The Nitty Gritty on Pizza

Did you ever wonder how pizza came to be? When Anna Mays teaches a cooking class for City Market, no question is left unanswered! She ties culture, nutrition and cooking info into each of her classes, which gives a comprehensive view of the topic at hand. And her Gluten Free Pizza Class was no exception. As someone who followed a gluten free diet for several years and as an avid pizza-lover, I can say that pizza was the one food that I missed the most during that time, despite having tried many restaurant and frozen options. The pizzas made in City Market’s Gluten Free Pizza class, led by Anna Mays, were excellent and the discussion of the history of pizza enriched the experience.

While the gluten free pizza dough (recipes below) was baking, Anna described pizza’s origins. Apparently in Naples where pizza originated, the impoverished Lazzaroni were the first to enjoy this food as a staple. Their diets were comprised primarily of two foods: watermelon in the summer and pizza in the winter. The earliest pizza was a simple flatbread cut to order based on what the customer could afford. Toppings like oil, lard, small fish, or cheese were added. Pizza was a street food, which could be folded and eaten as the customer walked home. It was consumed on the weekdays as folks saved up for pasta on the weekends.

It is thought that the tomatoes were eventually added to compete with the coveted pasta, which was topped with tomatoes. Fishermen would purchase this pizza and take it out to sea, hence the name marinara, meaning “seafaring”. According to The Association of True Neapolitan Pizza, Pizza Marinara was invented in the year 1734.

Oh yes, there is an association in charge of preserving the standards of pizza- making in Naples! To summarize, the pizza must be made with specific ingredients, preferably local. It is required that traditional methods and approved equipment are used. The pizza must be baked for no more than 90 seconds in a wood fired oven with a temperature of at least 900 F. The final product must be 11 inches in diameter, thin in the center and have crust that is about an inch high.

There are three types of Authentic Neapolitan Pizza: Pizza Marinara, Pizza Margherita and Pizza Margherita Extra. As mentioned above Pizza Marinara was named for the fisherman. Pizza Margherita was named for the Queen. Queen Margherita and King Umberto were visiting Naples in 1889 when they became tired of the French cuisine that was customarily served to royalty and asked for something different. They were served 3 pizzas: one topped with lard, cacciocavallo cheese and basil; one with fish and tomatoes; and one with tomatoes, mozzarella and basil. Well guess which one was the Queen’s favorite? To top it off, these topping’s also happen to match the colors of the Italian flag! The third pizza, Pizza Margherita Extra, is the Margherita Pizza topped with extra cheese.

Once the class participants had a good understanding of the history and culture of pizza, the crusts had been prebaked and we were able to top them. It was decided that we would try one crust plain, one with tomato sauce and cheese and one with tomato basil and mozzarella. We then placed them back in the oven. When the pizza was ready everyone eagerly tasted the pies and gave glowing reviews.

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Aside from learning the story behind pizza, one of many great things about the Gluten Free Pizza class was that folks left with a recipe for a flour blend that can be substituted for equal portions of flour in any recipe. To the gluten free folks, it is a special treat to once again bake favorite recipes from times past. So if it is something other than pizza that you are craving while following a gluten free diet, dig out those old favorite cookbooks and dust of those recipe cards from grandma! Whether its gluten free pizza pie or rhubarb pie, take a moment to savor the story behind the recipe!

 

Gluten Free Flour Blend

Adapted from America’s Test Kitchen, The How Can It Be Gluten-Free Cookbook

Makes 21 ounces (About 4 ½ cups)

Be sure to use potato starch, not potato flour, with this recipe. Tapioca starch is also sold as tapioca flour; they are interchangeable. I also recommend that you weigh your ingredients; if you measure by volume, spoon each ingredient into the measuring cup (do not pack or tap) and scrape off the excess.

Ingredients:

340 grams / 12 ounces (2 cups plus 6 Tablespoons and 2 teaspoons) rice flour

113 grams / 4 ounces (½ cup plus 1/3 cup) brown rice flour

100 grams / 3 ½ ounces (1 ½ cup plus 2 Tablespoons and 2 teaspoons) potato starch (not potato flour)

42 grams / 1 ½ ounces (¼ cup plus 2 Tablespoons) tapioca starch (also sold as tapioca flour)

14 grams / ½ ounce (1 ½ Tablespoons) nonfat dry milk powder

Instructions:

Whisk all ingredients in large bowl until well combined. Transfer to airtight container and refrigerate or freeze for up to 3 months. Plastic yogurt containers, 1 gallon zip-lock bags and mason jars work well.

 

Pizza Recipe

Makes two 12-inch pizzas

This recipe requires letting the dough rise for 1 ½ hours and prebaking the crusts for about 45 minutes before topping and baking. If you don’t have almond flour, you can process 2 ½ ounces of blanched almonds in a food processor until finely ground, about 30 seconds.

Crust:

454 grams / 16 ounces (3 1/3 cups plus ¼ cup) Gluten-Free Flour Blend

71 grams / 2 ½ ounces (½ cup plus 1 Tablespoon) almond flour or flaxseed meal

1 ½ Tablespoons powdered psyllium husk

2 ½ teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon instant or rapid-rise yeast

591 ml / 2 ½ cups warm water (100 degrees)

59 ml / ¼ cup vegetable oil

Vegetable oil or olive oil spray

Sauce:

1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, drained (Muir Glen Organic Whole Peeled Tomatoes and Hunt’s Whole Plum Tomatoes are good brands)

1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon red wine vinegar (optional)

1 garlic clove, minced (optional)

1 teaspoon dried oregano or 2 teaspoons fresh oregano (optional)

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

10-12 fresh basil leaves

Cheese:

1 ounce (½ cup) Parmesan cheese, finely grated (optional)

8 ounces (2 cups) whole-milk mozzarella cheese, shredded.

Fior di Latte or buffalo mozzarella are the traditional types of mozzarella; great to use if available. These two cheeses should be sliced, not shredded. It’s best to buy mozzarella whole and shred yourself to ensure optimal flavor and moisture content.

For the Crust:

1. Using a stand mixer fitted with paddle or a hand mixer, mix flour blend, almond flour, psyllium, baking powder, salt, and yeast on low speed until combined. Slowly add warm water and oil in steady stream until incorporated. Increase speed to medium and beat until dough is sticky and uniform, about 5 minutes. (Dough will resemble thick batter.)

2. Remove bowl from mixer, cover with plastic wrap, and let stand until inside of dough is bubbly (use spoon to peer inside dough), about 1 ½ hours. (Dough will puff slightly but will not rise.)

3. Adjust oven racks to middle and lower positions. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and drizzle or spray liberally with oil. Transfer half of dough to center of 1 prepared sheet. Using oil-sprayed rubber spatula, spread dough into 8-inch circle. Spray or drizzle top of dough, cover with large sheet of plastic, and, using your hands, press out dough to 11 ½ inch round, about ¼ inch thick, leaving outer ¼ inch slightly thicker than center; discard plastic. Repeat with remaining dough and second prepared sheet.

4. Place prepared sheets in oven and heat oven to 325 degrees. Bake dough until firm to touch, golden brown on underside, and just beginning to brown on top, 45 to 50 minutes, switching and rotating sheets halfway through baking. Transfer crusts to wire rack and let cool.

For the Sauce:

1. Process all ingredients except basil in blender or food processor until smooth, about 30 seconds. Transfer to bowl and refrigerate until ready to use.

2. One hour before baking pizza, adjust oven rack to upper-middle position, set baking stone on rack, and heat oven to 500 degrees. If not using a baking stone, preheat oven to 500 with rack in upper-middle position.

3. Transfer 1 parbaked crust to pizza peel. Using back of spoon or ladle, spread ½ cup tomato sauce in thin layer over surface of crust, leaving ¼ -inch border around edge. Sprinkle ¼ cup Parmesan evenly over sauce, followed by 1 cup mozzarella. Carefully slide crust onto stone and bake until crust is well browned and cheese is bubbly and beginning to brown, 6-12 minutes. Transfer pizza to wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes before slicing and serving. Repeat with second crust, ½ cup tomato sauce (you will have extra sauce), remaining ¼ cup Parmesan, and remaining 1 cup mozzarella. Top each pizza with 5-6 basil leaves and a drizzle of olive oil in the center.

To Make Ahead:

Extra sauce can be refrigerated for up to 1 week or frozen for up to 1 month. Parbaked and cooled crusts can sit at room temperature for up to 4 hours. Completely cooled crusts can be wrapped with plastic wrap and frozen for up to 2 weeks. Frozen crusts can be topped and baked as directed without thawing.

 

Pizza Resources

The How Can It Be Gluten Free Cookbook by America’s Test Kitchen

Pizza: A Global History by Carol Helstosky

 

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