Soft Crust Cheesesteak Pizza

Are you tired of food now that Thanksgiving is over?  No?  I knew we had a lot in common!

When we were trapped in a boring hotel room in beautiful Colorado last year due to a broken down car, we watched a lot of Food Network to make for a less painful experience.  They did a show about Philly cheesesteak sandwiches.  Lenny claims they said a “Philly cheesesteak sandwich” has Cheez Whiz and everything else is a “cheesesteak sandwich”.  I have no recollection of that so I started looking on Wikipedia.  According to them, the original “steak sandwich” didn’t even have cheese.  Therefore, I feel like my version with cashew cheese or simply omitting the cheese -gasp!- is completely acceptable (thanks Wikipedia!)  However, if you are feeling particularly 80/20, I would totally approve of you covering this in a blanket of Cheez Whiz.  Just putting that out there.

Did you just try visualizing what a Cheez Whiz blanket would look like too?  Ewwwww

I got the idea for this recipe from a pizza that Lenny likes to order.  The restaurant makes legitimately safe gluten free pizzas but does not offer their philly cheesesteak pizza in gluten free so I’ve never been able to try it.  I figured I would put my favorite cheesesteak ingredients on my own pizza crust and see how it goes.  And now I know why Lenny orders that pizza every time we eat at that restaurant.

Side note:  Because I know you all were worried about my lack of scary movies lately, I have to tell you I watched a REALLY good one this weekend and my life feels back to normal.  I was going to watch 1408 until I saw the Lazarus Effect was on Netflix.  While I was watching it, I kept thinking it sounded familiar then I remembered the movie Flatliners!  Reminded me so much of that.  I can’t remember if I liked Flatliners or not but it makes me want to watch it again.

Soft Crust Cheesesteak Pizza

• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 30 mins
• Total Time: 50 mins
• Yield: one 10 inch pizza

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Ingredients

• 2 C tapioca starch
• 1 C almond flour, plus extra for dusting
• 3 eggs
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1-2 Tbsp water
• 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 C pizza sauce
• 1/2 lb sirloin steak
• 5 oz your choice of cheese or dairy-free cheese
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1/2 C mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 yellow bell pepper, sliced
• 1/2 red bell pepper, sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, sliced
• 2 Tbsp lard or other fat, divided
• 1 tsp salt, divided
• 1/4 tsp pepper

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400º F.
2. In a mixing bowl, stir together the tapioca starch, almond flour, baking powder, and 1/2 tsp of the salt. Dent the center of the flour mixture and add the 3 eggs. Use a fork or biscuit cutter to mix until the ingredients start to stick together then knead the dough with your hands. Add as much water as necessary to get the dough smooth. Only add a very small amount at a time, about a half tablespoon. It’s very easy to add too much water to this dough.
3. Dust a pizza stone with almond flour to prevent dough from sticking. Form the dough into a ball and place in the center of the stone then use a rolling pin to begin rolling out the dough. You want the dough to be about 10 inches in diameter.
4. Lightly brush the top of the pizza crust with olive oil and bake for 10 minutes. The crust will puff up and the surface will crack some when baked.
5. Melt the lard in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. When hot, add the steak and sprinkle with pepper and the remainder of the salt. Cook evenly on both sides.
6. Once the steak is cooked, remove from the pan leaving the juices behind. Add the onion, mushrooms, and bell peppers to the skillet and cook until most of the liquid is cooked out and the vegetables are cooked down. I like mine a little charred.
7. Spread the pizza sauce evenly over the pizza crust leaving a little room at the edge. Top with steak, veggies, and cheese. Bake another 5 minutes to ensure all the ingredients are heated evenly. You can leave it in the oven a little longer if you are looking to brown the cheese. I didn’t bother doing this since I used cashew cheese.
8. Slice and serve while hot.

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Notes

Mozarella, provelone, or cheddar would be great options for the cheese. For dairy-free options, I used cashew cheese but would also recommend Daiya cheese if you can eat it (not strict paleo).