I consider myself a mad-chef, a cross between a mad-scientist, and an experienced(but far from professsional) chef.

I created this because I needed a way to make pizza healthier so I could still eat it, but lose weight instead of gaining it. I then realizedd the most fattening part of pizza: THE DOUGH. so, I began formulating ways of removing it from the equation.

I tried lettuce, but that fell apart and got soggy in some places, and dried out in others, making a huge mess(good thing for my tests, i use inexpensive, low-quality ingredients). cabbage had a similar result, although stayed intact more, but tasted terrible. I kept thinking "What could I use that's round, relatively flat, and doesn't fall apart?" I spent weeks on this, still trying to find that perfect bread analogue.

3 more weeks passed, and I was at an italian restaurant, and out of the corner of my eye, I noticed someone who had gotten a vegetarian dish, which basically focused on a grilled portabella mushroom. I then saw them piling parmesan cheese on it, and said to myself "Hey, that kinda looks like a pizza..." then it dawned on me. The answer I had been looking for. MUSHROOMS. I felt idiotic and stupid, yet at the same time, relieved and happy.

I went home and the saturday after that, I decided to make it. I used cheap ingredients again, and made a test batch on a small 'bella cap flipped vein-side up. i laid sauce on it(which absorbed into the veins), crappy mozzarella, and some dried basil. I turned the oven on, and shoved the mushroom in. 18 minutes later, the whole kitchen was filled with the wondrous smell of pizza AND sauteed mushrooms. the smell was so tantalizing, I litterally began to drool.

I pulled the pizza-shroom out of the oven, cut in quarters, picked up a piece and bit into it. I chewed for a few seconds, and suddenly, I went back in time to the very first day I ate pizza. I remember it had chopped portabella on it, and was sweet, salty, earthy, hearty, chewy, and most of all, delicious . I snapped back to reality to find myself in tears of joy. I had done it. I had officially commited pizza blasphemy, but I didn't care. I made another batch, and used better ingredients, and the end product reinstated that feeling.

now, I will share with the world my greatest creation, so you all too can partake in the wonder of dough-less pizza.

Step 1: Ingredients & Tools

This is simple, all you need is a few basic ingredients. In this one, you can use either sauce, or make it margherita style by using slices of tomato, whole basil leaves, and minced garlic. In this Instructable, I will be making a magherita portabella pizza cap.

you will need:

One extra large portabella mushroom
One big heirloom Tomato
1/4 cup of gruyere cheese
1/4 cup of mozzarella cheese
8 whole green/purple basil leaves
Baking pan
Tin foil
Oven mitts
Oven
Pizza cutter
Very sharp knife

Step 2: Preparation

first, clean EVERY edible. rinse the tomato, scrub the shroom with a damp cloth, and rinse the basil, but don't worry about the garlic until it's out of it's skin.

next, slice the tomato. each slice should be about 10mm or 1 cm thick, if possible. rip the basil off the stems, and lay the leaves in a fan pattern; think of the Aperture Science logo from Portal and Portal 2. skin the garlic carefully, and then, using the side of the knife, SMASH IT! chop it really fine, and spread it over the basil, and then drizzle with olive oil(optional, but tastes tons better)

now, the cheese. if it's solid, SHRED IT. take 1/4 cup of gruyere cheese and 1/4 cup of mozzarella cheese, and spread it across the top of the basil, tomato, and garlic on top of the portabella. load your favorite toppings on, and then get ready to cook!

Step 3: Cooking

Just set the oven to 350F, and put in the oven for 18 minutes. when done, the cheese will have caramelized, and the two should have melted together, and sealed the ingredients below to the mushroom.

let it cool for 4-5 minutes, and then cut it into 4 pieces(8 if it's a really big mushroom), and serve.