What To Know Before Using Almond Flour In Pizza Crust

Almond flour may sound like an easy addition to toss into the dough to make pizza crust, but your dreams of a fluffy, spongy pizza may not come true. Almond flour requires a bit more attention than white or all-purpose flours. Unlike other more conventional flours, almond flour doesn't contain gluten, the element responsible for the texture you most likely associate with chewy pizza dough. If you were to make a pizza crust using only almond flour, the texture would be more cracker-like and less pillowy to chew. 

So, unless you have a graham cracker kind of texture in mind for tonight's pizza, you'll need to take a different approach if you want to work almond flour into your pizza dough. Keep in mind almond meal and almond flour are two different products, so don't mix them up. If you're wanting to create a lighter pizza base to bite into, almond flour is the way to go. However, you'll also need to include ingredients that can help the dough rise and deliver a lighter, chewier base that you can adorn with the pizza toppings of your choosing. 

You won't need yeast or other raising agents for this recipe since without gluten, your almond flour crust will remain mostly flat. However, adding fresh baking powder, salt, and eggs to measured portions of almond flour can help you build a pizza dough that is ready for the oven. Olive oil helps the ingredients bind together, and it is best to roll out the dough on a sheet of parchment paper to bake before pilling on sauces and diced toppings. After 15 minutes, the crust will turn golden brown, signaling the pizza base is ready for your choices of cheeses and toppings. The sturdier base can then be easily topped with ingredients, placed back into the oven for another 15 minutes, then removed to cool and serve.

Though pizza crust made with almond flour will be less fluffy, the crispy texture can still deliver a satisfying dish. For variations, try adding dried herbs like basil, oregano, and pepper to flavor the raw pizza dough, or turn a parbaked crispy almond pizza base into dessert by crowning the crust with sweet ingredients like sliced pieces of fruit, mascarpone, drizzles of balsamic vinegar and honey, and sprinkles of cinnamon and chopped nuts. Once you've mastered the use of almond flour in your kitchen, you'll find yourself slowly working it into other recipes too!