GF Pizza on the Pizza Stone

Gluten Free Bisquick

Making pizza has always been a big thing in our family. My husband got really good at making pizza when he was a kid because his parents would never order out so if he wanted pizza he had to make it. One year, when we were still dating, my husband made pizza for my mom for her birthday and she said it was the best she has ever had. Once married we got pizza pans and a pizza stone with a wooden paddle, so we could make pizza all the time. When we moved to a different apartment we would bring our biggest pizza pan with us to make sure it would fit in the oven of our potential new apartment. We even perfected whole wheat pizza crust that was hearty, yet fluffy. Then we discover I can't eat gluten anymore, so much for the whole wheat pizza. Since then it's been trial and error for pizza making. The trouble is I can't do yeast either, so that adds another spin on bread making. So here our my solutions to the pizza cravings that seem to frequent our household with a how-to-method at using the pizza stone with gf dough.

Pizza Dough

Our favorite pizza crust is made with Gluten Free Bisquick. It is yeast free and easy to make, plus the kid loves it. Just mix as directed on the box. I find 1 box makes 2 pizzas.

I've also made pizza dough with yeast using my bread machine. I find if you like more traditional pizza crust is to use Bob's Red Mill All Purpose gluten free flour mix. It's a 1:1 ratio, just add 1 tsp of xanthun gum for 2-3 cups of flour or 2 tsp of xanthan gum for 4 cups of flour, depending on your recipe. I also find that you have to use more liquid when doing the All Purpose flour method, maybe by 1/4-1/3 cup. Add a bit at a time till it's sticky, but not too wet and forms a ball.

The Stone

Using the stone for pizza before going gluten free was always a must, but gf dough is wet and not as easy to use straight on the stone it self. So there is the way we use the stone when we make pizza and it works for both pizza dough recipes as listed above.

1. Preheat oven either to 400 degrees for the All Purpose dough or 425 for the GF Bisquick dough. Have the stone in the oven during preheating. 
2. Tear off a piece of parchment paper that is larger then your stone by a few inches all around.
3. Lay the parchment paper on either the wooden paddle that comes with your stone or on the bottom of a cookie sheet.
4. Spread the dough onto the parchment paper. You might need to wet your fingers or a spatula to spread out the dough. Don't worry if it's not round, you can make any shape you want. The dough should be 1/4 or 1/3 of an inch thick, depending on how you like your crust. For the yeast dough, poke holds with a fork all over the crust. If doing the Bisquick dough, you don't need to do this step.
5. Open the oven and pull out the oven rack and slid the parchment paper with the dough onto the stone. Center the parchment and the dough over the stone and close the oven door. 
6. Bake the dough for 15-20 minutes till golden brown. 
7. Remove the baked dough and parchment (always keep them together) using the paddle or the cookie sheet. Add your toppings and return to the oven for 10-15 more minutes or till the cheese is melted. 

Pre-baking your  dough before adding your toppings is a must. Gf dough gets too wet with the sauce and toppings already on the dough, the center will never get cooked. The stone is a great tool for making pizza, because it helps the crust get nice and even colored and crisp, but not too crisp.