Saturday Night Pizza - Low Carb & Grain Free

It was a dark and dreary day here today. It rained all night last night and most of the day today. We ran errands most of the day to prepare for our backsplash tile installation that begins tomorrow and finishes up on Monday. I've given up the mosaic tile border I had chosen -- both because it's too wide for our wall area and because we'd have to go to several locations to get enough. Instead, I've chosen to add bronze metallic tile inserts to add architectural detail to the travertine tile. I think it will look good too...but it's hard not to feel a little disappointed because I really loved that mosaic border. We shopped for paint today, too...and I thought it should be fairly simple since I wanted to go with something simple and fairly beige. Do you know how many shades of beige there are to choose from? I am so over making choices at this point...LOL. It's exhausting and I probably hem and haw more than the average person does. 

While out running errands today, I picked up two new USA baking pans. I am obsessed with these pans. They are some of the nicest baking pans I have ever used. I bought a USA 14-inch pizza pan and a USA 9" x 13" baking pan. I used both of them this evening. I used the pizza pan to make pizza for dinner and my crust turned out unbelievable with it. It was lighter and flakier because of the corrugated surface of the pan. It allows air underneath and nothing...I mean NOTHING sticks to it. As a matter of fact, you have to be careful that your pizza crust doesn't slide off their pizza pan because it's THAT non-stick. I didn't even have to grease or line the pan when spreading the pizza dough out on it. I used the 9 x 13 pan on a project I'm working on and it worked so nicely that I literally threw out my old 9 x 13 pan. I snapped a few photos of my pizza this evening as well as included the recipe. If you haven't tried this pizza crust before...it's worth trying. Enjoy!

Pizza crust before baking

Crust fresh out of the oven

Look how nice the bottom of the crust is...the surface of this pan kept it so nice, light and crisp

Topped with pepperoni, onions and red bell pepper...ready to pop back into the oven

Fresh out of the oven...topped with fresh basil

BOOM!

Almond-Flax-Parmesan Herb Pizza Crust

Makes 1 10-inch round pizza (approximately 2 servings)

Dry Ingredients:

1/4 cup almond flour
1/4 cup golden flax seed meal (organic golden flax is milder in taste than brown)

2/3 teaspoon baking powder (aluminum free)

1/2 - 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder 
Dash cayenne pepper, optional

1/4 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste (decrease salt if using saltier cheeses and toppings)

Few grinds of freshly ground black pepper

4 - 5 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, finely grated

Wet Ingredients:

1 large egg (or 1/4 cup egg substitute such as Egg Beaters)

1 tablespoon olive oil (a little more, if desired)

1 to 2 tablespoons water (start with 1 tablespoon of water and add the second, if necessary)

Toppings (Optional):  
Pizza sauce, pesto sauce, etc.
Cheese: shredded mozzarella cheese, sliced or diced fresh mozzarella, etc.
**Pre-cooked vegetables of choice: onions, green peppers, mushrooms, spinach, etc. 
**Pre-cooked meat of choice: sausage, ground beef topping, etc.
Other: artichokes, olives, pepperoni, etc.

**Tip: To prevent crust from becoming soggy, fresh vegetable and meat toppings should be pre-cooked

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Mix dry ingredients together; add wet ingredients and mix well. Let the dough sit for approximately 5 minutes to thicken. 

Spread dough on a lightly oiled large pizza pan or cookie sheet lined with greased parchment paper (you can also use Reynolds non-stick foil, lightly brushed with olive oil).  Using a lightly oiled rubber spatula, press the dough out to desired shape and thickness (I usually make it about 1/4" thick -- *see note below).  Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through (check crust after 15 minutes and remove from oven when it looks and feels done).  

Spread with a thin layer of sauce, cheese and desired toppings (fresh vegetable and meat toppings should be pre-cooked to prevent soggy crust); place back into the oven to bake an additional 5-10 minutes to melt cheese.  If desired, run under the broiler for a few minutes to lightly brown the toppings and make the cheese bubbly (be careful not to burn it).

*Note:  For a crust that is flat, smooth and even in thickness, lightly spray a 2nd sheet of parchment paper with olive oil spray and place it on top (oiled side down) of the ball of pizza dough that is centered in the middle of your prepared pizza pan or baking sheet.  Using either your hands or the flat edge of an object (I use a big container of black pepper) press the dough smooth by swiping it the direction you want the pizza crust to go.  When it is the desired thickness and shape, carefully peel off the top layer of parchment paper...and "Voila"...perfectly flat, smooth, thin pizza crust! If you don't have parchment paper, pressing the dough out with a lightly oiled rubber spatula works just fine, too.