Perfect Pizza Crust

Gluten-Free Gourmet

Fresh from the Oven

You are probably thinking as you read this post title, can you really avoid white flour, tomato sauce, and prepared-food preservatives, and still enjoy pizza? The answer is a definite yes. Okay, it's not going to be exactly the same thing you can buy prepared in a pizza box; it's going to be better! So please, let me explain how I make my own gluten-free, sugar-free, preservative-free pizza!

The basis of the crust was a specially-prepared pizza crust mix of non-gluten flours. You can buy a similar mix in almost any large supermarket or health food store. Most mixtures are based on rice flour or garbanzo bean flour, and then use xanthum gum, arrowroot, tapioca, and/or other flours to hold them together.

The flour mix you buy should have directions as to how to make a 12"-pizza pan crust. Experiment and tweak the measurements to suit your oven and your tastes. In my experience, the recipes usually call for 1 to 1 1/2 cups of water, 2 eggs, 2-6 T olive oil, and a bit of vinegar for one recipe. And then, of course, a packet of instant yeast and sweetener. I use raw honey as the sweetener and it has worked fine. I always proof the yeast in the warm water and then let the dough rise 15-20 minutes before spreading it on the sheet.

The pizza dough may be the thick, gluey consistency of regular bread dough, or it may be a bit runnier, more like cookie dough. It depends on the particular mix; both consistencies work fine, only the baking time may be different. Here is a great trick for spreading sticky pizza dough onto the sheet: lay a piece of cling wrap on top of the dough lump in the middle of the pan, and use a rolling pin (i.e. empty jelly jar in my kitchen) to roll it out to the edges. Works every time! Bake in a 400-degree oven for 10-15 minutes, usually.

Well, this post is long enough; I guess you will have to wait til next time to find out my secret recipe for "the world's best pizza topping"!