I know, I know, you aren’t supposed to say something is perfect. But y’all…
This pizza crust was PERFECT.
Okay, I know that is subjective, and you have full permission to disagree. But… if you do read on and decide to give this crust a try, just promise you’ll let me know if it doesn’t turn out the same?
Because a perfect crust should be perfect every time.
And I want to help you troubleshoot if it isn’t.
Okay, back to the perfect pizza crust.
I have had quite a few requests for pizza crusts and I have played around with it a lot, so I didn’t arrive at this particular crust by chance. I failed many times, and I said a few not nice words in the process.
Here’s the thing- yes, there’s cauliflower crusts, and broccoli crusts, and coconut flour crusts, and all the other gluten free crusts that have a million ingredients we have never heard of and twice as many steps.
And those are great if you are looking for a pizza-like meal.
But what about when a true Celiac wants a TRUE PIZZA?
There had to be an answer.
Wanna know what that answer was?
Technique
The thing is, I will give you all of the initial ingredients and tell you the steps in order- and I will even make each step super simple.
But beyond the ingredients and the instructions, you have to be willing to go out on a limb and aim for the right technique. Otherwise, this might not work out for you.
I don’t want to discourage you. It’s quite to opposite; I want to help you achieve that perfect crust.
So here we go with the detailed process.
First and foremost, I can *only* claim for this to work with the exact products I used. I know that might be super annoying, but gluten free products are just so touchy sometimes.
I started out with this Fleischmann’s Pizza Crust Yeast. There are lots of instant and fast acting yeast products, but this is the one that worked for me.
Then I got 2/3C water pretty warm… approximately 125 degrees. A great way to tell without a thermometer is to test on the back of your hand. If it’s “hot” it’s too much and it will kill the yeast. If it feels like the temperature of your hand- meaning you don’t really feel that it’s hot or cool, then it’s not warm enough. You want it to feel “warm” but not hot.
I combined the water, Fleischmann’s Pizza Crust Yeast, and 1tbsp honey. I gave it a little stir to combine it well.
Then I just let it be for one minute.
After that minute, I stirred in 3tbsp olive oil and 1tsp salt.
Then I braced myself for the tricky part: adding flour.
I started with 2C of the Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour. I kept the flour out, however, knowing that I might need more or less for the right consistency.
But here’s the thing- I only added 1C to start. I stirred it in well, and continued to slowly add flour until my dough became more like a pizza dough.
If you made pizza dough in your pre-gluten free days, then you know what that is.
If not, I’ll explain it to you.
You want to dough to stretchy and just a tiny bit sticky- but not gooey at all. If its just gooey and making a mess all over your hands as you knead it, you don’t have enough flour.
If you added your flour too fast and it seems dry, add a few more drops of warm water.
Keep working at this balance until you get a stretchy sticky dough that will roll out.
Once you achieve that consistency, generously flour a clean surface and begin rolling your dough out.
(Somewhere in here you will want to preheat your oven to 425).
Alternatively, you can oil a pizza pan, and stretch your dough out. Start from the middle and press evenly in all directions until you achieve the shape and size you are going for.
I like to press my crust all the way to the edge, then press it a bit further so that I can roll the extra dough back in to make a nice traditional “crust.”
Now that you have your crust formed, you are going to break the mold of traditional pizza making.
While a traditional pizza crust could just be dressed and topped and stuck in the oven to bake all at once, the gluten free crust needs to be baked a bit first. My general rule is that I bake it as long as it takes upfront to achieve the texture I want before I add the toppings.
For whatever unscientific reason, gluten free crust tends to not get much more crispy on the bottom once the toppings are on.
Once my crust is how I want it, I pull it out. Then the true fun starts. I just love toppings and love getting creative. You can top your pizza however you want, but you will see mine below: Spicy Hawaiian.
I will save the recipe for sauce for another day.
For now, go make yourself a crust and get creative with the toppings.
Also, sorry for the picture overload on this one, but I couldn’t have been more excited about this.
Oh, and in case you are wondering about my heart shaped pepperoni, it’s because I was just SO in love with the crust that I had to show it somehow.
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I definitely need to try this! I think it would be a hit with my friends the next time we do a group dinner!
This looks so yummy!!! We’ve made pizzas before but never with a gluten free crust. I will have to try making this soon!
This looks really good! We often make homemade pizza so I’m putting this on our to do for next time!