The Signature Pumpkin Base Pizza
In the midst of my health crisis, I literally has a meltdown missing all the foods that I now “couldn’t eat” .
I loved pizza, more than anything! And yet every pizza base either tasted like cardboard or had a cauliflower crust which made my stomach hurt. So Tom and I went on a mission to find the perfect base and after many trials we created the pumpkin pizza crust. It’s now a staple at home and my absolute favourite. In fact, I now actually prefer it to normal pizza (big call)!
I truly believe that striving for health shouldn’t mean that we have to give up all the things we love, which is why why I’ve dedicated this platform to making yummy meals that anyone on a health journey can create and enjoy without feeling cheated out of the meals that they miss.
The Signature Pumpkin Base Pizza
(Vegan and Vegetarian)
INGREDIENTS
1 cup of mashed roasted pumpkin
2 cups of white rice flour
1 tablespoon of flax or chia seed with 3 tablespoons of water
1 tablespoon of Tapioca
Important note - We found through all of our testing that there is a huge variation in rice flours. Glutinous rice flour will make your dough more of sweet and chewy in texture, whereas regular rice flour will make the dough harder with more of a biscuit texture.
For best results we recommend either half of each or if using regular non-glutinous flour, increase to 1/3 cup tapioca and 1 cup rice flour as the starch content will produce the same delicious texture. It may take you a couple goes to get it right!
RECIPE
Chop pumpkin into medium chunks drizzled with your oil of choice (we use olive oil) and roast on a medium heat until soft not charred.
Take the pumpkin out the oven and add into a large mixing bowl.
Mash the pumpkin in the mixing bowl until smooth, put aside.
Add flax or chia to 3 tablespoons of water until it becomes a gel like consistency.
In a separate bowl add 1 cup of smooth pumpkin, chia/flax and a quarter cup of the rice flour, use a spoon to combine ingredients.
Keeping adding rice flour slowly while combining the two ingredients.
When the dough is less sticky (higher ratio of rice to pumpkin) knead with your hands and add the tapioca.
We usually end up using just under 2 cups of rice flour but it’s important to judge the dough yourself as flours vary. if it’s cracking and separating you put too much rice flour in, add slowly.
Pop it on the bench and roll it out around a 2cm’s thick or to your liking, we like to make it a little thicker on the edge for that “pizza crust” experience.
Line the pizza dough with olive oil at 180 degrees until the dough turns golden and firm.
Take the dough out the oven, it should be golden and firm not brown.
Top with your favourite pizza ingredients and pop it back into the oven for 5-10minutes or until toppings are cooked and the crust turns golden brown. I personally love Tomato paste, basil, roasted pumpkin seeds, fresh tomatoes, sliced pan-fried sardines and goats cheese but Tom on the other hand just does a full “meat lovers” style pizza, it’s up to you! I find the pumpkin base goes beautifully with pesto, nuts, and salty ingredients because of its sweet nature.
CANDIDA FRIENDLY
Reduce portion to a quarter of pizza
LOW-FODMAP FRIENDLY
While this is FODMAP-friendly, jury is out on pumpkin with small amounts advised because of its starch content.
With love,
