[Photo: Debby Gans Photography]

Yum, gluten-free polenta pizza! For those that can't eat wheat, pizza doesn't have to be out of the picture. Ivy Larson of Hot And Healthy Living has created a version in which polenta serves as the pizza "crust" topped with black beans, veggies, mozzarella, and cilantro. 

Ivy Says: I’m amazed lately at how many requests I get on my HotandHealthyLiving.com website for gluten-free recipes.  I personally don’t have a problem with eating gluten (at least not that I know of!) but I actually do make an effort not to eat the same foods over and over again. Since gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley, rye, spelt, kamut and oats it’s become a staple of the modern American diet, especially if you eat a lot of baked goods. Unless you make a special effort to avoid or eliminate gluten, you likely consume a lot of it in your daily diet. Even if you don’t have gluten sensitivity it can’t hurt to mix things up a bit and add variety to your diet.

I personally make an effort not to consume more than one serving of a gluten-containing food a day. But, as the mother of a super active, very hungry 9-year old son (who often has practice for two different sports on the same days!) my go-to weeknight family dinners seem to include a lot of wheat. More often than not I find myself making my homespun whole-wheat pizza or falling back on one of my numerous standby sprouted whole grain pasta recipes. Even though the whole-wheat I serve is healthy, it still contains gluten. 

My gluten-free pizza recipe swaps the conventional gluten-containing wheat crust for hearty polenta---deep dish style. It’s a fun alternative to traditional pizza and a fabulous family-friendly meal that’s also super quick and easy to make. I decided to give my gluten-free pizza a Tex-Mex twist by swapping mildly spicy, super yummy smoky chipotle hummus for the usual marinara.

Gluten Free Tex-Mex Polenta Pizza

Serves 4 

2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil, divided (plus more for greasing pan) 

2 cups water 

1 cup cornmeal (polenta) 

1/2 teaspoon unrefined sea salt, plus more to taste 

1/4 teaspoon black pepper 

1 (15.5-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained 

1 chipotle pepper (buy chipotle peppers in a can) 

2 cups shredded carrots (to save time, buy bagged pre-shredded carrots) 

Cumin, to taste 

6 ounces shredded rotisserie chicken 

1 cup shredded, low-fat organic mozzarella cheese 

1 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and lightly coat an 81⁄2-inch springform pan with extra virgin olive oil.

In a medium saucepan, bring water to a boil. Whisking constantly, slowly add the cornmeal and 1 tablespoon oil. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring, until the polenta starts to pull away from the sides of the pan, 4–5 minutes. Stir in salt and pepper. Remove from heat.

Spread the polenta over the bottom of the prepared pan, using  a spoon to form a raised edge. Set aside for 10 minutes to set.

Meanwhile, in a food processor or blender, purée the black beans, remaining  oil, and chipotle pepper until mixture is smooth and creamy. Using the back of  a spoon, spread the chipotle–black bean hummus on top of the polenta. Layer the  shredded carrots on top. Season carrots with cumin to taste. Scatter the chicken on  top of the carrots and sprinkle the mozzarella on top of the chicken.

Bake polenta pizza for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle the  chopped cilantro on top. Return polenta pizza to the oven and bake for an additional  5 minutes. Allow polenta pizza to cool for 10 minutes before removing from the springform pan. Cut into wedges and serve warm.

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