Today’s post is from Paula, a sweet lady I met at a local farmer’s market last weekend where I was giving a demo. She stopped by to chat about bread and sample some of the muffins I had made with Einkorn. During the course of the conversation, she mentioned that although she could eat wheat, she only bakes gluten free now because her husband has celiac disease.
I’ve only experimented a little bit with gluten-free breads so I was curious about the types of flours she uses as well as the binding agent. She likes to keep it simple and only uses a few flours. This peaked my interest even further.
Paula bakes a few different types of gluten-free breads each week and she loves to share her methods. She said to let her know if I ever run across people that would be interested in learning more about gluten-free baking. Funny you should ask. From time-to-time I do get inquiries regarding gluten-free breads; however, this is not my area of focus. Paula graciously agreed to share some of her gluten-free recipes so that others can benefit from her experiments.
This post features her gluten-free pizza recipe. She contributed the recipe and the photos. I particularly like the way she incorporates some of the toppings inside the crust.
Happy Gluten-Free Baking!
Cathy
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Paula’s method for making Gluten Free Flatbread Pizza
When my husband was diagnosed with Celiac Disease, my challenge was to convert my favorite tried and true recipes to gluten free. Instead of buying gluten free cookbooks and searching for gluten free recipes on line, I just found some basic conversion charts, and some of the properties of gluten free flours. Then, I just started experimenting!
One ingredient you will need in baking most (but not all) recipes is a gum. You can use guar or xanthan gum. Guar gum comes from a bean and is a little less expensive than xanthan gum, so it is my choice.
There are many gluten free pizza crust recipes available, but a lot of them called for yeast, milk, and or eggs in some combination.
Here is my recipe for flat bread pizza. I have included a full and ½ recipe. I make the ½ recipe.
To bake, I use a 9 inch cast iron pan. I line the pan with a round Silpat so that the crust will release. If you use the full recipe, you will want to use a larger pan, or make it a deep dish pizza.
One more thing before we get started – the toppings. We love a lot of mushrooms on our pizza. So many in fact, that, with a small pie they fell off. Very annoying! I did not want to give up my mushrooms, so one day I tried putting some of the topping mixture in the pizza crust and some on top. It works well for us. If you put the toppings in the crust, it is so good that you can serve it by itself.
I actually start my pizza by first sautéing mushrooms, peppers and garlic in a little oil and then letting them cool until needed.
FLAT BREAD PIZZA DOUGH AND CONSTRUCTION
Preheat the oven to 450. Put the oven rack on the top position if you are making a traditional pizza.
Ingredients:
Full Recipe:
1 C brown rice flour
1/3 C + 2T potato starch flour
1t guar gum
½ t baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 TBSP Italian seasoning or dried basil (to taste)
¾ cup water (the amount of water may vary if you put the toppings in the crust)
1 tsp olive oil
One Half Recipe:
½ C brown rice flour
¼ C potato starch flour
½ tsp guar gum
¼ t baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 TBSP Italian seasoning or dried basil
¼ cup water (depends on if you put the toppings in the pizza)
1 tsp olive oil
The amount of liquid you use can be kind of tricky, and a lot depends on if you put the topping in the crust (see above). When I make 1/2 the recipe, I start out with a little less than ¼ cup.
The dough should come together in a ball and be dry enough so you can roll it out. You do not want it to be too crumbly or too sticky.
Next, I spread the dough on my Silpat covered iron skillet. If the dough is a little to sticky, I dust it with a little tapioca flour. Next, I press it out with my hands and then finish off with a pizza roller. Prick with a fork.
Bake at 450 for 10 mins.
Remove from oven. First, I add just enough sauce to cover the crust. If I have basil or arugula, I add it here.
Next, comes sliced provolone cheese. Finally, I add the remaining toppings. I do not cover all the cheese. I leave some uncovered so it will brown. Back in the oven for about 9 or 10 mins. Once it comes out of the over, let it sit for about a minute or 2.
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