THE TASTY GLUTEN-FREE WORLD

from Maury County Living September/October 2021 Issue

BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT — MOCKINGBIRD RESTAURANT

THE TASTY GLUTEN-FREE WORLD Margherita Pizza By Chrissy Jensen

If you are gluten-free, or love someone who is, you need to check this out immediately!

It’s a common rule in the gluten-free world that gluten-free bread is dry, crumbly, and has the mouthfeel reminiscent of sandy cardboard. Pizza crust is notoriously cracker-thin and never EVER gives you that photo-worthy cheese-pull slice like all your friends are eating. Yes, “pizza envy” is a real thing ... fine, we admit it.

The Dotted Lime has changed ALL of this and made gluten-free yummy! Run by a pair of chefs, Paul and Chrissy Jensen, this restaurant has flipped the script on gluten-free food and turned it into something that is not just “good for gluten-free”, but delicious up against any other product of its kind! That’s truly a heroic feat! To prove the point gluten-free can taste delicious ... turn the page for a scrumptious New York Style pizza recipe using The Dotted Lime’s gluten-free bake-at-home mixes that will satisfy even that hard to please pizza connoisseur. Buon appetito!

GLUTEN-FREE Margherita Pizza INGREDIENTS

1 bag Super Awesome Flour (All-Purpose, gum-free blend)

1 bag Simply Amazing Bread Mix

2 eggs (can substitute flax or chia egg if allergic)

2 cups milk or water Pizza toppings of your choosing

We’ve used high quality olive oil, fresh garlic, local in-season tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and fresh basil, along with some ground Himalayan Sea salt.

INSTRUCTIONS

Place the entire bag of bread mix into a stand mixer. Add 2 eggs and 2 cups of water (this is a modification of what is on the back of the bag). Mix until it’s the consistency of very smooth mashed potatoes — this should take about a minute on medium speed. Remove the bread dough from the mixer bowl onto a floured surface. Toss some flour over the dough then knead the dough into a ball. Making sure the table is well-floured, smooth the ball out into a flattened disc shape and begin to roll/press it into a larger round pizza crust. If you have a silicone baking mat you can do this directly onto the mat or on your baking pan, otherwise be prepared to move the crust onto a baking pan.

You could use a cake lifter or large grill spatula to help move it if needed. We preferred the results when baking it on a perforated sheet pan or parchment slid onto a hot baking stone if you have one of those. If not, be sure to use some sprayed/oiled parchment paper or a silicone mat as it does tend to get stuck.

Once your dough is in the correct shape, let it rise for about 10-15 minutes and then put it into a 400-degree oven for 5 minutes to par-bake the crust. This is to help eliminate soggy bottoms … which we all know is a pizza fate worse than death.

After the pizza is par-baked, it’s time to add toppings! We love a good margherita pizza, but you can add whatever you like — even pineapple! We don’t judge (not too much anyway). Bake your pizza on a high setting (we like 450 convection for 15 minutes, but your oven may vary), checking for doneness after the first 10 minutes. Once your pizza looks like you want it to look — get it out of the oven, slide onto a cutting board and let it rest for a moment before slicing and eating! (You don’t have to wait a moment … but hot melted cheese on the roof of your mouth will be your own fault if you do not heed our expert advice.) Enjoy! n

CHEF CHRISSY JENSEN is the pastry chef (Magical Baker Fairy) for the Dotted Lime and brings gluten-free food to life. The bakery is 100% gluten-free and full of flavors and smells while cinnamon rolls, cakes, muffins, cookies, and more are being made for everyone to devour. All the mixes are all made in their completely gluten-free, peanut-free, and tree-nut free facility. Local pickup available as well at Lime & Loaf, The Dotted Lime, and north of town at Savory Spice in Franklin or Nashville. Order online at: the-dotted-lime.myshopify.com.