Low Carb Cottage Cheese Pizza Bowl (TikTok Viral!)

by Kayla Berman on Oct 2, 2023 (updated Apr 15, 2024) 8 comments

Cottage Cheese Pizza Bowl is a high protein, low carb, and low calorie way to enjoy all the delicious pizza flavors! Made with low fat cottage cheese, marinara or pizza sauce, pepperoni, mozzarella cheese, and simple seasonings … these quick and easy bowls are cheesy, saucy, savory, and flavorful. Satisfy all your pizza cravings with this TikTok viral crustless, carbless version!

Looking for more low carb recipes? Check out my Bacon Ranch Chicken Salad, Buffalo Chicken Zucchini Boats, or Italian Grinder Salad.

What is a Cottage Cheese Pizza Bowl?

Cottage Cheese Pizza Bowls are a TikTok viral food trend! I believe they were originally created and shared by the creator Tonya from @takingmylifebackat42. Since then I have seen them absolutely everywhere!

The bowls are essentially cottage cheese mixed with a bunch of pizza toppings and heated until melty, cheesy, and wonderfully delicious. It is a low carb, high protein way for those trying to lose weight or just introduce more balanced meals into their diet to enjoy pizza night too!

My version of the pizza inspired cottage cheese bowl comes to about 350 calories and 30 grams of protein. Which is the perfect makeup of a healthy and satisfying lunch for me. Which also happens. to taste like my favorite food, pizza. Gotta love it!

If you love TikTok food sensations, you should check out my Spicy Vodka Pasta, Big Mac Smash Burger Tacos, Viral Raw Carrot Salad, or Strawberry Yogurt Clusters next.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Besides being a low carb, low calorie, and high protein way to enjoy all the cheesy, saucy, and savory deliciousness of pizza, Cottage Cheese Pizza Bowls are also:

Quick & Easy: Prepped in 5 minutes and baked in another 5, you’ll have these low carb bowls ready to devour in no time.
Lunchtime Go-To: Lunch is a tricky meal for me! I want something quick that I can make during a busy workday, nutritious to keep me on track with my health goals, and delicious so I don’t go crazy. LOL. Well what do you know?!? Cottage cheese bowls check all those boxes and then some. They are truly perfect for lunch!
Customizable: There are so many variations of these cottage cheese bowls you could create! The options are truly endless. Read on below for all of my ideas.
Nutritious: I know I’ve said it, but I have to say it again. The nutrition on these bowls is mind blowing to me! You get to eat a whole bowl of pizza yumminess for under 400 calories. It skips the pizza dough, but man it does not skip the flavor!

If you are a newfound lover of cottage cheese like I am, you have to try out some of my sweet ventures too. Like Strawberry Cottage Cheese Ice Cream or Frozen Cottage Cheese Bark!

Ingredients & Substitutions

These low carb pizza bowls are made with only a handful of simple ingredients! Cottage cheese, mozzarella cheese, marinara sauce, and your favorite pizza toppings come together to make a quick and easy high protein meal.

Let’s get into the specifics…

Cottage Cheese: The base of this easy pizza bowl recipe is of course cottage cheese! I love to use a low fat cottage cheese to keep things lighter and lower calorie. But you can use a higher fat percentage cottage cheese for creamier, richer results!
Marinara Sauce: Your favorite marinara or pizza sauce will help achieve those yummy pizza flavors we all know and love.
Pepperoni: Pepperoni is my favorite pizza topping! It adds so much salty, savory deliciousness. I love to use turkey pepperoni for a higher protein and lower calorie alternative.
Bell Pepper: Adding some bright and fresh vegetables to this easy recipe adds both nutrition and volume! My personal favorite choice is some finely chopped green bell peppers.
Mozzarella Cheese: Shredded mozzarella cheese adds extra cheesiness to this already cheesy cottage cheese bowl. Because as I always say … the more cheese the better! I prefer to use reduced fat.
Seasonings: Simple seasonings really bring this healthy bowl alive! Italian seasoning, garlic powder, black pepper, and salt are all you need.

Equipment Needed

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How To Make This Recipe

These savory cottage cheese pizza bowls are incredibly simple to make! They take under 15 minutes total and can be baked in the oven or popped in the microwave. They’re easy, cheesy, and wonderfully delicious.

You’ll be able to satisfy your pizza craving while keeping a low-carb diet in no time at all!

Step 1: Prepare pizza cottage cheese bowl. Add the cottage cheese, marinara sauce or pizza sauce, chopped bell pepper, pepperoni, Italian seasoning, and garlic powder to a small mixing bowl. I like to chop up almost all the pepperoni and mix in here, besides about 5 slices to put on top. Season the cottage cheese mixture with salt and black pepper.

Step 2: Add toppings. Transfer the mixture to a small oven-safe bowl. Top with the shredded mozzarella cheese and remaining pepperoni slices. Add extra Italian seasoning on top.

Step 3: Bake at 400 degrees for 5 minutes. Then broil on high for another 2-3 minutes, watching carefully so it doesn’t burn. Alternatively you could microwave the low carb pizza bowl for 1 1/2 minutes.

Step 4: Serve and enjoy!

Pizza Bowl Variations

This pizza bowl with cottage cheese recipe is sort of the bare bones version if you will! While it is absolutely delicious as is, there are a few variations and/or additions you could make to spruce it up even further if you have the time.

Blend It Up: If you are not a fan of the texture of cottage cheese, don’t worry! That will not stop you from enjoying this tasty recipe. Simply pop the cottage cheese into a food processor or blender and blend until smooth. This will get rid of the curds that I know turns some people off!
Cheese: I use mozzarella cheese here, but you can use any cheese you have on hand or prefer. To keep things in the pizza and Italian theme I would recommend parmesan cheese as the next best option.
Meats: You could swap in any meat of your choice in place of the pepperoni! Perhaps cooked Italian sausage, meatballs, or ground beef.
Seasonings: Feel free to spice things up with extra spices and seasonings! Dried basil, dried oregano, red pepper flakes, onion powder, thyme, or paprika would all be wonderful.
Favorite Pizza Toppings: Add any additional pizza toppings you love here. Black olives, pineapple, mushrooms, spinach, artichokes, and fresh basil are all fabulous options.
Make It Bigger: Turn this single serving bowl into a cottage cheese pizza dip or casserole! Simply place a doubled or tripled mixture into a large skillet or baking dish. If enjoying as a dip, serve with tortilla chips or pita chips and dig in. If enjoying as a casserole of sorts for the whole family, serve up into bowls and enjoy.

Cottage Cheese Bowl Variations

I have actually seen many different variations of these low carb cottage cheese bowls on TikTok. They are not just for pizza lovers! There’s pretty much a variation for any and every taste preference out there.

Here are some additional cottage cheese bowl ideas:

Taco Bowl: The second most popular variation of these low carb bowls that I’ve seen on social media are taco bowls! You simply mix fat-free cottage cheese with taco seasoned ground turkey or ground beef. Then you add your favorite taco toppings! Like shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, shredded cheese, avocado, fresh salsa, and more.
Burger Bowl: You could also do burger bowls! They’re pretty similar to taco bowls, but here the ground beef would be seasoned with just salt and black pepper. Then for burger toppings I would do crumbled bacon, red onion, shredded lettuce, shredded cheese, caramelized onion, and Big Mac Sauce. YUM!
Barbecue or Buffalo Chicken: Another flavor that would work wonderfully here is either buffalo or barbecue chicken. Simply toss the cottage cheese with leftover chicken or rotisserie chicken and buffalo sauce or barbecue sauce. Then add some toppings like carrots, celery, mixed greens, shredded cheese, and ranch dressing.
Chicken Alfredo: A cottage cheese chicken Alfredo bowl would be pretty similar to the pizza bowl. Simply leave out the tomato sauce and add in chicken. Maybe even add something to up the creamy factor, like cream cheese!
Greek: Lastly, I think cottage cheese would serve as the perfect base to a Greek inspired bowl. For this version I would enjoy it cold with some fresh cucumber, chopped tomato, crumbled feta cheese, red onion, and a vinaigrette. You could also add some Greek Baked Chicken on top!

Expert Tips

Blend the cottage cheese! If you have an extra five minutes or care to messy another kitchen appliance, blending the cottage cheese is a great step. It will get rid of those cheese curds some people don’t love in cottage cheese and create a creamier texture overall. However, it it not necessary!

Add your favorite toppings! I kept things super simple with pepperoni and green peppers, but feel free to add in any and all of your favorite toppings. Check out the section Pizza Bowl Variations above for all of my ideas.

Sauté the veggies! To keep things quick and simple with this recipe I add the green bell pepper into the mixture raw. However, if you’d like you could take the extra step of sautéing the chopped pepper in a bit of olive oil beforehand. This will intensify the flavor and make them softer in the bowl.

Bake then broil the pizza bowl! You can prepare this low carb bowl in the microwave, in fact that it is how the original version is prepared. But I really think using the oven creates a much more delicious result! The cheese melts and bubbles beautifully this way.

Serve right away! These healthy pizza bowls are absolutely most delicious when served straight away. They will be irresistibly hot, fresh, and bubbly when straight out of the oven.

Meal Prepping & Storing Suggestions

Since this recipe is single serve, you most likely won’t have leftovers! However, if you do have leftovers you can transfer them to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for about 2-3 days. Then pop in the microwave to re-heat and enjoy.

If you would like to meal prep this recipe I recommend assembling the bowls, but not cooking them ahead of time. Simply prepare a few bowls for the week, store in the fridge, and then bake in the oven whenever you’d like to enjoy them.

They only need 5 minutes so you will tall have a tasty, balanced meal ready to go in no time!

FAQs

Is cottage cheese good for you?

Yes, I am not a nutritionist or dietician, so do not take my word for absolute truth … but in my opinion cottage cheese is very good for you!

It is a low calorie, highly nutritious cheese with a mild flavor. It can be helpful in weight loss and muscle gain. For those reasons, and many more, it has become very popular recently in the health and wellness community!

The exact nutritional profile, specifically calorie count, of cottage cheese varies depending upon the fat percentage. It is available in all different forms from fat free and low fat to full fat or whole milk!

However, no matter the fat percentage it is loaded with B vitamins, calcium, phosphorus, and selenium. But I personally love it for its high protein content. A single serving can have 15 plus grams of protein for as few as 90 calories. You simply can’t beat that!

It is also extremely versatile! It can be spread on toast for breakfast or a quick lunch or even made into desserts like frozen bark or ice cream. It is also wonderful on its own with some everything but the bagel seasoning for a savory snack or fresh fruit for sweet!

What does cottage cheese taste like?

I find that cottage cheese tastes differently from brand to brand! However, overall it has a mild, salty, and tangy flavor.

Although, sometimes cottage cheese has no salt and then it has an even subtler flavor. These types almost taste like nothing in my opinion, so I prefer the taste of ones with salt added.

Which kind of cottage cheese should I use?

My favorite cottage cheese is Friendship. I love their 1% Lowfat Cottage Cheese or 1% Whipped Lowfat Cottage Cheese. They’re both not too curdy and are wonderfully creamy with the perfect level of salt in my opinion.

I also love Good Culture and Breakstone’s cottage cheese.

Can I serve this recipe cold?

While this recipe is intended to be served hot, it can definitely be enjoyed cold too! Just enjoy right after mixing, no baking or microwaving.

Can I prepare this recipe in the air fryer?

Yes, you can! The air fryer is actually my new favorite kitchen gadget. I’m obsessed with how crispy it makes these Buffalo Chicken Thighs.

But anyway, yes! You can absolutely make cottage cheese pizza bowls in the air fryer. Simply air fry at 400 degrees F for abut 5 minutes.

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Connect With Me!

If you make this crustless pizza bowl recipe or any of my other recipes, I would absolutely love to know! Tag me @wellnessbykay on Instagram so I can see and share your recreations.

Love this recipe? Leave a comment and a rating! I love to see and it helps me continue to develop delicious recipes for this blog.