Used with permission from Gluten-Free 101: The Essential Beginner’s Guide to Easy Gluten-Free Cooking by Carol Fenster (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014)
Pizza is one of the top foods that beginners crave on a gluten-free diet. Gluten-free pizza dough is very soft and sticky—without the elasticity of wheat flour dough—so it is patted into the pan rather than rolled or stretched and it adheres to the pan better when it is greased with shortening rather than cooking spray. You can use store-bought pizza sauce, but try mine— it is thicker so it won’t make the crust soggy. I used bell peppers, tomatoes, onion, and olives to top this veggie pizza, but you can use any toppings you like, including pepperoni, sausage, ham, or bacon for a non-veggie version.
Featured in: Pizza for Gluten-Free Beginners
Ingredients
PIZZA SAUCE (Makes 1 cup)
- •One 237 ml (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
- •7.2 ml (1 1/2 teaspoons) dried Italian seasoning
- •2.5 ml (1/2 teaspoon) fennel seeds (optional)
- •1.2 ml (1/4 teaspoon) garlic powder or 1 garlic clove, minced
- •5 ml (1 teaspoon) sugar
- •1.2 ml (1/4 teaspoon) salt
CRUST (Makes a 12-inch crust)
- •15 ml (1 tablespoon) active dry yeast
- •5 ml (1 teaspoon) sugar
- •177 ml (3/4 cup) milk of choice, warmed to 43 degrees C (110 degrees F)
- •156 ml (2/3 cup) brown rice flour, plus more for sprinkling
- •59 ml (1/4 cup) potato starch
- •59 ml (1/4 cup) tapioca flour
- •5 ml (1 teaspoon) xanthan gum
- •5 ml (1 teaspoon) dried Italian seasoning
- •2.5 ml (1/2 teaspoon) salt
- •10 ml (2 teaspoons) olive oil
- •10 ml (2 teaspoons) cider vinegar
TOPPINGS
- •15 ml (1 tablespoon) olive oil (for cooking vegetables), plus more for brushing the crust (optional)
- •473 ml (2 cups) vegetables, such as the following:
- •Uncooked vegetables
- •• Artichoke hearts (marinated), thinly sliced
- •• Olives, sliced or halved
- •• Fresh plum tomatoes, thinly sliced or diced
- •• Fresh cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
- •• Sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
- •Vegetables to Precook Until Just Tender
- •• Asparagus, chopped
- •• Bell peppers, (green, red, yellow) thinly sliced
- •• Broccoli, thinly sliced
- •• Red or white onion, thinly sliced
- •• Zucchini, thinly sliced
- •170 grams (1 1/2 cups/6 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese or cheese alternative, such as Daiya
Preparation
[1] Make the pizza sauce: In a small, heavy saucepan, combine all of the sauce ingredients and simmer, uncovered and stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes. Set aside.
[2] Make the crust: Arrange oven racks in the bottom and middle positions of the oven. Preheat the oven to 204°C (400°F). Grease (use shortening or butter, not oil or cooking spray) a 31 cm (12-inch) nonstick pizza pan (gray, not black). Dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm milk for 5 minutes.
[3] In a food processor, blend all of the crust ingredients, including the yeast mixture, until the dough forms a ball. The dough will be very, very soft. (Or blend in a medium bowl, using an electric mixer on low speed, until well blended.) Put the dough in the center of the pizza pan. Liberally sprinkle rice flour onto the dough; then press the dough into the pan with your hands, continuing to dust the dough with flour to prevent it from sticking to your hands. At first, it will seem as though there is not enough dough to cover the pan, but don’t worry — it is just the right amount. Make the edges thicker to contain the toppings, taking care to make the dough as smooth as possible. The smoother you can shape the dough, especially around the edges, the prettier the crust will be. Bake the pizza crust for 10 minutes on the bottom rack.
[4] While the crust bakes, make the toppings. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the vegetables and cook, stirring frequently, until slightly softened, 3 to 5 minutes.
[5] Remove the pizza crust from the oven and brush the top with the pizza sauce. Sprinkle with the cheese and arrange the vegetables on top. Return the pizza to the oven and bake on the middle rack until nicely browned, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the pizza from the oven and cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes. You may brush the crust edges with a little olive oil, if you like, for a shinier look. Cut it into 6 slices and serve warm.
Nutritional Information:
Per slice: 260 calories; 10g protein; 10g total fat; 4g fiber; 35g carbohydrates; 27mg cholesterol; 730mg sodium
