The Baking Beauties » Pizza

New Pizza Crust for that Big Beefy Pizza

Jeanine Friesen — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 13:39:11 +0000

Last summer I posted a gluten-free pizza crust recipe which was for a more crisp pizza crust. This crust recipe is for those that like a slightly thicker, soft, chewy, bendable, holdable, and foldable pizza crust. So, now there is something for everyone’s preferences.

I started making this pizza last summer, after we got back from a trip to Minneapolis. While we were there, we went to eat at Pizza Lucé, and I have been craving it ever since. They have some seriously good pizza there, plus they have some pretty wild topping ideas, but so delicious (seriously, I’d never thought of mashed garlic potatoes on my pizza, but it is so good!). This recipe was created after our trip there (actually, thought of for the whole 8 hour drive home), and we’ve been enjoying it (nearly weekly) since. No one would ever know they are eating a gluten-free pizza unless you tell them.

Freeze the crusts for later! Here’s a note from a reader:

“Hey Jeanine, the frozen pizza crust experiment was a success. I made your chewy pizza crust, baked 10 minutes as directed and when they cooled I put wax paper between them and threw them in the freezer. A week later we thawed them, added toppings, and they turned out every bit as good as fresh.”

Chewy Gluten-Free Pizza Crust

Makes two 14-inch crusts

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose gluten-free flour (see note) OR 1 2/3 cup brown rice flour, 1/2 cup potato starch, and 1/3 cup tapioca starch
1 Tbsp xanthan gum
1 Tbsp instant yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1/4 cup dry milk powder (optional, can be omitted without a problem)
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 egg
1 egg white
1 cup warm water
1 tsp apple cider vinegar

NOTE: 4 cups superfine brown rice flour, 1 1/3 cups potato starch (not flour), 2/3 cup tapioca starch. Combine all ingredients in a large zipper-top bag. Shake until well blended.

Directions:

Place the flour, xanthan gum, yeast, salt, sugar and dry milk powder in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Run the machine just to combine the dry ingredients.
In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, egg, egg white, water and apple cider vinegar.
With the mixer running on low, slowly pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Turn the mixer up to medium speed and mix for 3 minutes, scraping down the bowl as necessary.
With a rubber spatula, divide the dough between pizza pans lined parchment paper. Dip your spatula in water and smooth the dough out into a 14-inch circle.
Place dough in a warm, draft free place and let rise for about 30 minutes, or until it is starting to look puffy. Poke the crust with the tines of a fork so that it will not puff up when baking.
Bake in preheated 425° oven for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and top with your desired toppings (at this point, before you top the pizza, you can remove you partially baked crust from the parchment paper and place it directly on your pizza pan, if you wish). Return to oven and continue baking another 10-15 minutes, or until your toppings are hot and bubbly and the cheese is just starting to brown.
Remove the pizza from oven and let it sit for 5 minutes before slicing. This helps the cheese and toppings to stay on the pizza instead of sliding off when you cut it.

Now that you have the pizza crust, your imagination is your only limitation. You can top it with anything! Not sure what to do? Take a look at some online menus for popular pizza places, you will find an array of ideas. The pizza that we made was inspired by a Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich. The caramelized onions, steak sauce, roast beef and Provolone cheese really brought the flavours of the popular sandwich onto a pizza. (I’m not a fan of onions, and even I could have used more of these sweet onions on my pizza. It was that good!)

Philly Cheese Steak Pizza

Toppings for one 14-inch pizza

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup onion, sliced thinly (if you like onions, feel free to add more)
1/4 cup chopped green pepper
1 tsp granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 clove garlic, minced
1 Tbsp gluten-free Worcestershire sauce (note, Lea & Perrins is gluten-free in the U.S., but not in Canada)
3 Tbsp gluten-free steak sauce (I used Hp steak sauce, my family’s favorite)
1 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese
3-4 ounces (about 100 grams) shaved roast beef (from the deli)
5-6 slices of Provolone cheese

Directions:

In a large frying pan, over medium heat, heat the oil. Add the onions, green pepper, sugar, salt, ground pepper, oregano, minced garlic and Worcestershire sauce. Sauté over low medium heat until the onions are a nice, caramelized brown. Remove from heat.
Top the partially baked pizza crust with the steak sauce, followed by the Mozzarella cheese, onions & pepper mixture, shaved roast beef, and finally the Provolone cheese.
Return pizza to over and continue to bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the cheeses are bubbling and just starting to brown.
Slice, serve, and enjoy!

This recipe is being linked to Canadian Beef, in hopes that I can win an all-inclusive scholarship to Eat, Write Retreat in Washington, D.C. so I can learn to write gooder. The contest runs until Monday, February 24th, so expect a few more beefy recipes between now and then.

Crisp Gluten-Free Pizza Crust ~ Bringing Back Pizza Night

Jeanine Friesen — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 12:15:46 +0000

If you are seeking a chewy gluten-free pizza crust, I am sorry, this is not that recipe. This recipe creates a nice, thin, crisp pizza crust. For a chewy, holdable, foldable crust, check out my other pizza crust recipe instead.

All others, please continue reading, it’s worth it, I promise.

When I was was first diagnosed with Celiac Disease, I tortured my family. I didn’t mean to, and I didn’t try to, but goodness…the things that I made them eat and called it pizza…I’m embarrassed to even admit. Thankfully, my family is very forgiving (or maybe that just shows their love for pizza, either way, I’ll take it). Many of my early ‘crusts’ were so horrible, they were inedible. They were really, really tough. So tough that you couldn’t cut through them, or eat them, for that matter. Yeah, really kind of defeats the purpose when you eat the toppings OFF of the crust, and leave the crust.

But now, well, we can have pizza once a week, and no one complains. Everyone loves when I make pizza now, even if it is just a simple cheese pizza (which seems to be the kid’s favorite). I have made this pizza crust over 50 times already, and have always had great success with it. My Mom makes this crust as well, and she really likes it too (thank goodness she didn’t have to have the learning curve I did, I’m not sure my Dad could tolerate those ‘crusts’ that I made 3 1/2 years ago). So, now it is time to share it with you!

First off, throw all ideas of tossing your pizza crust dough out the window. Gluten-free dough will not work that way, it just won’t. You will need parchment paper, and either a rubber spatula or an offset spatula to spread the dough to your desired thickness. The recipe I give you will give you two round(ish) pizzas, as pictured above, or one large rectangle pizza (the way we usually have pizza here).

This time, I spread the dough out on the parchment paper, and using the back of my large cookie sheet as a pizza paddle, placed the pizza (on parchment) directly on the oven rack. I then removed the crust, added the toppings, and put it back in the oven until hot and bubbly.

If I’m doing a large rectangle pizza, I spread the dough on the parchment paper, which is lining the baking sheet. I then bake it on the baking sheet, works well too.

If you bake the crust right away, this is what the crust looks like. It is rather dense. Thin. Crisp. I’ve been doing it this way the majority of the time, because, well, when I think of pizza, I want it now. Instant. However, good things do come to those that wait.

Do you see this picture? THAT is what the crust looks like if you have the patience to let it rise for 30 minutes. Look at all those little air bubbles. Aren’t they pretty? This is now my new way of doing it. Either way is delicious, but when you give it the extra 30 minutes to rise, magic happens. The crust is not bready, or chewy. It is just aerated, and light, but still crisp.

After baking and cutting my pizza, I like to slip a wire cooling rack under the parchment paper to allow steam to escape from under the pizza. Otherwise, it will start to accumulate moisture under your pizza, and your crust will not stay as crisp.

This crust, as my model shows you, easily holds its shape when you are eating it with your hands. It does not droop in the middle like a soggy, flimsy piece of rubber. It holds up the toppings, making it easy to eat with your hands, and this is true if you let it rise or if you bake it right away.

Give my family’s favorite gluten-free pizza crust recipe a try, and So, embrace pizza night at your house again.

Crisp Gluten-Free Pizza Crust ~ Bringing Back Pizza Night

Author: Jeanine Friesen

The perfect light, crisp pizza crust, even the gluten-eaters will love it!

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups all-purpose gluten-free flour (see Note)
1 1/2 teaspoons xanthan gum
1 tablespoon rapid-rise yeast
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning (optional)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large egg
1 1/4 – 1 1/2 cups warm water (start with 1 1/4 cups, add more if necessary)

Instructions

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add all of the dry ingredients. Stir to combine.
With the mixer running, add the olive oil, egg and 1 1/4 cups water. The dough should become a nice, smooth dough, similar to a thick cake batter. Beat on medium-high speed for 2-3 minutes.
Using a rubber spatula or offset spatula, spread the pizza crust dough out evenly on a sheet of parchment paper (two 14″ round pizzas, or one large rectangle pizza).
Allow dough to rise for 30 minutes in a warm, draft free place (this gives a lighter, more crisp crust.)
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Bake pizza crust in the preheated oven until lightly browned around the outside (approximately 10 minutes). Remove from oven and top with your favorite sauce and toppings. Return to oven and bake until toppings are bubbling and cheese is starting to brown (another 10-15 minutes, depending on your toppings).
Remove from oven and cut into slices immediately. Carefully slide a wire cooling rack underneath the parchment paper, to allow steam to escape. If you leave the pizza (and parchment) directly on the baking sheet, steam will build up and your crust will not stay crisp.

Notes

4 cups superfine brown rice flour, 1 1/3 cups potato starch (not flour), 2/3 cup tapioca starch. Combine all ingredients in a large zipper-top bag. Shake until well blended.

So, there you have it. Don’t be afraid to have a pizza party with the kids, or have everyone down for “the big game”. This is a crust that everyone will enjoy.

What toppings will you be putting on this crust?

The Daring Bakers Grab a Slice

Jeanine Friesen — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 12:06:00 +0000

Yep, this month, the Daring Bakers took on pizza! But, not just any pizza. This pizza recipe comes to us from Peter Reinhart’s “The Bread Baker’s Apprentice”. Our hostess with the mostess this month was Rosa of Rosa’s Yummy Yums. This may be your basic pizza dough, but it is far from ordinary!

A Barbecue Chicken Pizza – click for recipe

For myself, I was quite disappointed when I read this month’s challenge. Not because I didn’t think it was a challenge, but because I thought it was a challenge I could not succeed at. You see, I have tried making GF pizza a number of times. It always gave a very sticky dough that was nearly impossible to spread out into the pan. Once it was baked, it was nearly impossible to get off the pan. Then when it came to eating it, well…let’s just say cardboard may have been easier to eat. Horrible experiences. So, my search for pizza crust continued. Until now. This pizza crust was fantastic. It wasn’t as good as your regular gluten-filled pizza crusts, but it was really, really good. The flavour of it was fantastic, it was slightly chewy, but held it’s shape amazingly so that you could eat it with your hands. I am so, so happy with this recipe! If you’re GF and craving pizza, please give it a try. The flavour of these flours is fantastic!

The crust from this recipe wasn’t that great, and it was a lot of work. Check my other recipes for easy, delicious gluten-free pizza crusts.

Creamy Alfredo Pizza

Sauce

1/2 pint heavy cream
1/2 cup butter
2 Tbsp cream cheese
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1-2 cloves minced garlic

In a saucepan, over low heat, mix the cream, butter and cream cheese, stirring constantly, until melted and well-blended. Mix in Parmesan cheese and garlic. Continue to cook and stir 15 minutes, or until Parmesan is lightly browned. Spread over the pizza crust.

My toppings for the pizza were:
fried sliced chicken breasts
slices of red onion and sliced fresh mushrooms, fried together with the chicken

Top with mozzarella & Parmesan cheese before baking. Sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley after it is out of the oven. Delicious!

Source: AllRecipes

Barbecue Chicken Pizza

Jeanine Friesen — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 00:04:00 +0000

This was our supper tonight. I am blogging about this right away for Colleen. I have been putting off trying the BBQ Chicken pizza for years already. The idea of having BBQ sauce as the pizza sauce always scared me. I am no longer afraid. I had this for supper tonight, and LOVED it! We all loved it! Hubby kept saying over and over how great it was. The kids were telling me how great it was. It was a successful supper!

Ingredients:
Premade pizza crust, or your favorite pizza dough
2 Tbsp. olive oil
3 chicken breasts, diced
1/4 cup red onion, diced
1/2-3/4 cup of your favorite chicken BBQ sauce
3-4 cups fresh grated mozzarella cheese (Gouda would be great too!)
2 Tbsp fresh chopped cilantro
1/2 cup cut up green pepper (I was out of pepper, so mine didn’t have it)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Pre-bake your pizza crust until lightly browned. Remove from oven & set aside.
3. In large frying pan, heat olive oil. Add diced chicken breast. Fry until nearly dry. Add diced onion. Fry until chicken is dry and onions are cooked. Add 1/4 cup BBQ sauce to flavour your chicken.
4. Spread remaining BBQ sauce on your pre-baked crust. Top with the fried chicken, mozzarella cheese, cilantro & green pepper.
5. Bake in pre-heated oven for an additional 15-20 minutes, or until cheese is golden brown.

NOTE: I am not a fan of crunchy onions (it’s a texture thing), but if you don’t mind it, you could cut up the red onions & just put them on the pizza at the same time you do the chicken, instead of frying them with the chicken.

Gourmet Chicken Pizza

Jeanine Friesen — Sat, 31 May 2008 11:00:00 +0000

I don’t know why, but for some reason, I have never been a fan of pizza. GASP! Yeah, I know, eh? I am sure that I’m the minority when I say something like that. I think the reason I don’t enjoy pizza is the sauce. I’m just not a fan of strong pizza sauce. Maybe I had one too many pizza from the deli with too much sauce & not enough toppings; I’m not sure. But, it’s not a treat for me. However, since finding this recipe, I have made pizza more often for my family (not enough though according to my husband). It is a variety that I enjoy, and they love. And the leftovers are fantastic too. I didn’t feel like fighting with a new recipe to make a gluten free crust, so I did a regular crust for everyone else, and put my toppings on a GF sandwich wrap that I baked earlier (recipe is to come, I promise!). I do promise to try a GF crust one day though!

With this recipe, even I say “Bring on pizza night!!!”

Ingredients:
2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 prepared gluten-free pizza crust
1/2 cup gluten-free Ranch-style salad dressing
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup chopped tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped green onions

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly grease a pizza pan or medium baking sheet.
2. Place chicken in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook until no longer pink, and juices run clear. Cool, then either shred or chop in small pieces. **NOTE: I like to season my chicken with Italian salad dressing, then continue frying until it’s dried again.
3. Place the pizza crust onto the prepared pan or baking sheet. Bake crust for 7 minutes in the preheated oven, or until it begins to turn golden brown. Remove from oven.
4. Spread ranch dressing over partially baked crust. Sprinkle on mozzarella cheese. Place tomatoes, green onion, and chicken on top of mozzarella cheese, and top with cheddar cheese. Return to to the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Source: AllRecipes.com