Pizza!!!!

Once upon a time, I ate more than my fair share of pizza. And didn't really think much of it. The one time I went out and bought a slice for breakfast had me questioning myself a little, but beyond that, it was quick, cheap and readily accessible (I work right down town, practically smack in the middle of a university campus. There are, off the top of my head, 5 by-the-slice pizza joints within a 7 minute radius of the shop!). Well, yeah. About that. I'm fairly sure that my health has improved since then, but some days are harder than others! A number of my friends find it highly amusing that I get all starry eyed when I say we're making pizza for dinner when that's something they'll pick up because they haven't got the time or can't be bothered to cook. I will say, however, we made damn fine pizza.

People will argue about what makes for the best pizza; for some, the crust is nothing more than a delivery system for mounds of oozy cheese and rich sauce, while for others there is no point if the crust isn't soft/crunchy/thick/thin, just the way they like it. I can be swayed to both sides of that argument, frankly, because what I am looking for is the overall taste and texture. Hot, rich and flavourful. It almost sounds like I'm talking about a romance novel or something, but let's face it: that first bite, when you crunch into the crispy underside of steaming hot crust and get your first taste of a thick, savoury tomato sauce, spicy sausage or roasted veggies, dripping with melted 'cheese' will make most of us roll our eyes closed and exclaim in some way "This is gooooood!". Provided you haven't just burnt the roof of your mouth off, of course. And that reaction is why it is worth making your own pizza.

Organic Porc sausage, crispy kale and caremelized onion pizza. Yes, I know I made the pizza into a heart, but it's Valentine's day. I know I don't really worry about Valentine's day, either. Deal with it.

The recipe that I use for my crusts comes out quite thin, almost more cracker like, but that is because I roll it out thinner than the 8" round that is suggested. This will work as a deep dish (oil a cast iron skillet and just press it into the bottom instead of rolling it before letting it rise) so if you prefer your crusts more bread like, this will still work! I got it from "Cooking for Isaiah: Gluen-Free & Dairy-Free Recipes for Easy, Delicious Meals" by Silvana Nardone. Excellent book!!! Totally worth it and very much a go to for me, but more about that another day. The only thing that I do differently from her is I always proof my yeast before adding it to the dry ingredients where she doesn't. Also, if you haven't got a baking stone, they really are worth it for a crispy crust and I believe that we paid about $25 for ours, so they aren't even much of an investement.

Totally worth it!!

Pizza Crusts Makes 2  8" Rounds

• 2 cups flour mix, plus more for dusting
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 package active dry yeast*
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 3/4 cup warm water
• 2 large egg whites at room temperature, lightly beaten
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

*NOTE: I don't buy the prepackaged yeast, since I use quite a bit of it. 1 package = 2 1/4 teaspoons of yeast, BUT I always put in 3 teaspoons (15 mls or 1 Canadian Tablespoon) as gluten free breads are notorious for not rising well and needing a little bit of extra help. Also why I proof the yeast in this recipe, and you will notice that I've changed it around a bit if you get this book (which you should because it's wonderful!).

Combine the flour and the salt in a medium mixing bowl and set aside. Add the sugar to the warm water, then add in the yeast, setting it aside to proof for about 10 minutes.

 Meanwhile, separate your eggs, reserving the yolks for something else, and lightly beating the egg whites. Once the yeast has proofed, add it, the egg whites and the olive oil to the flour, mixing just till combined. Try not to over work it; once it's all moist, you're good to go.

Divide the dough into 2 pieces, and on a piece of parchement paper dusted with a bit more flour, roll it out to about an 8+ inch round (or more like I do if you prefer it more cracker like). Set it aside, lightly covered with plastic wrap to rest/rise for about 30-45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 450 F with the baking stone (if using) on the bottom rack. Once hot, bake the crusts on the parchement paper one at a time for about 8 minutes, until puffy. Let cool on a wire rack while second crust is baking.

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From there, top as desired. My husband doesn't really like pepperoni, so if we aren't doing a veggie pizza, whatever meat is going on it is generally already cooked. For that matter, most of anything we put on pizza is usually cooked before it goes on top. We will also just broil it long enough for the 'cheese' to melt and to ensure that everything is hot all the way through. Ms. Nardone suggests brushing the tops with some olive oil before adding your toppings, but we don't and it comes out just fine!

Here you go, Madison! Happy Valentine's, everyone. Enjoy = )