Gluten Free: Chicken, Bacon and Ranch Pizza

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FREE bag of CC Dolch Gluten Free All Purpose Flour!
See the bottom of this post for more info...

Supper tonight was Chicken, (Turkey) Bacon and Ranch Pizza, and I used the C. C. Dolch Gluten Free Flour pizza crust recipe. I really like that pizza crust...it's not 100% like the "real" stuff...there's no way, really, to get that chewy-ness in a gluten crust without the gluten. Just the nature of things. BUT, it's fantastically easy and doesn't have that weird flavor that a lot of GF flours and pizza crust mixes have because they don't put bean flour in there. Some people don't mind it, I guess. But I really don't care for it...weird flavor and weird texture. Boo.

I didn't have any ranch dressing on hand, and was out of mayo, so I went searching for a mayo-less ranch recipe. The one below was a good starting place, but for my tastes I needed to add some stuff to get it to where I liked it. I added vinegar (would have used lemon juice if I had any lemons), more garlic and onion powder, more salt, and a pinch of sugar. Most likely, it just needed a bit of time chilling in the fridge, but as I made it right before making supper, I had to use it as it was. 

Freshly shredded cheese tastes soooo much better, and today I used a combination of mozzarella and cheddar. It's also cheaper by the pound, unless there is a tremendously good sale. I get lazy and forget that sometimes and buy the preshredded stuff. But really, nothing compares to creamy, melty mozzarella that was shredded directly over your pizza. Mmmmm!

So, here's the recipes...there's several: the crust, ranch dressing, and putting it all together. 

Pizza Crust (from the back of the CC Dolch flour bag or here on their website)

ingredients:

• 1 T. yeast
• 1 1/2 T. white sugar
• 1 cup warm water
• 1 1/2 T. oil
• 1/8 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp oregano
• 3 cups sifted gluten-free flour

method:

Preheat oven to 350. Combine yeast, sugar and warm water and let set for 5 minutes. Add oil, garlic powder, salt, oregano and flour. Mix all ingredients and put in a large pizza pan. Bake 10 minutes at 350º. Top with your favourite sauce, topping and cheese. Finish baking until crust is light brown.

Ranch Dressing (on allrecipes.com)

ingredients:

• 1 c sour cream
• 1/2 c buttermilk or soured milk (milk + vinegar)
• 1/2 tsp dried parsley
• 1/2 tsp dried chives
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp dried dillweed
• 1/4 tsp onion powder
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 18 tsp fresh-ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp sugar (optional) 

method:

In a mixing bowl, whisk together all ingredients. Adjust seasonings to taste. 

The Pizza

ingredients:

• 1 pizza crust, prepared and baked 10 minutes
• 1/4-1/2 c ranch dressing
• 1-1 1/2 c chopped, cooked chicken
• 6-8 slices of turkey bacon, chopped and cooked to desired crispness
• 1/2 small onion, diced
• 1-2 c mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1-2 c cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1/4-1/2 tsp garlic powder

method:

Topped with cheese
and ready to bake

After removing pizza crust from oven, spread ranch dressing over the top. Sprinkle cooked chicken, onions and bacon on top. Layer cheddar cheese and mozzarella. Sprinkle garlic powder on top and return to 350 degree oven and bake until crust and cheese are lightly browned, 18-25 minutes depending on your oven.

Mmmm...good AND gluten free!

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Gluten Free Flour!

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to Enter. Hurry, giveaway ends April 30, 2013!

The Perfectionist Kitchen...Grace Under Fire

I wish this was my kitchen, but it's from
www.remodelingmyspace.com

Do you struggle with perfectionism? I always believed perfectionists live in those House Beautiful centerfolds, have perfectly behaved families, and never have a hair out of place. Then I discovered that I was one. And believe me, House Beautiful couldn't be paid enough to photograph my home, my family is not perfectly behaved, and I often have hairs out of place...in fact, it's almost noon as I type this on a cloudy Saturday morning, I'm still in my PJ's, and my hair is stylishly coiffed in a frightful Why-Yes-I-DID-Just-Roll-Out-Of-Bed 'do.

And yet, I'm busy working in my kitchen...the room that currently looks like a scale model of a nuclear testing ground. I've made sourdough pancakes, fed my starter, mixed up some healthy(ish..it's not soaked) granola that is currently infusing my home with the most delightful aroma of oats, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, honey, butter and coconut ( you can find the recipe here, at Kitchen Stewardship!), and I just started some dough in my breadmaker to make the bratwurst buns we need for tomorrow's outing to a local park to hunt for mushrooms and just enjoy spending the day together. I'm very happy that my 16 year old stepson will be joining us...it will help make for a wonderful Mother's Day!

I'm taking a coffee break...enjoying some freshly ground Starbucks House Blend, sweetened slightly with sucanat and lavishly lightened with some raw cream from local, happy, organically grass-fed cows. Mmmmm...

So, back to the perfectionist kitchen oxymoron...I've learned that "perfectionist" doesn't always mean one does things perfectly and always "has it together". In fact, it can mean just the opposite, because the inability to do something perfectly paralyzes the perfectionist, and nothing gets done. 

I had a long day yesterday...not enough sleep, I've started babysitting for a three year old girl so I toted two three year olds around with me on grocery/errand day (wow...that's a challenge!), came home, made homemade pizza (thank God for 5-Minute pizza crust...), tried to make some sourdough English muffins (emphasis on TRIED. I don't want to talk about that one.), had a daughter who chose to lose out on allowance rather than do her dishes...and I just didn't have the energy to do them, even though starting the day off with a clean kitchen is so much more inviting and efficient. So, I went to bed. And got some rest, which I really, really needed. I wasn't too worried about the dishes running off in the middle of the night, or someone breaking in and stealing them....or washing them for me (now that would be wonderful, though...)

I did neaten the mess up before bed...sounds kind of odd but you know what I mean...stack the dishes, wipe up some crumbs, little things that only took a few seconds and not much energy. 

So, I find myself facing the day, and the mess, early this morning after taking my daughter to a Girl Scout function for the day ("I'll do the dishes tomorrow, mom..."). I know that I want to get these things accomplished today:

• make granola
• make granola bars
• make buns for our picnic lunch Sunday
• move Little Mister's toys up into his new room
• catch up on laundry
• clean up the kitchen, including mopping the floor

A To-Do list is always a little like shopping for clothes for me...I take a big pile of garments into the dressing room, spend forever in there trying them on, then come out with one or two that I like. I know I will not, realistically, be able to get all that done today. So, I have to decide...do I clean the kitchen first? It's tempting, since it is usually easier to work on clean, uncluttered surfaces...but then I'll have to clean the kitchen twice. I don't like to do it once, why make myself do it twice? Do I do laundry first? Well, I could start some, but my stepson beat me to the washer and honestly, I feel a bit ADD today, I'm not sure I could remember to stay on top of it! 

My choices then, are, get the kitchen in Perfect Order and then start cooking....or do nothing. Yep, that's how my mind works...all or nothing, most of the time. If I can't do it perfectly, then I just don't do it. It's something I've struggled to overcome for years. So, today, I decided to do something completely different and allow myself to consider a third option: start cooking anyway, in spite of the less-than-perfect conditions. And to remember to give myself some grace...I'm a very real person, I don't have it all together, I can't actually be perfect.

It was a stretch...I had to keep stopping myself from switching over to Clean Up The Kitchen Perfectly First mode, but I was able to get some things going...now my kitchen looks really bad! See, you won't find this in an issue of Better Homes and Gardens, I'm sure...

...kind of looks like squirrels were cooking in there. Highly distractable squirrels who have had one too many cups of coffee...

But, I can take some comfort in knowing I will only be cleaning it once today. And if I can get myself away from this computer, I just might be able to get more than I thought accomplished. 

Beating perfectionism, one baby step at a time...and making some darned good granola in the process...that's my day today...what habits or tendencies do you have that hinder you in the kitchen? How are you overcoming them?

Friday Night is Pizza Night!

This household is a big, big fan of pizza. We eat pizza every week, typically on Fridays. That started when I was doing grocery shopping on Fridays and getting home late in the evening and I did not feel like looking at any more food, much less preparing it...so I'd grab some frozen pizzas for a quick meal.

Since I'm trying to accomplish two challenging tasks...preparing and serving healthy (or at least healthier) foods and spending the very least amount of money to do it, I started making my own pizzas all the time. I've been using a very fast, easy and delicious pizza crust recipe for years and it is very adaptable. I don't think I make it exactly the same from week to week, whatever sounds good while I'm making it is what I throw together.

It's just called "Pizza Crust" in my Amish School Fundraiser cookbook, but I have renamed it...

Instant Homemade Pizza Crust

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbs yeast
• 2 Tbs sugar
• 2 1/2 c flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 c warm water
• 2 Tbs oil

Mix together and let stand 5 minutes. Press into pan. Makes 1 pizza.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

One thing I don't care for in some of my Amish/Mennonite/Country cookbooks is that the people who submit the recipes apparently don't think about the fact that not everyone knows how to make things from scratch. Sometimes, people need detailed instructions. But honestly, if you followed this recipe exactly as I typed it, you'd be fine. I usually mix the dry ingredients together first, then add the water and oil, but I have made it by dumping everything together and mixing it up. It's very forgiving. Sometimes, I prebake the crust a little, if it's very thick. This is delicious as a deep dish pizza in a nicely seasoned cast iron skillet...the crust gets nicely crispy on the outside and soft and yummy on the inside.

One thing I want to do, to make it more 'instant', is make several batches of the dry ingredients and freeze them in freezer bags. Then all I have to do is grab a bag and add the oil and water. Easy just became ridiculously easy!

Now, how do I make this healthy/healthier? Let's start with healthier...

• Even if I use all white flour, I'm figuring that since I'm not putting a bunch of ingredients in it with names I can't pronounce, it's healthier. Not the healthiest, but still better.
  
• I've quit using vegetable oil and only use cold first-pressed olive oil, organic when I can find it reasonably priced.
• I make my own sauce
• I use sea salt
• I use minimally processed sugars when available such as sucanat (I've found it works best to dissolve chunky sugar, such as raw, demerara, etch. in the warm water first)
• During the summer I use organic veggies from our garden
  

And healthy would look like...

• All whole wheat flour or sprouted wheat flour
• Meats from pastured animals and no nitrates or other harmful chemicals
• Organic veggies from our garden
• Cheese made from organic, pastured, whole, fresh cow's milk

Well, I do the best I can with what I have. Just not buying food full of chemicals and overly processed ingredients is a step in the right direction. I try to sneak as much healthy into my dishes as I can get away with. A mom's gotta do what a mom's gotta do...

Stuffed Crust Pizza tonight...mmm good!


The Instant Homemade Pizza Crust, pressed into a large cast iron skillet and stuffed with sticks of mozzarella cheese, approximately 1/2" square.

Size comparison

All mozzarella sticks are covered by the dough, which is pressed tightly to seal.

This is how I make every pizza...1/2 usually has sausage and mushrooms, sometimes it's 'supreme', 1/4 cheese, 1/4 whatever I want on it, typically one or two toppings. Tonight I went with the supreme minus the fungus.

Finished pizza...next time I won't put as much dough around the edges to cover the cheese, almost too much!

Yummmy! The cheese in the crust was a nice touch!