Are you a pizza fiend? Have you recently discovered that you have coeliac disease and need to follow a gluten free diet from now on? One thing you might be wondering is how good gluten-free pizzas actually are. Whether you decide to buy glutenfree ingredients, including gluten-free pizza bases, or make everything from scratch, pizza dough and all, there are plenty of options out there for you to try.
Gluten-free pizza bases
For any person who loves pizza but has coeliac symptoms to contend with, it can be daunting at first to consider a life without pizza. Luckily for you, there are some quality gluten-free pizza bases on the market today. If you can eat pizza and experience a crust that is as good as what you were used to before you switched to gluten-free foods, what’s not to love?
And if you live in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, you may be entitled to receive gluten free pizza bases on prescription. Gluten free pizza bases provide you with a quick and easy way to add your favourite toppings on a tasty pizza base. You can eat without the worry or the guilt of gluten being present in the dough and can add whatever toppings you wish. There is so much variation in pizza that you can try, such as a pesto base with halloumi and vegetables, or a mozzarella, rocket, and ham.
Gluten-free toppings that you could add to a gluten-free base include:
- Mozzarella
- Cheddar
- Feta
- Gorgonzola
- Bacon
- Pancetta
- Ham and prosciutto
- Pepperoni
- Salami
- Chicken
- Artichokes
- Garlic
- Tomatoes
- Olives
- Peppers
- Spinach
Any combination of these tasty ingredients, topping an incredibly delicious gluten-free pizza base is enough to send your tastebuds wild.
Make your own gluten-free pizza base
If you want to give it a go and take gluten-free flour to create your own pizza dough, there is a simple BBC gluten free pizza recipe that we’ve listed below for you. The following is the recipe for the pizza base itself, as there are so many different options you can take with the sauce and toppings using the list of gluten-free ingredients above:
Ingredients
- 400g gluten-free bread flour
- 2 heaped teaspoons of golden caster sugar
- 2 teaspoons gluten-free baking powder
- 1 teaspoon fine salt
- 1 heaped teaspoon of xanthan gum
- 5 tablespoons of olive oil
Method
- To make the dough, mix together the flour, baking powder, xanthan gum, salt, and sugar in a large mixing bowl.
- Create a well and pour in 250ml of warm water and the olive oil.
- Combine everything together quickly with your hands, creating a thick, wet paste. If the dough feels too dry, add 20ml extra of the warm water.
- Store in an air-tight container or in a covered bowl and leave in the fridge for up to 24 hours before you are ready to make the pizza.
- Lightly flour two baking sheets and split the ready dough into two pieces, flattening with your fingers until you have two rounds that are approx. 20-25cm on the baking sheets.
- Before adding to the oven, add the sauce you are using, and top with ingredients before baking in the oven for 8-10 minutes or until the pizza base has begun to crisp. This is at a heat of 220C/200 fan/gas 7.
Even if you are suffering with coeliac disease effects and are struggling to see how you can fill that new pizza shaped hole in your life, you need not worry. Gluten-free pizza, and other gluten-free ingredients and gluten-free products offer such quality and good taste these days, that you can carry on including your favourite pizza in your regular mealtime routine without noticing any difference in quality!
