading the dough: Really work the ingredients together, both in the pan and out of the pan. If you do it right after you incorporate the dry ingredients and the egg, the dough will come together much better. I use a rubber spatula to knead it against the sides of the pan.
Making adjustments: If it comes out of the pan very sticky to the touch, you simply need to sprinkle it with a little more almond flour and knead that in, adding more until it’s not longer sticking to your hands.
Nut-free variation: If you are allergic to almonds, use my keto bagel recipe for your pizza crust. A half recipe is enough for one 10 to 12 inch pizza and it is made entirely coconut flour.
Frequently Asked Questions
This fathead dough crust is completely gluten-free. It takes mozzarella, butter, almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, garlic powder, salt, and an egg.
This keto pizza crust recipe has 6g of carbs and 2.7g of fiber per serving. That comes to 3.3g net carbs per slice.
This fathead dough is a delicious alternative for keto pizza, calzones, and even pastries. It is rich and buttery, with a mild flavor. You can add Italian herbs or spices for added flavor.
Fathead dough loses elasticity as it cools. Thus, I recommend shaping it into a pizza crust, and then freezing it. Wrap it up tightly to avoid freezer burn, and let it thaw completely before baking.
More recipes that use fathead dough
- Keto Spanakopita
- Keto Cinnamon Twists
- Chocolate Walnut Swirls
- Keto Turkey Pot Pie
- Air Fryer Pretzel Bites
Keto Pizza Crust Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 ounces pre-shredded part skim mozzarella
- 5 tablespoon butter
- ½ cup blanched almond flour
- ¼ cup coconut flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg
Instructions
Dough
- Sprinkle a clean counter or a large silicone baking mat with almond flour.
- In a large saucepan, melt the cheese and butter together over low heat until they are melted and can be stirred together.
- Remove the pan from over the heat and add the almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, garlic powder, and salt. Add the egg and stir everything together until a cohesive dough forms. Use a rubber spatula to really knead the dough together in the pan. It may still contain some streaks of cheese.
- Turn the dough out onto the prepared work surface and knead until uniform. This will only take a little kneading. If your dough is still very sticky, add a tablespoon or two more almond flour and work it in.
Pizza Crust
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF and place an oven rack in the middle position.
- Roll the dough out between pieces of parchment paper to a 12 inch circle. Remove the top piece of parchment and roll up the edge a little to create a crust.
- Transfer the bottom parchment with the dough on it to a cookie sheet or pizza stone. Bake 10 to 15 minutes until starting to brown and firm up.
- Remove the crust from the oven and top with your favourite toppings. Bake again until the toppings are melted and bubbly.
Audrey Ling says
I made the pastrami Stromboli last weekend and this week I made the magic Mozzarella Dough as a focaccia to have with (shugary sweets recipe) of Keto Zuppa Toscana Soup….turned out beautiful and tasted as good as it looked. Thank you for this delicious versatile recipe.
Amy says
Do you have a reccomendation to leave out the almond flour as I have a severe allergy.. I find substituting more coconut makes it too coarse/dry/crumbly…? Please help.
Carolyn says
Please see my bagel recipe, which is all coconut flour and works for pizza crust too.
Jackie says
Can I use fresh mozzarella for this recipe?
Carolyn says
No, it really doesn’t work. I tried recently and it just doesn’t melt as well as the pre-shredded.
Cheryl M Shockley says
This was so easy!!! Added 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning, yo the flour and baking powder, and I actually worked dough w my hands into a crust on parchment, and then baked 10 min. I topped like a usual pizza, when it had cooled, and baked in my Betty Crocker pizza cooker. Let’s just say….OMG I AM SOLD!!!! Thank u so much, this crust is so much easier than the cauliflower version, it will be a staple in our keto lifestyle now!
Carolyn says
So delighted you liked it!
Mike says
Any suggestions to replace the coconut flour in this? I have two family members that are allergic to coconut.
Thanks for any info!
Made your almond flour pie crust the other day and it’s my favorite pie crust of all time, low carb or otherwise. It’s just fantastic and so simple!! Thanks!
Excited to try more of your recipes and ideas. So glad I found your site!
Take care!
Carolyn says
You can do all almond flour but you need to replace the coconut at 3x the amount, so another 3/4 cup almond flour. And even then it’s sticker and you need to knead in some almond flour as you work the dough.
Donna says
Wow, this was great but obviously only as a test and not for those trying to lose. One regular slice (an 1/8 of the pie) has 12 grams of carbs. If you have 2 slices you are already over the daily allowance and that’s before you add toppings. Eat but share with many friends!
Carolyn says
Not sure where you are getting your numbers but a serving, which is 1/6th of the recipe, actually only has 6g of carbs. That is before you add toppings but still…
Barbara says
Carolyn, I found that by adding a teaspoon of xanthan gum to your magic mozzarella dough recipe the dough is much easier to work with–more like a traditional wheat-flour dough in terms of ease of rolling, baking, and taste. Thank you for all your recipes and cookbooks-they make eating the keto way so easy!
Carolyn says
Thanks! I actually have a bit of xanthan in my coconut flour version. May have to revisit this one!
Amber Tubbs says
Hello there. So I feel like an idiot! I just made this dough to make a pizza. I was just wondering how important is the baking powder? I totally forgot to add it!
Carolyn says
Well, it should be okay but it won’t rise much.
Len Kaiser says
My sister is deathly allergic to coconut. Is there a substitute for the Coconut flour in this recipe?
Carolyn says
You can sub in 3/4 cup almond for the coconut. I will be honest, it makes the dough a little trickier to work with. But it does work.
Renuka says
Can I add some xanthan gum to my home grated cheese mix to get the same effect? I don’t see pre-grated cheese anywhere in India.
if so, how much xanthan gum would you reckon and at which step in the process would it make sense to add it?
thanks in advance. So glad to have discovered your site and recipes!!! 🙂
Carolyn says
I am not entirely sure it would work, but I’d add 1/2 teaspoon and whisk it into the almond flour before adding it to the cheese.
Dodie says
I can’t make this recipe because it contains coconut! I am highly allergic – as in, go to the emergency room allergic. 🙁 Can’t you offer a substitute for the coconut flour or an alternate recipe? It’s very discouraging to get so excited over a recipe only to find you can’t use it. Thank you.
Carolyn says
This works best with coconut flour but you can try doubling that amount with more almond flour.
Teri says
Can the dough be made in advance, frozen to be defrosted to use later?
Carolyn says
It can but it does lose a little elasticity during the freezer process.
Jennifer Lundeby says
Has anyone doubled this? Did it work or did you need to make adjustments? Thank you so much, trying this tonight!
Carolyn says
I’ve doubled it without issue.
Jennifer Lundeby says
Thank you! I got six bagels (I used a doughnut pan) and one extra large pizza crust with the doubled recipe. They all came out really good!
Marc says
Well, I gave this a shot. I tweaked the recipe a bit. I added oregano and garlic to the dough. I always make my own sauce and honestly, it was pretty good. The true test is my oldest daughter, as she thinks healthy food tastes like crap….and she loved it! Winning! Thanks for the recipe!
Jeannette Childers says
Carolyn, I have been looking for a recipe that might work like a wonton wrapper – for egg rolls and rangoons. Gonna give this a try. . .I’ll let you know how it works out. . .
Jan OBrien says
Having trouble getting the dough to crisp up. Tastes great, but soggy. Suggestions?
Carolyn says
Did you pre-bake it before putting toppings on?
Pete says
Hi!! Same issue, how long should i prebake it prior to putting on toppings?
Carolyn says
Please read the recipe notes, it’s very clear on this matter.
Katelynn says
I havent made this yet but I was wondering how organic soy flour would work. Im new to low carb and I dont really know how these different flours work while baking.
Carolyn says
Sorry, I don’t use soy flour but it’s definitely not a 1:1 replacement.
Danny Lineham says
Hi Carolyn, I have read that this can be made more simply by mixing all the ingredients in a food processor, then melting the mixture carefully in the microwave, but I haven’t been able to find any confirmation of this. Do you know if this actually works? Or should I just try in and see how it turns out?
Carolyn says
I have not done it myself. I think neither is more simple. With the food processor, you are dirtying a piece of equipment that requires washing several parts. Personally, I would think my method of melting in a pot and adding all the ingredients into that is the “simplest”.
Sasha Cannon says
Made pizza tonight,and it was a flop. The dough worked beautifully: elastic and felt just right. It looked amazing, too, when it was browning. However, I could not even transfer the slices to the plates: they completely disintegrated into a soggy mess! The taste was very good, albeit too salty, so I definitely will skip the salt next time. Used Wellbees almond blanched flour,Kerrygold butter and pre-shredded mozzarella (Kroger brand), so not sure why it did not hold the shape. I wonder if adding whey protein would stiffen it up? Read all the comments– looks like I am the only one with this outcome, so must be the “user error”…
Carolyn says
Hmmm, I wonder what happened! How loaded did you make those pizza slices? I wonder if that’s the issue at all.
Sasha Cannon says
Update. I tried this recipe for the second time, with significant improvements. First, i added no salt , it was still on the salty side from all the cheese and toppings (portabella+shallot+soft sheep cheese+ prosciutto). Secondly, I allowed the crust to fully cook before putting the topings — to a beautiful golden brown all over. Third, I let the pizza rest on the stone out of oven about 15 min before consumption. I think it allowed all fats/liquids to reabsorb/redistribute . The end result was very good: pizza slices were manageable . Thank you.
Carolyn says
Nice! So glad to hear it!
Julie says
This is the best keto pizza crust I’ve made yet. After a thin layer of sugar free pizza sauce, I added a layer of caramelized onions, shredded mozzarella, pepperoni and a sprinkling of shredded parm. My pizza yielded eight good-sized slices. Two were plenty for dinner with a small side salad. Will definitely help me get over the every now and then pizza craving.
Carolyn says
Sounds fantastic!