Gluten-Free Pizza

Ingredients

Dough - makes enough for 2 pizzas

  • 1½ tsp instant yeast (or active dry yeast + 1 tbsp water)
  • 1 cup toasted quinoa flour*
  • ½ cup white rice flour (not sweet glutinous rice flour)
  • ½ cup light buckwheat flour
  • 1½ tsp kosher salt
  • 1 tsp gluten-free xanthan gum
  • 2 cups tapioca gel**
  • 1 tbsp honey (optional but helps in browning the crust)
  • ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
  • nonstick cooking spray

Tapioca Gel

  • 2 tbsp tapioca flour
  • 2 cups cold water

Equipment

  • stand mixer with paddle attachment
  • silicone baking mat
  • baking sheet or pizza stone

How-to

*Toast Quinoa Flour

  1. Preheat oven to 300º. Turn oven off. Immediately place quinoa flour on a baking sheet, place in the oven and leave there until cool, about 2 hours. It is ready to use when cool

**Make Tapioca Gel

  1. Combine tapioca starch and cold water in a saucepan and turn on heat to high. Stir until color of mixture becomes transparent and a texture becomes gummy, about 5 minutes. Do not boil
  2. Remove from heat immediately and transfer to another bowl to cool. May be used once temperature drops below 110º. Be very careful-the tapioca mixture will kill the yeast if it's above 110º. (Can be refrigerated up to 24 hours)

Mix Dough

  1. While gel is cooling, add instant yeast, toasted quinoa flour, white rice flour, buckwheat flour, kosher salt and xanthan gum to the bowl of a stand mixer. (If using active dry yeast, combine with 1 tbsp water to dissolve and add with liquids)
  2. Add tapioca gel and honey and continue to mix until smooth. Add olive oil. Mix for an additional minute. Dough will be very wet, unlike traditional pizza dough. This is not a problem. Dry dough will not rise as nicely or taste as good
  3. Lightly cover your mixing bowl with plastic wrap and allow dough to rise until doubled in volume, about 1 hour, in a warm area of the kitchen. (At this stage you could also refrigerate the dough for about 8 hours)

Shape & Bake

  1. Preheat oven to 500º. Place baking sheet or pizza stone in the oven to heat. (Important for crust release)
  2. Scrape down the dough. It will come apart in chunks. Do not worry - it will bake like a dream
  3. Coat a silicone baking mat or parchment paper with nonstick cooking spray. Place on a pizza peel or baking sheet
  4. Dip a spatula in a bowl of water to help spread on the parchment paper or silicone baking mat. Using half of the dough, spread into a round, keeping the edges slightly thicker. If you put a hole in the dough, simply spread more dough with a water-dipped spatula to cover that area
  5. Allow your crust to sit in a warm place for 10 minutes. It doesn't need to be oiled. You're not leaving it out for long and it won't dry out
  6. Transfer dough to the heated baking sheet or pizza stone by sliding the parchment paper or baking mat right on
  7. Bake 8-10 minutes. You'll be baking it twice (for an extra crispy dough) so be sure the crust doesn't get too dark
  8. Use a pizza peel or additional baking sheet to remove pizza from oven, leaving the stone or baking sheet in the oven, heating
  9. Peel off parchment if using, then top as desired and transfer directly onto the hot sheet in the oven
  10. Bake for another 3- 5 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Serve immediately

Tips

  • For a chewier crust, reduce white rice flour to ¼ cup, add ¼ cup arrowroot powder, decrease the toasted quinoa flour to ½ cup, and increase buckwheat flour to 1 cup
  • If you prefer to make pizza ahead, reduce yeast to ½ tsp and put the dough in the refrigerator before you let it rise and use it the next day. You'll still need to let it warm up and rise if you do opt for the cold method
  • You can freeze the cooled, ungarnished crust after the first 10 minutes of baking
  • Remember, when handling the dough, keep your hands wet. It will not harm the dough


Recipe courtesy of Linsey Herman
Cake and Commerce