Sometimes a girl just needs pizza.
I love pizza. A good doughy, buttery pizza crust is probably one "wheat" item that I will truly miss, especially at good restaurants. My husband and I are pizza connoisseurs. We ate pizza either at a restaurant or at home at least every other week before going GF!
Last week I saw an "Amy's Rice Crust GF pizza" in the freezer at a local grocery store that has started to carry a very SMALL selection of GF products. I rejoiced at the sight of that rice crust pizza and I had to buy it even though it was nearly $9.00! So I put it in the freezer for an "emergency dinner night" when I absolutely didn't want to cook.
Last weekend though, after discovering that I could indeed make a great gluten-free loaf of bread, I thought... well heck, why couldn't I just make a pizza crust?
As if it were fate, our local newspaper's weekly food column posted a yummy looking one-dish pizza recipe last week. Of course, the recipe called for wheat flour, so it would take some modification... but I thought it was worth a shot. I love easy, one dish dinners!
I've been baking a long time. Sometimes I am apt not to read directions ... because of course, I'm certainly smart enough to figure out how and when to add ingredients and bake! Right?... Well... as I learned with this pizza... it probably would have been good idea to skim over the directions BEFORE I pre-heated the oven. I always preheat, because let's face it, that's how baking is done most of the time... but this pizza needs a cold oven to let the yeast rise as it's baking. Next time, I'll try that! The pizza was still good, and the crust was crispy and Michael said I needed to make it every week (so it can't be that bad!)... but I'll definitely start with a cold oven next time!
I may also buy some fresh basil, oregano, and add freshly chopped garlic instead of Italian seasoning. That would make a superb pie... and I'm all about a superb pizza! Enjoy!
One Dish "Bake and Rise" Pizza
Batter Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup tapioca flour - or - corn flour
- 1/2 cup sorghum flour
- 1/2 cup brown rice flour
- 2 Tbsp. ground flax seeds
- 2 tsp. sugar
- 2 tsp. kosher salt
- 2 envelopes "rapid rise" yeast (or 1 Tbsp. rapid rise yeast granules)
- 3/4 cup very warm water
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
Filling Ingredients:
- 1/2 pound ground beef or ground turkey
- 8 oz. canned or homemade pizza sauce
Toppings:
- 12-16 pepperoni slices
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1/4 cup freshly shredded parmesan or asaiago cheese
- 1/2 tsp. Italian Herbs - or - fresh oregano, basil, and minced garlic
1. Mix warm water and yeast granules thoroughly in a small bowl. Set aside until frothy.
2. Mix remaining dry batter ingredients in a large bowl. Add olive and yeast mixture and combine thoroughly.
3. Pat mixture into a greased 8x8 baking dish or round oven-safe skillet. (I used my favorite cast iron skillet)
4. Top crust evenly with pizza sauce and meats. Add toppings as desired.
5. BAKE by placing in a COLD oven; set temperature to 350 degrees. Bake for 30 minutes, until cooked through.
This is more of a product review than a recipe. I just followed the recipe on the box and added chocolate chips.
These were one of the first gluten-free desserts I made. I was still uneasy about using gluten-free flours at the time and I had actually made these once before for a gluten-free friend.
These brownies were moist and very chocolate-y. Bob's mix uses Ghirardelli cocoa as the base, so they had to be good! The consistency was very dense and rich. This mix is expensive and in the future, I will definitely try my hand at brownies with my own gluten-free mix of flours. But for a beginner, these brownies were a good choice. We enjoyed them and I think it helped Michael to realize that gluten-free doesn't mean taste free. He enjoyed them as well! They were excellent with a big scoop of GF vanilla ice-cream.
If you're new to gluten-free baking, or if you just enjoy using GF mixes, this Bob's Red Mill mix was a good option with yummy results!!
Check back tomorrow for a killer chicken dinner recipe!
