Pizza for Lovers

One thing my boyfriend and I can agree on is a love of pizza. We both prefer vegetables on top of our pies, but politely disagree on the sauce (he likes tomato sauce and I like anything else). I grew up on Friday night pizza, served up with an ABC family night movie. But as I've grown, the role pizza played has changed. As a youngster, it was a treat that I looked forward to every week. In high school, pizza was the standard meal after theatre rehearsals. When I was an RA in college, I learned that my residents found it to be the perfect hangover food. In culinary school, it was a gourmet masterpiece. Now, in this necessary gluten-free stage of my life, pizza seemed like only a dream. But, not anymore!! You might remember that I took a gluten-free bread class a month ago. One of the wonderful recipes that I learned how to make was homemade gluten-free pizza crust! (Thank. God. I was going through withdrawals) It is finally time that I share that recipe with you. Below is the recipe for Gluten-Free Pizza Crust, along with a delicious topping idea. In my renewed passion for pizza, I am making another one this week too! Golly, life's sweet.


Gluten-Free Pizza Crust: Yields 1-2 pizza crusts, depending on size
3 cups gluten-free all-purpose or bread flour blend
1 T xanthan gum
1 t salt
2 pkgs instant yeast
1 1/2 cups warm water
1 t apple cider vinegar
3 egg whites
1 T agave
2 T olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

1. Whisk together flour, xanthan gum, salt and yeast.
2. In a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine water, vinegar, egg whites, agave and olive oil on low speed . Increase speed to medium-high and beat for 5 minutes.
3. Slowly add in dry ingredients. Raise speed to medium-high and beat for an additional 5 minutes. Cover and let rise for 30 minutes.
4. Heat oven to 400. Stir dough to deflate. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and grease lightly. Using an oiled spoon, spread dough onto prepared pan. Drizzle with extra olive oil.
5. Bake for 8-9 minutes, or until bottom is golden and crust is fully cooked. Top with desired toppings and bake until heated through.
Note: I froze one of the baked crusts and will thaw and bake it this week. I'll let you know how that turns out!



The pizza I made on Friday night was topped with:
Roasted garlic
Roasted butternut squash
Blanched kale
Caramelized onions
Aged white Cheddar cheese

And it was delicious. I really do recommend that topping combination if you're looking for a new idea. This week, I'm going to use some of my homemade Tomato Sauce (Yay canning project! Oh, and my boyfriend will be so happy) and top it with roasted roasted romanesco, Pickled Ramps (another canning project) and Fontina and Parmesan cheeses. I'll let you know how the finished product turns out.

Tonight's project is homemade Indian food. We. Love. Indian. Food. Seriously, it's a favorite staple in our apartment. I'm making my own version of Biryani, which looks fairly simple. But as I am not ethnic (at all) and have minimal experience preparing it, I'm a little nervous for this one. The stakes are pretty high and the critics have trained palates. Wish me luck!