Gluten-Free Pizza Treat

Let's be honest, most every Celiac you ask about what they miss most about eating gluten, almost 100% of the time they say PIZZA. Well, I have to say the longer I eat gluten- free, the more things I really enjoy about eating this way. And to top it off I feel the best I have ever felt in my whole life, BUT I still every- now- and- then want to have some pizza. So, if you want to be bad :) and have something like pizza, but not eat any gluten or cow dairy, then this is the recipe for you. It is a little different than ordering a pizza from your local 5 dollars pizza place down the road, but it is kinda similar to a thin crust new yorker pizza in my mind. You don't have to agree, and that's the beauty about pizza, you can put your own toppings and make it special to you. So, here is my version of beating the pizza craving without the gluten, cow dairy, and even yeast if you are trying to avoid yeast.

Crust:

1 Chebe Pizza mix or Foccacia mix 

I must say the reason I like this crust over others that you can buy at the health store is because

there is no yeast in the mixture. People that are trying to overcome digestion issues should really try and stay away from anything that contains yeast because it will only help the bad bacteria grow in your gut. So I consider this mix a better alternative to others for that reason. 

Follow the ingredients on the back of the bag. 

You will need 2 eggs, 4 TB of Almond milk and 2 TB of olive oil.

Mix the crust with a fork, and then knead by hand. Then lay out on a parchment papered 12x18 baking pan. Roll with a rolling pin and extend the crust to all edges to get more crust. Follow the instructions for baking. I like to put my oven on the broil option and bake /broil for about 10 minutes. Then it is crispy. I flip over the crust to the softer side and start with the toppings.

Toppings:

1 14oz. can of Organic Pizza Sauce---but I also like to use a can of crushed tomatoes mixed with basil. I like a lot of sauce on my pizzas so I add the whole 14oz. can, but you can judge how much you want to have on yours...

1 7 oz. package of Mt. Sterling Creamery Feta Goat Cheese  or other goat cheese option

(When you are sprinkling on the pizza, make sure to finely crumble the feta so that you can evenly cover the whole pizza)

(Shown in the picture above)

My favorite little extra toppings:

1/4 cup pine nuts

1/4 cup dried craisins

Fresh or dried basil

Sprinkle with spices such as garlic, Italian blend spices, or cracked pepper

Other toppings I have tried on this recipe...

chopped banana peppers  

lots of fresh herbs

organic chicken sausages

Now, if you are on a dairy-free diet, I would encourage you to try raw goat dairy as an option over the other soy/almond/rice cheese options..... only because goat dairy has more enzymes in it to help digest, and if you can find a local farm that produces the goat cheese you may be able to find it raw, which means that the enzymes haven't been taken out, so it may be easier to consume as well. I do not eat convention dairy at all, but I will treat myself to goat dairy every now and then because I have seen positive results to adding it to the diet occasionally. It could be that you are very afraid to eat even goat dairy, but if you haven't experimented with it yet, then I urge you to at least try it. And then you will know if it is good for you or not.

Well, that is my little secret recipe for making the pizza craving go away. I have been making this kind a pizza for a few years now, and I have to say that it gets better the more you make it. I cannot eat traditional cow dairy without feeling too full and uncomfortable, so I still do goat dairy, and it actually makes me feel better and satisfied. There is goat mozzerella cheese out there as well if you want to experiment with that. I have found I like the feta because I like how it tastes and also with the pine nuts and craisins it has a nice flavor all together.

For local readers:

You can find both the goat cheese and the pizza mix at Harvest Health Grocery Stores. And you can find the pizza mixes also at Meijer. I have found that they are cheaper at Harvest Health, but it is nice to know that if I am at Meijer I could pick a mix up to have on hand. I have not found a good goat cheese option at Meijer, but if you don't want to have goat cheese, Meijer has a few options for organic cheeses.

This pizza could serve up to 4 people, or I like to serve two for dinner, and then have leftovers for my packed lunch the next day. Enjoy!