Gluuteny Pizza Crust Mix

Gluuteny Pizza Crust Mix

For my birthday this year, a couple of the guys at work bought me some gluten free items.  One was Gluuteny's Pizza Crust mix.  I finally got a chance to try it.

First I must mention that not only is it gluten free, but it is dairy & egg free also.  The pizza crust I make from scratch usually has both.

The package says the only thing you need is 1 1/2 cups of lukewarm water.  Sounds simple.

The instructions say to beat all the ingredients together, roll it on a pizza pan, add the toppings and bake.  That's not usually how I make my crusts.  I like doughy crusts.  I don't like flat cardboard or flatbread crusts that gluten free pizzas are usually associated with.

To make a doughy crust, I usually proof my yeast, let my dough rise in a ball, punch it down, shape it in the pan, let it rise again, prebake the crust, then add toppings & bake again.  But okay, I'll follow the directions on the package, even though I'm not good at following directions.

The package contains a white powered mix & a package of Red Star Active Dry Yeast.  That's a good yeast.  I'd use that in my own pizza crust.  Pretty pleased there.

I was going to use a pizza stone to cook my pizza.  After mixing in the yeast package, adding 1 1/2 cups of warm water to the mix, it seemed to runny for the pizza stone.  I questioned the amount of water added.  It looked way too runny.  But okay, I'm following the directions.

I oiled my large cast iron pan with my favorite olive oil, Oilio.  I love supporting local companies & they are Pittsburgh based.  The Olive farm is in Greece, but they are based here in Pittsburgh.

I preheated the oven to 450 -a bit hotter than I would normally.

I slopped the dough into the oiled pan.  I spread it around.  At this point, it seemed to flow better than my homemade crust.  I added sauce, cheese, pepperoni, mushrooms, and more cheese.

When the oven was heated, I put the pie in the oven & hoped for the best.  I set the timer for 18 mins, waited & pulled out a surprizingly doughy pizza from the oven.

It was pretty darn good.  It was doughy.  It didn't fall apart.  It held its shape.  And it tasted delicious.  Thanks guys for the pizza!  If you get a chance, try Gluuteny's Pizza Crust mix!

Gluuteny Backery
1923 Murray Ave
Pittsburgh, PA 15217
www.gluuteny.com

Giovanni's Pizza

Giovanni's pizza on West Liberty Ave in Dormont is a little place. There are only a few tables so take out would probably be a better option on a weekend.  They make that easy with their online ordering and if you are in the right zip codes, they will even deliver.

Giovanni's has a candy counter inside.  They have some ice cream and it looks like they are set up to make milkshakes, although I didn't inquire about them.  They also make chocolate.  Most of their chocolate is gluten free, unless otherwise specified.  For instance, the chocolate covered pretzels and Oreos are obviously not gluten free, although I have had their gluten free chocolate covered pretzels before - they weren't anything to write home about.  I did enjoy the truffles I've had from here.

The gluten free menu has pasta, pizza and salads that all come with gluten free garlic bread. I ordered a pepperoni pizza.  The gluten free pizzas only come in one size, medium.

The waitress brought out dipping oil with spices on a plate and the gluten free garlic bread.  It looked more like a pita bread and tasted like flat bread with garlic powder and Parmesan cheese on it.  I was pretty sure this is what the pizza crust would be like.

When the pizza arrived, I was right.  The crust was very flat.  It wasn't crispy, but also not soggy.  I would usually describe this kind of pizza crust as a cardboard pizza crust, which is not necessarily a bad thing regardless of how it sounds.  

The sauce was a mild red pizza sauce.  I don't like pizzas with a lot of sauce so I was pleased with the amount on the pizza.  I do like a lot of cheese on my pizza.  I thought there could have been more cheese on it, but it certainly wasn't lacking. 

The pepperoni were small and crispy with a bit of grease sitting on the middle of each circle.  They were spaced relatively well, evenly dispersed around the pie.  Oi really enjoyed the taste of the the pepperoni.

3049 West Liberty Ave

https://www.eatgiovannis.com/