Garlic and Basil Pizza with Chipotle Shrimp and Feta Cheese

Hello all, I must apologize for failing to update my blog.  In the past few months, I’ve been consumed by rotations and exams.  To kick off my return to blogging, I made gluten free pizza with garlic, basil, chipotle shrimp, and feta cheese.

Pizza is an American necessity to me.  Not only is it full of cheesy goodness, but it also encompasses all the important food groups: carbs, veggies, meats, diary… and some fat (nutritionists may disagree with me on this). 

The best part about homemade pizza is the toppings.  This is where you can let your creativity run free.  In this recipe I use my favorite ingredients – fresh garlic and tomatoes with basil.  When preparing this dish, I like to bury the basil under the cheese so that it enriches the tomato sauce while it bakes.   The fresh garlic gives the pizza a rich aroma when it roasts in the oven.  I took the flavors an extra step by adding spicy chipotle shrimp with tangy feta cheese.  And to include a serving of veggies, I incorporated sautéed onions and green peppers for color and crunch.  The end result was delicious.

I did cheat on making the dough and used Bob’s Red Mill gluten free pizza mix along with a bread machine.  The bread machine is very handy; it provides the perfect temperature for the dough to rise.  Below is the recipe.  Bon appétit!

Gluten Free Pizza with Garlic, Basil, Chipotle Shrimp, and Feta Cheese Pizza

Pizza Dough: Any gluten free pizza dough mix or homemade dough.  I recommend you bake the dough for 7-10 min first, remove it from the oven, put sauce and toppings, and then place back into oven.

Toppings:

Onions and green peppers

- sauté these in olive oil, add black pepper and salt to taste

Chipotle shrimp:

- Obtain 0.5 lb of raw peeled shrimp.  

- Over shrimp with about 1 tbsp of ancho chile powder, 2 tsp of chipotle chile powder (can increase amount depending on spicy tolerance), 1 tbsp paprika, 2 tsp of garlic powder, 2 tsp of onion powder, 1 tsp ground mustard, 1 tsp oregano, salt and black pepper.  (These measurements are all estimates.  When I make this, I just shake a little of this and that.  The flavors go well together, so, as long as you keep the same relative proportions of the spices, the flavors will remain unchanged).

Fresh tomatoes

- Pat dry so they are not dripping with liquid.

Tomato sauce

- Canned tomato sauce.  Add some dried oregano and basil for extra flavor.

Shredded mozzarella cheese, fresh basil, chopped garlic, feta cheese

1) Assemble the dough into your desired pan.  Use cornmeal on the pan to create a non-stick surface for the dough.  

2) Bake the dough in a preheated 425 F deg oven for 7-10 min first without toppings.

3) Remove dough from oven and spread on the tomato sauce.  Lay some fresh fresh basil leaves on the sauce.  Cover with a thin layer of mozzarella cheese.  Layer on your toppings and then over with more mozzarella cheese.  Top with chopped garlic and crumbled feta cheese.

4) Place back in oven and bake till cheese is melted and crusted.