Half Carb Pizza Crust - 4

I know a LOT of people hate the thought of permanently giving up normal pizza. I did too until I came up with the idea to cut the carbs in half. While it’s still not a perfect solution, it let’s me make us pizza with a whole lot less guilt. Hmmm. That’s a lie. There is no guilt ;)

I consider this to be a low carb recipe no matter what anyone says. It’s not gluten-free but it is vegan. It’s labeled as phase 4 because of the wheat in it. When we want a more traditional crust it’s the only one I make anymore. We’ve been eating this crust for 5 or 6 years now and we still love it.

This recipe evolved from my deep dish crust recipe since our tastes in crust style have changed over the years. Who knew cutting out or cutting back on the wheat products could have this kind of effect. We now prefer thin crusts. The original recipe made two, 9 inch, deep dish style pizza crusts. We made pizza in a cake pan back then.

My original recipe had roughly 368 ncs in the flour alone. So for 2 deep dish personal pizzas that was 184 ncs per pizza without including any toppings at all. Cut into 4 pieces that meant a minimum of 46 ncs per piece. That is why LC people don’t eat the crusts. With this new recipe the combined flours are only 198 ncs. If you made those same 2 pan pizzas and cut them in 4 pieces you now have a minimum of 24 ncs per piece. While that is still quite a few carbs this is no longer a deep dish pizza crust. If you make four 12 inch thin pizza crusts from it you are starting with only 49 ncs per pizza. Cut into 8 slices that makes it 6 ncs per slice for the crust. THAT number I can work into my meal plans for the day.

Since I fixed it, this recipe now makes 3 thin pizza crusts, 1 large and 2 small, and I have actual pizza pans. I have one that’s 16 inches and two that are 12 inches. The 12 inch is the same size as your typical frozen pizza. I believe the pizza shops now call that a large even though it’s not. In my opinion pizza comes in 4 sizes: personal , small , large and wagon wheel . You could make 4 smalls out of this recipe but I only have the 3 pans so I’ve never tested this theory. If you prefer a thicker crust it works well for that also but you won’t get the same amount of pizzas out of it that I do and the carb counts go up.

Half Carb Pizza Crust – 4

1 pkg active dry yeast < I use Fleischmann’s >

a pinch of sugar < 1/2 – 1 tsp >

1 C warm water < 105 – 110 F >

1 1/2 C almond flour

1 1/2 C flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 C flour

olive oil

The first thing you need to do is dump your warm water in a large mixing bowl and stir in the sugar until it is disolved. I place a pot holder under my bowl so the water doesn’t cool too quickly. Once the sugar is disolved pour in the packet of yeast and give it a stir with a fork. Now walk away so the yeast can proof for 5 – 10 minutes. You’ll know it’s ready when there is a nice layer of yeast colored bubbles/foam on the top of the water.

Once the yeast has proofed add in the almond flour. A quick stir with your fork should mix it right up. Now dump in the 1 1/2 C of regular flour and the salt. Mix it all together with your fork to form your pizza dough. Cover the bowl and let the dough rest for 10 minutes.

Using the last 1/2 C of flour, lightly flour your work surface and turn out the dough. Knead the remaining flour into the dough until it is all absorbed and no longer sticky. This dough will not be “smooth and elastic” like a bread dough. Cover the dough and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk. If you place the dough into a clean bowl to rise it be sure to coat the bowl with a very thin layer of olive oil so it doesn’t stick badly.

After the dough has doubled, coat your hand lightly with olive oil, punch it down and knead for 2 – 3 mintues. Use the dough immediately. For the 3 pans I use, I cut the dough roughly in half, then cut the smaller piece in half again. The large chunk of dough is for the 16 inch pan and the smaller pieces are for the 12 inch pans.

Lightly coat your pans with olive oil before plopping a dough chunk down and begin gently working the dough. It will tear easily so be careful. I use the heel of my hands rather than my fingers, it tears less that way. Tears are easily pinched closed so it’s not a real issue. It takes me about half an hour to press out the three crusts.

Once your pizza crusts are ready top them however you like and bake them in a 400F oven until the crust is evenly browned. Personally I bake mine until the cheese is lightly browned which takes an extra 2 or 3 minutes.

Serve and enjoy. I’ll be sharing my recipe for our favorite pizza soon.

Have a happy!
TT