I gave a new recipe a try this week, and I have to say I loved it.  I am sure everyone can agree that there is very little that can compare to wonderful ooey gooey goodness that is pizza. I mean sometimes you just crave and need that hot, melty, rich flavor that only comes from biting into a slice of Italian pie.

 

 

However our life changed awhile back when my wife developed Celiac disease. For those who do not know, this is an extreme allergy to Gluten. Gluten is a substance found in cereal grains, especially wheat that is responsible for the elastic texture of dough. Essentially it is a mixture of two proteins and is what causes illness in people with celiac disease. Think extreme abdominal pain due to swelling intestines that prevent proper absorption of food. It also causes severe rash breakouts along with other fun things. So needless to say all bread products, regular pasta, anything with MSG, etc. have been off limits.

In addition I have adopted a Keto style diet as I am trying to get in better shape (43 lbs down so far and still going!)  So this has meant a no to pizza. Yes we have cried 

 

 

 

 

Well my wife has been craving pineapple and ham pizza. I know you haters are going to hate, however she enjoys it and quite honestly so do I. I mean if you haven’t tried it, you need to,  i mean look at it:

So anyway, I set about on creating a pizza she and I could both enjoy. I have attempted various things as a substitute crust, cauliflower crusts, gluten free tortillas, and so far nothing really gave that awesome, comfort giving pop of flavor in the mouth that comes from real, honest to goodness pizza.

However, that all changed this week. I found a gluten free and Keto approved (depending on your choice of toppings)

The crust I made used a Fathead dough recipe (which is below). I refrigerated the dough for about 10 minutes before rolling it out. Place Saran Wrap over it to roll it out, I didn’t lol. It wasn’t difficult to get the parts off the rolling pin, but I am sure the plastic wrap would make it go smoother.

While the crust was in the oven I sliced some fresh pineapple and put it out on the gas grill. Nothing on the pineapple, and just sprayed the grill.

The pizza sauce was a homemade marinara that I had made previously (I will post recipe late and insert link so check back J)

 

When the 13 minutes was up on the crust I took it out and let it cool a bit while I finished the pineapple.  From there it was simple. I spread the sauce on the crust. I then sliced some ham and placed on the pizza. I used a nitrate free ham sandwich meat ( I used Natural Choice).

I chopped several slices of the pineapple and covered the ham with it. On top of that I grated mozzarella cheese and placed it back in the oven (be sure to lower temp to 350 from 425 temp used with crust) and waited for the cheese to melt.

It was great! Though the crust tastes amazing, it is a slight different texture than standard bread crust, but it was defiantly pizza.

I actually had leftover pineapple slices so I melted some butter and coconut sugar in a skillet with just a splash of water and glazed the remainder pineapple as a dessert for everyone else.

This was a big hit and will definitely be a repeat at our house. I did however learn a few things. I had covered my pizza pan with aluminum foil because I was afraid the dough might slip through the holes in the pan. This would not have been a problem and since I forgot to spray the aluminum foil, it caused some minor sticking issues. Next time I will not use the foil and will probably use my pampered chef stoneware (my wife reminded me about this after the fact, where was she with the great ideas when I started cooking? LOL). She was quiet pleased to have her pizza fix.

I hope you enjoy. You can obviously substitute any toppings you want on this crust.

 

Fat Head Dough Recipe

Ingredients:

• 4 oz. cream cheese
• 1 ½ cup shredded mozzarella
• 2 eggs
• ½ tsp garlic powder (or to taste, I add a bit more because I LOVE garlic)
• 2/3 cup almond flour
• ¼ cup parmesan cheese

Instructions:

Preheat oven 425

In a double boiler melt the mozzarella and cream cheese. I do not own a microwave (long story for another time) but you could use a microwave for this step. I would suggest about 15-25 seconds at a time and stir.

Add remaining ingredients to the melted cheese.

Mix it well. This will take a bit of stirring as melted mozzarella is interesting to work with. I would have to unstring it from my spoon, but it worked out without too much effort. Next time I will try the dough attachment on my Ninja mixer.

Grease a pizza pan, or use stone ware. Spread dough out in a circle to about ½ “thickness.

Bake 13-15 minutes or until golden brown.

Pile it up with your favorite toppings. If you have not tried it I suggest pineapple and ham. Jalapenos and bacon are another favorite around here.

Nutrition facts :

Serving size, cut pizza in 8 slices and serving size is two slices… because no one eats just one slice of pizza. But if you do, (yeah right) just divide this by 2.

Calories  302

Fat(g)      26.1

Carbs      5

Fiber       1.4

Protein    15.7

As Julia Child would say,