Home Made Gluten Free Pizza Dough Base
7One of the things I missed the most after starting a gluten free diet was going out for a really great pizza. I happily ate my stash of Amy’s frozen rice crust pizzas to stave off the wheat weeping, but longed to find a home made gluten-free pizza base recipe that I could make from scratch. I continued experimenting with every packaged gluten-free pizza dough mix I could find, and did have some success -- the Wholefoods mix was quite good. Although, like so many of the other mixes, I found them a bit too starchy and doughy, or they tasted like cardboard. I was left wanting. However, a couple of years ago, I hit the gluten-free pizza base jackpot!
I took some fantastic gluten free cooking classes with Rachel Van Den Bosch, and she shared this phenomenal home made gluten-free pizza dough recipe which I have been rolling out ever since. Rachel and her husband John are incredibly passionate about natural cooking, organic gardening and eco-living. They have a fantastic industrial kitchen, and run an incredible gluten free catering business and cooking school. If you live in Melbourne, hook up with them. They are really wonderful people. Rachel has given me heaps of amazing gluten free recipes over the years, and I will post a lot of them here. She has taught me so much about gluten free baking – combining fibrous and starchy gluten free flours in order to most closely replicate the texture of traditional baked goods, whilst maintaining the highest nutritional value. This gluten-free pizza dough is just one of many fantastic gluten free recipes we will gratefully chowing down on thanks to her years of experimenting with various gluten free flour combinations.
You will just not believe how good this gluten-free pizza base tastes. It is nothing short of incredible.
I have served it to many of my friends, and they have all said the same thing, “you would never know this was gluten free”. It is not starchy and doughy, and has a rich taste, with just the right blend of fibrous and starchy gluten free flours. Unlike traditional milled wheat flours, that tend to be nutritionally barren, the millet flour and chickpea flour is full of protein. By adding some sea salt to the mix you strengthen those proteins making them more easily available.
I will say, this gluten free crust is very rich. I have found that the best results are achieved by rolling out an extremely thin crust. Otherwise it can overpower the toppings. Deep dish pizza lovers, head somewhere else. I attempted a deep dish version a while back and it was a disaster. I was flossing the gluten free dough out of my teeth for weeks! Well not quite -- but you get the drift. Thin wins!
I get the best results when I roll out the dough as thinly as humanly possible -- almost paper thin, so that it almost rips and you can see through it. I find the dough gets really sticky, so I press and roll it straight on the trays. If the dough rips and there are a few holes, don’t worry. Just press it down and it will be fine. Make sure you keep your surface well floured. Rice flour works really well for this. Another tip when working with the gluten free pizza dough is to brush your hands with a little bit of olive oil. Then you will find the pizza dough a lot easier to work with. Just like with all gluten free doughs, you don’t want to “over work” the dough.
These gluten free pizza bases freeze really well, and can easily be prepared earlier, and saved for a quick easy meal later. To freeze -- par-cook the bases, cool, and then freeze, covering extremely well to prevent freezer burn. When you want to prepare them later there is no need to defrost. Just apply your toppings to the frozen base, and put straight in the oven as per fresh bases. The frozen dough will actually retain its moisture much better than if you defrost.
Imagine coming home after a long day, and whipping up a quick healthy home made gluten free pizza in less than 30 minutes! It doesn’t get any quicker or easier than that. I have had many a gluten free pizza party and it is so much fun. Everyone is involved in making the dough and choosing their toppings. I love it when food brings people together! Kids love making pizzas too. Now the gluten free pizza lovers can join the party, and bring something that rates to the table.
Give this gluten-free pizza dough a go. Even if you are not gluten free, you will be chowing down with joy. This recipe is gluten free, dairy free, nut free and soy free. If you are looking for fantastic allergy free recipes for pizza this one is a winner!
This recipe makes 2-3 regular sized bases depending how thinly you roll your dough.
Home Made Gluten Free Pizza Dough Base
- ½ cup millet flour
- ¾ cup white corn flour
- ¾ cup tapioca flour
- ½ cup milk powder
- 1 tsp xanthan
- ½ tsp gluten free baking powder
- 1 Tbsp dried yeast
- ½ tsp fine Celtic sea salt or Himalayan salt
- 6 fl oz warm filtered water
- 3 Tbsp cold pressed extra virgin olive oil
- 2 organic egg whites
- Sift all of the dry ingredients into a bowl.
- Lightly beat all the wet ingredients – the water, oil and eggs in a mixer on low.
- Slowly add the dry ingredients into the mixer and mix on low quickly until just combined.
- It is very important not to over beat the mix or over work the dough.
- You can just sift these flours into a mixing bowl, make a well in the centre and gradually pour in the wet ingredients if you prefer.
- A tip I got from Rachel – make a habit of holding back a third of the liquid as you mix, until you are sure of the consistency of the dough. There are flours of all different qualities, and your dough will have a slightly different personality each time. It is much easier to add in some more liquid, than add in the right quantity of extra flours. You will quickly get a feel for the right consistency.
- Empty your dough out onto a floured bench, and knead just a little to make an even firm dough.
- Cover the dough with a cloth, and allow to rise at room temperature for about half an hour while you prepare your toppings. You can even opt not to use baking powder if you allow the dough to rise for an hour or longer.
- Roll out your dough with a well floured rolling pin to the desired thickness and top.
- Bake at approximately 190C/395F for about 25 minutes, and then scoff with joy!
This makes about 2 pizza bases or more depending on how thin you roll it out.
Published here with permission from Rachel Van Den Bosch
Piggy Cooking Tips
the best way to clean your blender
After blending up something sticky, gooey or smelly, just place a few drops of soap in the carriage with some warm water and blend on high until all of the congealed food slips away from the blades and sides. Then repeat this process. Then rinse with water and presto! Clean carriage.
If you have smells or stains repeat this process with some bicarbonate of soda or lemon juice and water.
Check out the video on A No Hassle Way To Clean Your Blender that I did as part of the Chow Tips Series.
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Piggy Grunts!
Add Your GruntIs white corn flour, white corn that’s been milled or is it the starch? If it’s white corn that’s been milled, can I replace it with yellow milled corn?
Hey Tracey,
White corn flour is corn starch or maize starch. You can replace it with yellow milled corn flour in recipes. You can purchase white corn flour at health food stores.
Who wants to eat pizza that is gluten free?? Anyone will after trying this!