Quick Pizza Bianca (GERD-Friendly)

The Magic of Simplicity: Quick White Pizza in Under an Hour

As a born and bred Italian, pizza is my lifeline. It’s the ultimate comfort food, a symphony of flavours on a fluffy dough canvas. But let’s be honest, who always has hours to spare for a traditional slow-rise dough? Not me!

Enter the Quick Pizza: your weeknight saviour, ready in under an hour. This recipe embraces a clever shortcut – swapping the yeast for baking powder. Yes, you read that right! No more waiting around for the dough to rise. This one goes straight from mixing bowl to baking sheet, transforming into a delicious reality in record time.

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Speed vs. Tradition: A Fair Trade-Off?

Of course, there are trade-offs. The quick approach sacrifices that signature yeasty tang and airy texture. It’s not going to be the lovely proof dough you’re used to. Like this delicious super fluffy crust 😋

But fear not, flavour stays at the forefront! This pizza delivers a satisfying bite, perfect for those evenings when only hot, cheesy comfort food will do. The crust is crunchy and airy. The moisture from the zucchini and mushroom makes the centre soft and chewy, and the goat cheese gives us that gooey delicious moment so characteristic of traditional Pizzas. So If you’re like me, this Quick White Pizza recipe is the perfect simple comfort meal that fits your busy schedule!

More Than Just Convenience: A GERD-Friendly Option

Why not just buy it ready you may ask?

This recipe holds a special place in my heart for another reason. Many, myself included battle with gut sensitivities, in my case GERD. Store-bought pizzas can be a minefield of ingredients that trigger discomfort. Here, we take control. We craft a pizza that caters to our specific needs, using wholesome safe ingredients that won’t wreak havoc on our digestive systems.

Zucchini, Mushrooms and Goat Cheese: GERD-friendly options.

Zucchini:

Low-Acid: Zucchini is a naturally low-acid vegetable, making it a safe option for those managing GERD. Unlike tomatoes or citrus fruits, it won’t trigger heartburn or indigestion.
Alkaline Effect: While zucchini itself is slightly acidic before digestion, once broken down by the body, it has a mildly alkaline effect. This can help neutralize stomach acid and provide some relief from GERD symptoms.
Easy to Digest: Zucchini is a soft and easily digestible vegetable. This puts less strain on the digestive system, which can be beneficial for people with GERD.

Mushrooms:

Low-Fat: Mushrooms are very low in fat, which is a plus for GERD sufferers. Fatty foods can relax the lower oesophagal sphincter (LES), the muscular valve that prevents stomach acid from refluxing into the oesophagus.
High in Fiber: Mushrooms are a good source of dietary fibre. Fibre helps food move smoothly through the digestive system, reducing bloating and discomfort that can be associated with GERD.
Anti-inflammatory: Some studies suggest that mushrooms may have anti-inflammatory properties. Inflammation can worsen GERD symptoms, so these properties may be helpful.

Goat Cheese:

Lower Lactose Content: Compared to cow’s milk cheese, goat cheese contains less lactose, a sugar that can be difficult to digest for some people. This can be beneficial for those with lactose intolerance, a condition that can worsen GERD symptoms.
Easier to Digest: Goat cheese is generally considered easier to digest than cow’s milk cheese due to its smaller fat globules and different protein structure. This can help reduce stomach upset in people with GERD.

Sources:
health.harvard.edu, Healthline.com, Wikipedia.org

Keep in mind that everyone’s intolerances and conditions are different so if any of the ingredients used in this recipe don’t agree with you, swap them out with other delicious alternatives that are more suited for you.

Always consult with a healthcare professional for personalized dietary advice to manage GERD.

Embrace the White Canvas: A Vegetarian Delight

This specific recipe focuses on a whole-wheat Pizza Bianca, a “white pizza” that skips the traditional tomato sauce base. Topped with creamy goat cheese, airy zucchini, and earthy mushrooms, it’s a symphony of textures and flavours. But feel free to unleash your inner pizzaiolo! This dough is your canvas – add your favourite toppings to create your perfect gut-friendly masterpiece.

So, ditch the delivery menus and embrace the magic of simplicity. This Quick White Pizza is your answer to busy weeknights and a celebration of homemade goodness.

Cheeky Swaps

Sauce: We avoid tomato purees or “Passata” because it can trigger spells of painful acid reflux but a great alternative to a Pizza Bianca is adding Squash or Pumpkin Puree (the unsweetened one). Spread it over the stretched dough as you would do with tomato pure, and top it with cheese and mushrooms. It’s a delight!
Cheese: There are many delicious types of cheese out there but not all are GERD-friendly so here are a couple of options that you can safely use if you are gut-challenged!
Goat cheese, Sheep milk cheese, Lactofree cheese, Feta cheese, Swiss cheese.
Vegan: Instead of the cheese, try crumbled smoked tofu, tempeh or seitan depending on your taste.
Meat and Fish: If you’re looking for a meaty topping on your Quick Pizza, Pepperoni, shredded chicken or Prosciutto cotto (ham) are all good choices. As for the fish, you cannot go wrong with tuna or a nice “Frutti di Mare” – calamari, prawns and molluscs.

Quick Pizza Bianca

Bean

Quick and easy, this Pizza Bianca is a delicious GERD-friendly meal that fits your busy schedule!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 10

Total Time 40

Course Dinner, Lunch, Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Servings 4 Pizza

Equipment

Oven
Rolling Pin
Medium mixing bowl
Baking paper
2 Oven trays

Ingredients

Pizza dough

500 gr Wholewheat flour
2 glasses Warm water
3 tsp Baking powder
pinch Salt Or as much or little as you wish
splash Extra virgin olive oil or any other vegetable oil you like

Toppings

Goat cheese
Zucchini
Mushroom mix
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt
Dry oregano
Fresh basil optional

Instructions

First of all, preheat your oven to 200℃ or 390℉ in fan mode
Then mix the dry ingredients – flour, salt and baking powder – in your bowl, then add the drizzle of oil and mix again to incorporate it. Slowly add the water and with a fork start gently combining the dough. The best way to do this is to repetitively give it a good swirl from the bottom up, making sure that you're picking up all the flour that might stick to the bottom of your bowl.
Note: there are many types of wholewheat flour which can require different quantities of water so use more or less water depending on the consistency of your dough.
Once the dough reaches a springy and compact consistency, you're ready for a little workout! Lightly flour the surface of your worktop, tip the dough out of its mixing bowl onto the worktop and start kneading. The idea is to incorporate as much air as possible into the dough so when it cooks we have a crunchy crust and a soft and airy centre. The way my mom taught me is to energetically stretch the dough, fold it over – like a little taco, turn it upside down and repeat, occasionally resetting it into a ball shape. Aim to create as many folds and layers as you can. Now, this can be a fun therapeutic time for yourself, so move your body, dance, sing and even punch or slap the dough if you need to let out some frustrations – it all helps to achieve the final product!
Do this for about 10 minutes and the dough is ready. Make sure not to add too much flour in the process to avoid hardening the dough.
The good thing about using bicarbonate of soda instead of the normal beer or bread yeast is that we don't need to wait for it to proof 🙂
Cut 4 squares of baking paper and lay them on your working top. Take your freshly made dough, divide it into 4 equal pieces and stretch each part out with your rolling pin on their respective baking paper. We're looking for an even-thin layer, about 5 mm in thickness.
You can stretch the dough out directly on your worktop if your baking paper is slipping, just be careful that it might stick to the surface so work with a bit of flour or a bit of oil.
Note: it doesn't matter if your pizzas are not perfect circles, mines always come out as misshaped little monsters and that's ok!
If you have a small oven as I do, I'd suggest you prepare 2 pizzas at a time. Transfer the 2 pizzas onto the respective trays and add your toppings.
Since we want to make this a GERD/GORD-free pizza we're going to make a "Pizza Bianca" with goat cheese, zucchini and mushrooms but you can add any ingredient you like, the beauty of pizza is that it's a simple base for you to fill with delicious toppings!
Crumble/slice the goat cheese directly on the dough, cut thin slices of the mushrooms and the zucchini and evenly distribute them on top of the cheese. Make sure not to overload the pizza as it might not cook as nicely if weight is added to it. Drizzle the oil, add a pinch of salt and a couple of teaspoons of dry oregano.
Bake your first batch of pizzas for 10 minutes. At the 5-minute mark switch the pizzas – the one at the bottom comes at the top and vice versa to make sure they're baking evenly. Once the crust is formed and browning and the cheese is all melted and bubbly your pizzas are ready 🙂 add a couple of leaves of fresh basil for a final touch. Repeat with the 2 other pizzas.
Eat while hot right out of the oven for the best taste or store in the fridge overnight and eat cold for breakfast!