The Best Gluten Free Pizza EVER

Some days you just don’t feel like cooking. That day for me was Tuesday a few weeks ago. After what felt like musical trains switching Bart trains 3 times due to delays and squishing into sardine-like conditions, I gathered ingredients for a West African peanut stew at a nearby grocery store. In the course of 20 minutes I unleashed an accidental waterfall of peanuts from the bulk section, and proceeded to apologize repeatedly to the staff who cleaned it up... while noticing I was leaving an accidental trail of lingering peanuts in my path. I then knocked over a packet of maple sugar candy and had a close call with a leaning tower of cracker boxes. I got home and Russell and I made the stew together, but not before I broke one of our ceramic kitten themed measuring spoons and he accidentally spilled a bag of quinoa all over our stove like a volcanic eruption via a hole in a plastic bag. What can I say? We compliment each other! What I craved that Tuesday was pizza. When I was diagnosed with Celiac disease 15 years ago in college, the first thing I did was order a pizza. Since I had been feeling sick for months anyways, I wanted one farewell to pizza despite it not being the healthiest decision. Looking back, it wasn’t exactly the *smartest* thing to do for my immune system and I do not recommend going that route if you’ve found out you can’t eat gluten, but I can't really be too hard on myself looking back thinking I would never again eat pizza. This was at a time in my life when I was taking Italian classes 9 times a week and convinced I would move to Italy and eat ALL the gluten. ALL THE GLUTEN. And because 15 years ago, most people didn’t know what gluten was and it wasn’t a trendy diet yet, I did think that was my goodbye to pizza. Little did I know that years later, it would be so much easier to find gluten free foods that taste amazing. Lucky for me, Berkeley has, what I feel, is the best gluten free pizza EVER. Yes, that’s right. The best gluten free pizza in the Bay...nay, ever, is at Lucia’s in downtown Berkeley. You can also find their traveling pizza oven at the Kensington Farmer's Market on Sundays from 10am until 2pm.

While Lanesplitters, Cheeseboard and Jupiter in Berkeley all have gluten free pizza, nobody matches the taste of Lucia’s. Lucia's opened in 2016 and makes incredible wood-fired pizza that is Neapolitan-style. One of the owners, Steve Dumain, is gluten intolerant, and makes his dough from deglutenized wheat (read more about the restaurant's roots in the East Bay Express). I had no idea that was even a thing, but it is. You can read more about it's somewhat controversial yet miraculous existence here. While I don’t know how other people with Celiac will respond to their pizza, I know I was sick for years and have quite a sensitive stomach, and I have never gotten sick there. I also know it is pizza heaven on gluten free earth for me. The menu is also incredibly creative and makes me feel like I’m in Italy without the travel time (although I wouldn't mind being in Italy right now either).

As a fun fact, you can also buy their gluten free pizza dough for $7 a ball and make your own pizza at home. If you go that route, it's best to call on a Tuesday and pick up the dough on Friday. We've done that so many times that they now know associate Russell with gluten free pizza, which I love. Russell and I will usually share a pizza and a salad, and this last time, we treated ourselves to a dessert. We ordered the Prosciutto Pie (although there are plenty of veggie options on the menu), the arugula salad, the chocolate mousse and a homemade gelato:

If you don't live locally, I highly recommend visiting The Bojon Gourmet's amazing food blog. She is an incredible gluten-free baker who lives in San Francisco, and is basically a magician when it comes to mixing together alternative flours and making it a delight. Here are all of her pizza recipes, although she makes wonderful savory galettes as well. Either way, give up the packaged gluten free pizza mixes and treat yourself to Lucia's or a Bojon Gourmet recipe. Life's too short to eat bad pizza, and the secret is starting to get out that gluten free can actually be delicious.