Best Gluten Free Pizza Ever

I have been trying unsuccessfully to make gluten free pizza for months now. I've used recipes from other blogs that claimed to be the best pizza crust ever with terrible results. My husband would tell me that it tasted like strawberry shortcake with pizza toppings instead of strawberries. So, I decided to use a recipe that I had been using (successfully) for bread and turn it into a pizza crust. The above picture is what the crust looked like after I pre-baked it. It looked fantastic!

It was crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside just like a pizza crust should be!

I am so thankful that my husband can once again enjoy pizza night! I've included the recipe and the process.
If you do try out this recipe, please let me know how it works out for you. Leave me a comment here on my blog or send me an email!

Recipe:

120 grams Tapioca Flour

119 grams Brown Rice Flour

48 grams Potato Starch (not flour)

2 tsp xanthum gum

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp sea salt

3 egg whites

3/4 cup warm water

1 packet of yeast or 2 1/2 teaspoons

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

2 Tablespoons honey

1/2 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar

Use a scale to measure out the flours/starches. Mix all of the dry ingredients together.

In a small mixing bowl combine the warm water, honey, and oil. Add the yeast and allow time for the yeast to activate and become foamy. (about 5 minutes)

In the meantime, beat the egg whites in your mixer for about 1-2 minutes until peaks form. Once the yeast mixture is ready, add the wet and dry ingredients to the egg whites along with the apple cider vinegar and mix with the beater attachment for about 4 minutes scraping down the sides as you see fit.

Preheat oven to 170 degrees and then turn it off.

Divide the dough in half and spread the dough evenly on two pizza pans. (each pizza will be about 10-12 inches in diameter)

 Wet your hands with water so that the dough does not stick to your hands. Once both pizza doughs are spread out to about 1/2 inch thickness place both pans in the warmed oven for about 30 minutes.

Remove both pans from oven and make holes over the entire crust with a fork.

Put the crusts back in the oven, and then turn the oven on to 350 degrees and bake the two crusts at the same time. Keep in the oven for 16-17 minutes. About half way through baking crusts switch the crusts to the opposite racks. (so each crust has equal amounts of time on the bottom rack as the top rack)

Once the crusts are done, you can top them with your choice of toppings.

Preheat oven to 475 degrees

Bake for 3 minutes and 30 seconds then push the pizza off the pan and directly onto the oven rack and bake for about 3 more minutes.

If you have any questions about the instructions please let me know and I'll be happy to answer them!

Gluten Free Brownies - RIDICULOUSLY GOOD!

I made these Gluten Free brownies yesterday. I was enormously skeptical that they would be any good, but I went for it anyway. I used a recipe from the gluten-free goddess blog. I was pleasantly surprised with the results.
I did not have almond meal, although I had almonds. So, I made my own almond meal. I did not love making my own almond meal. It was tedious and frustrating. The next time I make this recipe, I would prefer to have a bag of already prepared almond meal.
They were super chocolately, moist, and the texture was outstanding. Rich thought they were very good, but a little loose. I'm not sure yet how I would tweak it to make them stay together better. I, personally, don't mind a brownie that is a little loose as long as it has a deep dark chocolate taste. This one definitely did!
So, if you are looking for a great brownie recipe that is gluten free - look no further. This one is tried and true!

Gluten-Free Granola Bars

Incredible! I started with the granola bar recipe that I have been using for several years now and changed it in several ways to make it gluten free.
I eliminated the oats and doubled the gluten-free Rice Krispie cereal. So, instead of 1 1/2 Cup Oats, and 1 1/2 Cup Rice Krispies ... I use 3 Cups Rice Krispies.
I also added flax seed, xanthan gum, and an extra egg. I use Gluten-Free All Purpose Flour instead of wheat flour.
They turned out GREAT! I actually think they are better than my other Gluten-FULL recipe.

Here is the recipe:
You will need 2 bowls.
In the first bowl combine:
1 Cup brown sugar
2 Tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1 stick of butter
1/2 Cup natural peanut butter (gluten free)

In the 2nd bowl combine:
3 Cups Gluten-Free Rice Krispies
1 1/3 Cup All Purpose Gluten Free Flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 scant teaspoon of xanthan gum
1/2 Cup ground almonds (not flour)
1/4 Cup plus 1/8 Cup of ground flax seed
1/2 teaspoon of soda

Mix wet ingredients well, then add dry ingredients and mix well.
Once mixed together add:
1 Cup of Unsweetened Coconut
1 Cup of chocolate chips

Press into a well greased 11X13 baking pan. (make sure you press the mixture down well!)

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-22 minutes.

Cut into bars while still warm.

I store mine in the refrigerator. I find that they stay together better when they are cold. Rich also prefers them cold.

Enjoy!

Gluten Free Meals

Grilled Venison, lightly sautéed zucchini, and northern beans with fresh yellow tomatoes, onions, and fresh basil. This was a delicious meal! Instead of having a side of pasta, bread, or rice, I made a side of beans. The beans were delicious and the fresh vegetables tossed in and lightly sautéed with the fresh basil made it even better! 

Spaghetti Squash and gluten free sauce and meatballs
Doesn't  this looks like a normal plate of spaghetti and meatballs to you?
It is not a normal plate of spaghetti and meatballs!
The meatballs are gluten free. I bought some gluten free crackers to use in place of  bread crumbs. We used spaghetti squash instead of wheat pasta.
The spaghetti squash had an al dente texture, was slightly sweet, and went very well with the sauce and meatballs. We were amazed at how delicious it was. I was a skeptic, but completely willing to try it. I was delighted with how great the taste and texture of the spaghetti squash was.
So, now Rich can enjoy "pasta", sauce, and meatballs with the rest of us.

If I had a child that needed to be gluten free, then I would switch the entire family to a gluten free diet. Since Rich is the only one that seems to have a gluten intolerance, the children are still having gluten in small quantities, and I have it on occasion too. However, all of our family meals have to be gluten free. There is no way that I can fix a separate meal for Rich.

Rich is doing very well and we are encouraged by how much better he feels by changing his diet. It's amazing how life changing this small life alteration has been for him!
If you suffer from inflammation, taking gluten out of your diet could potentially change your life too.

Now ... off to make some gluten free tortillas!

Powerballs

Lately, we have been more intentional about eating more protein and cutting back on carbohydrates.  A side effect of this was that Rich unintentionally went about 5 days without eating gluten.  His skin felt better than it had in years. The red splotches from his severe excema cleared up, his itchiness went away, and generally just felt better. When pizza night rolled around, he ate as many slices as he normally would eat and within an hour he could feel his skin becoming inflamed. It was at this point, he started to think that perhaps he has a gluten intolerance.
My first thoughts were doom and gloom. I've spent the last 6 years figuring out how to make everything from scratch using healthy whole grains ... and now he's not going to be able to eat any of it! Once I got past my own selfishness, I was able to think more clearly. I can do this! The most important thing is that he feel better! I have prayed for my husband for years to feel better ... have asked others to pray for him, and this could be the answer to prayer that I have been waiting for all of these years. Of course I want to be a part of the solution. So, if I need to make changes in my kitchen, then I am going to do it!
We already are super health conscious. This is not going to be that hard. I can make delicious meals without gluten. We've already changed our evening meals to include more raw vegetables, less carbs, and more protein. Since I already make almost everything from scratch ... how hard can it be to eliminate gluten?
The Powerballs pictured above are a special snack that I make for Rich for those times that he has a  little bit of a sweet tooth. They are gluten free - with minimal amount of sweetener ... and packed FULL of protein. They are also easy to play around with as far as substitutions go.
I started with a basic recipe and just played around with it until I got the right consistency. 
The recipe:
1 1/4 Cup Brown Crispy Rice Cereal *
2/3 Cup of toasted unsweetened coconut**
2/3 Cup natural peanut butter
1/2 Cup chocolate chips
1/2 Cup raisins or other dried fruit
1/2 Cup flaxseed
2/3 Cup ground almonds
1/3 Cup honey
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 - 1 scoop of protein powder (from peas, hemp, and rice)***

Mix all of the ingredients together and then refrigerate for 30 minutes before forming into balls. Keep refrigerated once they are formed into balls.

*Brown Crispy Rice Cereal has to be marked gluten free - they aren't all gluten free. Some of them contain Barley Malt. You actually have to do a search for the gluten free variety.

**I use Unsweetened Coconut - it's not easy to find at a store, so I order it from Amazon. Since these balls are not cooked, I toast the coconut before putting it in the recipe. I place the coconut on a baking sheet and bake it for a couple of minutes at about 300 degrees. You have to watch it closely so that it doesn't burn. It draws out the flavor of the coconut while also making it easier to chew!

***If you don't have protein powder you can just add more almonds or cut back on the peanut butter a little bit. You really can't go wrong with these since they are no bake.