Gluten free pizza in Italy ?

Does eating gluten-free in Italy seem impossible? Far from it. Probably since our country has always been based on the 3Ps, in Italian Pasta, Pane(Bread), Pizza, all the people who had problems with gluten felt different and fortunately a lot of work has been done to solve this situation. Nowadays it is easy to find gluten-free bread or GF pizzerias. We already talked about this in the blog “Is it possible to travel gluten Free in Italy?” and many people visiting our country confirm that they find pampered by the Gluten free possibilities offered in Italy.

But cooking at home is even simpler.

And how to prepare a good gluten free pizza?

The important thing is to pay attention to:

1.Flour

In nature there are many flours that do not contain gluten, here are some:

• Rice flour

•  Soy flour

•  Buckwheat flour

•   Chestnut flour

However, what is missing from these flours is always a thickener that helps leavening. It is possible to add Xanthan Gum, Guar, Gum Tragacanth, Gum Arabic, Psyllo, Agar Agar

But even simpler, today there are gluten-free flour mixes on the market designed specifically for various types of preparations. These flours are generally characterized by the presence of substances that facilitate leavening and thickening elements, precisely to overcome the lack of gluten. All you need to do is buy one of these preparations. Read the list of ingredients on the package to see if they have one of these elements and you won’t have any problem.

As for traditional pizza

2 .Long leavening.

As we have already explained before, gluten-free doughs tend to have less and slower leavening, so the ideal would be to leave them to rest at least overnight (possibly not in the fridge because low temperatures tend to slow down the action of the leavening factors) . Try leaving the dough in the turned off oven.

3.Salt

Did you know that salt inhibits the action of yeast? Be careful never to add it to the dough at the same time as it. You should add it at the end, when all the other ingredients (including yeast) have mixed together

 4.Cooking temperature

Pizza must be cooked at very high temperatures, and the same applies to gluten-free pizza. The classic ovens in our kitchens usually reach 230°/250°: set the temperature to the maximum  the final result will be a fragrant and tasty pizza, like the original!

Otherwise you can use the special home pizza oven,of which we write in our blog Tips for a “so good”Homemade Pizza

5. Topping ingredients

Don’t forget to drain peeled tomatoes and mozzarella, so that they don’t release too much liquid during cooking otherwise this will interfere with the crust crunchiness

Do not exagerate with the toppings

And now follow our simple recipe.

GF PIZZA             

Ingredient Shopping List

Ingredients  for 1 pizza crust

GF Flour 150 gr.= 1 ¼ cups 

tepid water 120 ml = ½ cup

E.V.O.O.1 tbs.

Dried yeast 7gr. = 1 tsp.  or    fresh yeast 5 gr. = 2 tsp.

 (Sugar 5 gr. = 1 tsp. if you use dried yeast)

Fine Salt 5 gr.= 1 tsp.

Ingredients for the garnish: whatever you like

Very traditional peeled tomatoes, mozzarella

Equipment Needed

Bowl where to mix by hand

Surface where to work the pizza dough (table, board etc.)

Fork

Bench scraper

Oven tray

Preparation

Pour 4/5 of the water in a bowl. Add the yeast and mix to dissolve it

If you use dried yeast: Dissolve the dried yeast in the water, adding Sugar 5 gr. = 1 tsp. Leave the yeast to work for a few minutes, until the foam forms on the surface.

Add the flour into the bowl.

Mix by hand for a couple of minutes

Dissolve the salt in the left 1/5 water,add it and the EVOO to the dough

knead a little more and form a ball with the dough.

 Let it rise for 2 hours in the bowl in a warm place.All night long is even better

At the moment of rolling out the dough, wet your hands and then grease them with a spoonful of oil.

Spread the half-inch-thick pizza with your fingertips, taking care not to crush the edges

Let the peeled tomatoes and mozzarella to release their liquid and then you can garnish the pizza.

Add salt and pepper, oregano. Basil at the end of the baking.

Garnish the pizza with the ingredients you prefer and bake in a preheated oven at 230 C°/450 F for 20 minutes./30 minutes

So you see how easy it is to prepare your own gluten free pizza just choosing the right flour and taking care of salt,long leavening, temperature,and topping. Buon appetito.