Traditions… I have so many wonderful ones from my parents. They add to the sweetness of childhood memories and the anticipation of each coming season. When Miss E was diagnosed with celiac disease, I quickly became determined that cutting gluten was not going to cut any magic from her childhood, and traditions are a big piece of that magic… and a gluten-free Valentine’s Day is just one of those “new traditions”. Yes, it takes more work, planning, and ingredient hunting (all of which, I’m convinced will lessen with years of experience and have already been lessened by the sharing of those with more experience)… but my daughter’s childhood is still full of beautiful traditions.

I wrote the above paragraph just a few months after my daughter was diagnosed with celiac disease and my own diagnosis was just around the corner. I was right. The burden is less now, so much less. The first year is by far the hardest. I can now accomplish much of what was a struggle during that first year with barely a thought.

If this is your first gluten-free Valentine’s Day, I promise it gets easier. You’ll find your new favorites and update old traditions with little tweaks.

My heart-shaped cookie cutters were given away in the post-diagnosis deglutening of our home, and I was looking for heart-shaped ideas for Valentine’s Day. That first gluten-free Valentine’s Day, we made gluten-free heart-shaped pancakes and pizza, and new traditions were born.

The pizza recipe below is far better than the one I used that first year. Inspired by the amazing gluten-free pizzas I enjoyed in Italy, this pizza has a perfect, airy Neopolitan crust. You would never guess it is gluten-free.

Cut in half heart-shaped pizza showing the fluffy, airy Neapolitan crust.

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Equipment

Stand Mixer: You can mix this dough by hand with a lot of elbow grease, but a stand mixer is far superior.
Kitchen Scale: Use an inexpensive kitchen scale to accurately measure the flour.
Pizza Stone: Helps to get your crust very hot, giving you the perfect Neopolitan-style crust.
Parchment Paper: Shape your hearts on parchment paper and transfer to the hot pizza stone for par-baking.
Kitchen Scissors: For cutting out heart-shaped pepperoni.

Ingredients

Gluten-Free Wheat Starch: These heart-shaped pizzas are made with gluten-free wheat starch, which gives them the ideal pizza taste and texture you’ve been missing. They taste exactly like “real pizza”.

Gluten-free wheat starch has been processed to remove the gluten-containing protein, and meets the FDA requirements for a gluten-free food. Gluten-free wheat starch is considered safe for individuals with celiac disease, but it is not safe for individuals with a wheat allergy. Learn more about Gluten-Free Wheat Starch.

I recommend King Arthur 00 Gluten-Free Pizza Flour. You can substitute with another of my favorite gluten-free wheat starch flours, Caputo Fioreglut Gluten-Free Flour, or your favorite gluten-free wheat starch, but must measure out 233 grams on a kitchen scale, not by volume/cups, as that will vary dramatically by brand of flour.

Instant Yeast: Fleischmann’s Rapid Rise is labeled gluten-free.

Salt

Warm Water

Olive Oil

Toppings: Pizza Sauce, Shredded Mozzarella Cheese, and Pepperoni

Step-By-Step Instructions

White, dry ingredients in a metal mixing bowl with liquid with little bubbles.

Top view of part of aqua stand mixer and metal bowl with dough being mixed.

Add flour, yeast, salt, and warm water in a stand mixer. No need to proof the instant yeast.

Mix the ingredients on #2 speed for five minutes. Almost immediately, you’ll be taken back to the aroma of a pizza shop during your pre-gluten-free days!

Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the mixing bowl, as needed.

Top view of part of metal bowl with dough formed into a clump, not exactly an even ball.

Add olive oil to the dough and mix on the lowest speed for two minutes.

Form the dough into a ball, divide in half, and form into two balls. Let the dough rise in the fridge for 3-24 hours in an airtight container.

After gluten-free wheat starch and yeast, heat… very high heat… is the next most important ingredient. Place a pizza stone in the oven. Preheat oven to 550°. If your oven doesn’t crank up to 550°, try 500° and leave the crust in the oven a few minutes longer each time you bake it.

(If you have a pizza oven, I’m jealous.)

Two heart-shaped pizza crusts, unbaked. Fingers forming the heart shape top of one of the crusts.

Lay a piece of parchment paper on the counter for a non-stick work surface. Press one dough ball to form it into a heart-shaped, individual pizza. Leave a raised crust around the edge. Use a dusting of gluten-free flour as needed to keep the dough workable while forming the crust. Repeat with the second dough ball.

Trim the excess parchment paper to prevent charring while par-baking the crusts. Transfer the formed crusts to the pizza stone. Par-bake for 7 minutes.

Scissors cutting a heart shape out of a slice of pepperoni folded in half.

Birds Eye view: heart-shaped pepperoni slices.

While the crust is parbaking, cut pepperoni slices into heart shapes. You can make one large or two small hearts from each pepperoni slice.

Tip: Your grade-school scissor skills will come in hand here. Cutting symmetrical hearts by folding them in half is easiest.

Birds Eye view: Two heart-shaped pizza crusts, par-baked.

Red sauce being placed on two heart-shaped pizza crusts.

Remove the crust from the oven. Top with sauce, cheese, and pepperoni hearts.

Remove the parchment paper and place the pizzas directly on the pizza stone. Return the pizza to the oven and bake for 5-7 minutes, until the cheese is bubbling and the crust is golden brown.