Butternut Squash Pizza (Gluten Free)

One of our favorite pizza toppings is the humble banana pepper. They are packed full of tart and pungent flavors (and yes, loaded with sodium). For me tomatoes and spinach are another favorite topping, but Nick isn't a fan of whole tomatoes on pizza, so we typically just stick with spinach. On this particular day, we added pureed butternut squash too, because, why not?! What's your favorite pizza topping?

Whole Grain Butternut Squash Pizza

Ingredients
3 cups brown rice flour
1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
2 T extra virgin olive oil
1 t oil (for your fingers when spreading the dough)
1 t salt
1.5 T sugar
1 cup warm water

~ 1 cup pureed butternut squash
~ 1 cup pizza sauce
~ 2 cups cheese of your choice

(I added 1 t. cinnamon, 1 t. basil, and 1/4 t. cayenne to my sauce. Then I added some banana peppers and spinach as pizza toppings. For the cheese I used cheddar and freshly grated parmesan.)

Possible Modifications

• Use whole wheat flour, or all purpose flour (less nutritious if you use the latter)
• Use canola oil or just regular olive oil instead of EVOO
  

Directions

1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees

2) Combine and mix the flour, salt, sugar, and the yeast in a medium sized bowl. Next, add the EVOO and water.

3) Coat your hands with some oil, or non-stick spray. Use your hands to spread the dough evenly on a large pizza pan, the larger the better (you want the crust to be nice and thin).

4) Evenly coat the dough with pizza sauce and pureed butternut squash. Add toppings and spices as desired. Cook for 45-50 minutes minutes (depending on your oven and how crispy you like your pizza!)

ENJOY!

The great thing about brown rice flour is that it's 100% whole grain, yet it mimics white flour in terms of texture (so it doesn't get hard and chewy like whole wheat flour can).

Nutrition Facts
(1/12 of pizza)

Look, it's a "good source" of fiber! Anything with 10% of the Daily Value, or more, is considered a good source of a certain nutrient. This is also an "excellent source" of vitamin A. Anything with 20% of the Daily Value, or more, is considered an excellent source of a certain nutrient. We can thank the butternut squash and the spinach for that.


And now for this week's news;

Can Supplements Increase a Women's Chances of Dying?
(I hate to say "I told you so", but "I told you so!". Countless times I have told friends and family that taking too many supplements, especially certain minerals like Zinc and vitamins like Folic Acid, can be dangerous. You can get too much of a good thing, and there is a reason we have Upper Limits).


Vitamin E Pills May Raise, Not Lower, Prostate Risk
(I hate to say "I told you so" but for years I've been telling people to stay away from antioxidant supplements. The best place to get vitamin E, and any antioxidant, is from food. It's safe, and effective).

Artists Cereal Box Stunt Makes a Real Point About Sugary Cereals

(This is pretty funny, I have to say. However, I do think cereal companies are doing a better job at reducing sugar. In fact, many of the cereals in this photo have 12 grams of less sugar, per serving, which isn't bad in my opinion. The real problem, in my opinion, is the cereal's lack of whole grains, fiber, and protein, all three important components in breakfast).

QUESTION: What's your favorite pizza topping? On another note, have you ever taken an antioxidant in the form of a pill? After reading the articles above, would you still? I think the only one I would say might possibly be more safe is vitamin C.

Gluten Free Power Cookies

I'm not gluten free, but I am wheat-free and therefore love to experiment with gluten free baking. I typically use oat bran flour or brown rice flour in place of wheat flour, which seems to work well for me when I make cookies, muffins, and pizza, but a couple weeks ago I wanted to try making a flour "blend" with xanthan gum as the replacement for gluten. Xanthan gum is meant to replace the gluten and therefore it helps add the structure, elasticity, and viscosity back into gluten free products or baked goods. For my first truly gluten-free baking experiment I used the following gluten free flour combination;

Brown Rice Flour (a whole grain!)

Tapioca Flour (gives a nice chewy texture)

Xanthan gum

When using this blend, for every cup of wheat flour called for in the original recipe you instead use 1/2 cup of brown rice flour, 1/2 cup of tapioca flour, and 1 tsp. xanthan gum.

Gluten Free Power Cookies

(Makes 25)

1 cup brown rice flour

1 cup tapioca flour

2 tsp. xanthan gum

1/2 cup protein powder

1 tsp. baking powder

3/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 cup honey

1/3 cup canola oil

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 egg

1 egg white

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2. Combine first seven ingredients in a medium bowl.

3. In a separate bowl whisk together honey, oil, vanilla, and eggs.

4. Stir flour mixture into wet ingredients; fold in cranberries, nuts, and chocolate chips.

5. Coat a baking pan with cooking spray and drop cookie mixture (in rounded spoonfuls) onto pan.

6. Bake for 11-13 minutes, or until lightly browned on the edges.

7. Transfer to a plate of a cool rack so they do not continue cooking. ENJOY!

Nutrition Facts
(for 1 cookie)


Ok, so the cookies received a D+ grade, but, what do you expect? It's a cookie! I think the 5.5 grams of protein is pretty impressive, and the mere 150 calories...not so bad.


And they are pretty darn delicious...


More Wheat-Free/Gluten Free Recipes

Sweet Potato Gnocchi

Peanut Butter Pumpkin Bread

Oat Bran Pizza

Today's Dietitian posted this great article about the use of nut flours in gluten free baking. Have you ever tried almond, hazelnut, or walnut flours in our baking?? I haven't, but really want to start experimenting soon.

QUESTION: Do you have a gluten free flour combination that you love? I need some ideas for my monthly gluten free support group meetings!