Thursday, July 21, 2011

Gluten-free pizza dough!!

I am in love with The Pioneer Woman!! We are talking food crush. (There I said it!) For those of you who don't know who on Earth I am referring to, go check out her blog. She is so amazing, her recipes rock, she is evening getting her own cooking show on The Food Network in August! *swoon*

Anyway. I got her cookbook a while back. It's really good!! And although she is not GF, several of her recipes naturally are. That perked my interest! Then I decided to venture off and try a few of her recipes that are NOT gluten-free and use my Better Batter flour in place of the glutenous flour the recipes call for. Here is what I have made (Don't worry, the list is not long):
  • Jalapeno Poppers (Her recipe doesn't call for stuffing them with cheese, battering them up with a flour mixture and frying them....... instead....... you stuff those yummy green jalapenos with cheese, wrap them in some bacon (*tail wagging* Did someone say bacon?!?), and bake them in the oven low and slow. So unbelievably evil and yummy!) (P.S. Wear gloves when taking those darn seeds out of the jalapenos. And if you're stubborn like I was and don't wear gloves, prepare yourself not to touch anywhere near your eyes even after washing your hands a few times... because it burns... A LOT! Just saying!)
  • Cinnamon Rolls (Turned out very tasty, but for some reason they didn't rise so I need to work on that part this year at Christmas time when I make them again!)
  • Meatloaf (HOLY COW! I adore the meatloaf recipe in this cookbook! It is so much better than what I grew up on... SORRY MOM!! I just substitute her white bread for my Udi's white bread and all is well with the world of meatloaf. I haven't even tried it with bacon (yet!!) and it is still sooooooo good!)
  • Last, but not least....
The pizza dough I made two nights ago! She has a recipe that calls for just a small handful of basic ingredients that I guarantee you have on hand right now if you cook at all. I decided to give it a go and make a batch of it. (A batch of pizza dough from her recipe makes enough dough for two good-size pizzas). The first night, I did some wacky experimenting and put beans and cheese inside some dough and folder it over like a calzone. This was my attempt of what I was calling "Mexican Calzones". My husband liked it. It reminded him of something like an empanada, but just a different crunchy outside. He said I could make those again and he would definitely eat. This is a HUGE score for me because he is super picky and rarely eats anything I make. In the future, I will try the recipe for calzones in PW's cookbook, and make "Mexican Calzones" for Stephen.

The next day I made pizza for Konnor and me. It was another HIT for us both! All in all, this successful pizza crust has made me even more of a true believer that The Pioneer Woman is amazing!

Thanks for listening! Go check out her website or buy her cookbook. I doubt you will feel bad for doing either choice or both! :)