July 10, 2025

French Bread Pizza (w/ pizza mix)

French Bread Pizza

Serves: Makes 2 loaves | Prep Time: 120 min | Cook Time: 35-40 min

Ingredients

A 1lb Package of Better Batter GF Pizza Crust Mix (3 ¼ cups, 454g)
1½ cups (354ml/340g) to 13/4 cup 400g warm water
- add 1 Tbsp warm water (110 to 105°) at a time, as needed
1 Package (2 ¼ tsp, 7g) of Instant Yeast (included in 1lb Bags)

Instructions

Mix the dough. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine water & yeast. Let mixture stand for 5 minutes.

Create the Sponge. Add half the pizza mix and a pinch of salt. Beat on high speed for 4 minutes until it resembles a very thick batter. Let rise for 30 minutes to 1 hour, until fluffy and nearly doubled.

Finish Mixing. Add the remaining flour mix. Beat again on high speed for 4 minutes until it forms a bread dough. You can shape and knead like regular bread

Shaping. Preheat your oven to 475°F. Put the dough onto a lightly gf floured board or counter (you can use tapioca starch or potato starch if desired). Divide the dough into 2 equal portions and shape each one into a long loaf (about 6 inches in length) with pointed ends.

Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper and sprinkle with corn meal. Place loaves 3" apart. Sprinkle each loaf with gf flour. Score 4 diagonal slashes down each baguette with a sharp knife.

Rise. Cover with oiled plastic wrap or damp dish towel. Allow to rise in warm location until almost doubled (about 30 to 35 minutes). Time to proof will depend on your kitchen (may take 90+ minutes).

Optional: While the loaves are proofing, place an additional baking steel or pizza stone on the bottom rack and heat for 45 minutes. This will be used for adding ice cubes to create steam in your oven. The steam will allow the crust to be pliable and stretchy during baking. Without the steam, your dough will cook too quickly on the exterior and it will not rise sufficiently.

Baking. Once the oven and the optional steel stone are heated, place the loaves (on their baking sheet) on the middle rack of the preheated oven. Immediately add a few ice cubes into the bottom metal baking sheet/pan. Close oven door.

Reduce and Bake. After 5 minutes add a few more ice cubes. Reduce the oven temperature to 375F and bake for an additional 30-35 minutes. The loaves are done when they reach an internal temp of 210°F.

Remove the loaves from the oven. Transfer loaves to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely before cutting. Enjoy!