20 min. Yeast-Free, Gluten-Free Italian Bread & Easy Mezzetta Olive Tapenade

My favorite holiday memories are of having lots of family and friends over for big meals. I love doing the cooking, preparing holiday recipes, the noise and laughter in the house, and of course, eating the food. I've happily adapted most of my old recipes to gluten-free but I had one more challenge.

I was missing crusty chewy  Italian bread that I could make into Crostini! I've always loved warm toasted chewy bites of Italian bread at holiday parties. Topped with Tapenade or made into Bruschetta, they are my favorite appetizers, but I hadn't quite found the right gluten-free flour blend to achieve that wonderful chewiness, until now!

I'm so excited to share my NEW 20-minute Gluten-free, Yeast-free, Egg-Free, and Xanthan Gum-Free Italian Bread Rolls with you and did I say, they only take 20 minutes? No yeast, no rising and so easy to make.
This amazing dough is also perfect patted out thin for flatbread or pizza crust. Scroll down to see my new Pizza crust using this awesome recipe.

Plus, I'm sharing some of my holiday tips on how to stay organized and have fun during the holidays. :)

Make this chewy Yeast-Free and Gluten-Free Italian Bread in only 20 minutes. Perfect for sandwiches or Crostini

Having Mezzetta's quality products on hand makes my holiday entertaining a breeze. Family-owned since 1935, the fourth generation of Mezzetta family is continuing the commitment to bring their customers the highest quality foods available. They source the finest fresh produce from the sun-drenched soils of California, Italy, Spain, France, and Greece and prepare them according to their Italian family recipes at a state-of-the-art production facility in the Napa Valley.

My family insists on olives for Thanksgiving. When the girls were little they would put them on each finger and then eat them off. They were so silly and I loved it! We still always have olives on the buffet table, but now that the kids are grown we make some fancy hors d'oeuvres too.
I especially like the Mezzetta's sweet Kalamata Olives with their green Garlic Stuffed olives.  Typically tapenade is made with capers, but capers are too expensive for me. I like my easier version so much better! You will never miss the capers!

Holiday entertaining tips!

Hosting a large gluten-free dinner takes stamina, a sense of humor and flexibility. Make lists! They save my life every year. I list out all of my recipes, ingredients, shopping, and I even list my housekeeping chores. I refer back to the list each day and prioritize what needs to be done. I love when everything is crossed off and I'm good to go! Give yourself credit and don't stress.  

For Thanksgiving, plan to prepare a few easy appetizers, like my Crostini with Mezzetta Olive Tapenade below, the turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, and gluten-free stuffing, and then ask your guests to bring the sides or salads and their drink of choice. Not everyone will want to make a gluten-free dish. You can have gluten-free and gluten-full sides on your buffet. Just be sure to offer them in separate areas and tag them clearly!

Pull out your serving platters and utensils well in advance, decide what foods will go in what dish, and be sure to ask guests to bring their offering in a dish with a serving spoon too. Assemble your linens, glassware, and flatware, remembering everything does not have to match.

I always keep a few jars of Mezzetta Olives and other essentials in the pantry. You can make my easy Olive Tapenade recipe below in minutes! It's a lifesaver if you run out of party snacks or unexpected guests pop in.

Most importantly, relax and have fun. If you’re having a good time, everyone else will, too!




20-minute Chewy Italian Bread Rolls, gluten-free, yeast-free, egg-free, xanthan gum-free

Makes 10 rolls

Ingredients:

• 3 cups gluten-free flour mix below
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold
• 1 cup 2 % milk, as needed
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

Flour Mix: Whisk in a large bowl or shake in a Tupperware container

• 3/4 cup golden flax, ground to flour
• 3/4 cup white rice flour
• 1/2 cup potato starch
• 1 cup tapioca starch
• 1 tablespoon psyllium husks, ground
• 1 teaspoon salt

Instructions:  Heat oven to 450 degrees F.

1. Measure flour mix, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Cut in butter thoroughly, with fingers or pastry cutter, until mixture looks like meal. 
2. Stir in almost all the milk, add vinegar. If the dough is not pliable, add just enough of reserved milk to make a soft, easy to handle the dough. The dough will thicken on stirring.
3. Flour your hands with a little rice flour. Scoop up a large heaping tablespoon, pat into oblong or rectangle rolls. Place on a large baking tray lined with parchment or Silpat.
4. Brush on a little of the leftover milk, or to give the rolls a shinier, darker crust, brush them instead with an egg-white wash (1 egg white beaten with 1/4 cup water). For seeded buns, brush the buns with the egg wash prior to sprinkling, as it’ll make the seeds adhere.
5. Bake 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. The rolls need to cool for the best texture. When they are out of the oven they will still be a little gummy. I let mine cool and then store in a Tupperware.

Brushing the buns after baking with melted butter will give them a soft, light golden crust.

To make rolls into Crostini:

• Slice the rolls on the diagonal. Start low on one end, angle your knife to the right, cut the end off. Move up, slice at an angle again until you have apx. five 1/2 inch slices per roll.
• Lay slices on a large baking sheet, brush both sides with olive oil. 
• Bake at 375 degrees F. for 10-12 minutes, turning once.

To make into Pizza Crust: 

Notes, I used garbanzo bean flour in the flour mix and used the whole 1/2 cup of water. My dough was very thick and sticky like cornbread batter.

Flour Mix:

• 3/4 cup golden flax, ground to flour
• 3/4 cup white rice flour or garbanzo bean flour
• 1/2 cup potato starch
• 1 cup tapioca starch
• 1 tablespoon psyllium husks, ground
• 1 teaspoon salt

Pizza Crust:

• 2 1/4 cups flour mix above
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 cup organic olive oil
• 1/4-1/2 cup warm water, as needed
• 1/2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 large egg

Pizza Sauce: mix together until smooth

• 1 6 oz can tomato paste
• 1 6 oz tomato paste can of water
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning mix
• 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic (I used from the jar)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.    Grease, spray or line 10x13 inch baking sheet with parchment

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour mix and baking powder. 
2. In another smaller bowl, whisk the olive oil,1/4 cup of the warm water, egg and apple cider vinegar.
3. Combine the wet ingredients into the dry ingredient bowl.  Mix by hand until completely incorporated.
4. The dough should be very thick and sticky. If dry, add more water, a tablespoon at a time.  Dump the dough into the center of the baking sheet and spread out to desired thickness, using a spatula and a little olive oil. Form a raised crust on the edges.
5. Prebake the crust for 5-10 minutes or just firm to touch. Remove from oven and sprinkle with finely grated Parmesan cheese, like Kraft, to seal the crust.  
6. Spread sauce of choice over the Parmesan.   
7. Add a cup or more of shredded mozzarella and your desired toppings. Sprinkle with a little more grated Parmesan.
8. Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes or until cheese is melted and crust is done. 

Easy Caper Free Mezzetta Tapenade Recipe:

• One jar (9.5 oz) Mezzetta Pitted Greek Kalamata Olives, drained
• 1/2 jar (9.5 oz) Mezzetta Garlic Stuffed Olives, (green) drained
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1/4 cup good olive oil

1. In a food processor, add the drained olives, Dijon, and lemon juice. Pulse a few times to combine. Scrape down the sides. Pulse a few more times. Now with the machine running, add olive oil in a stream and blend to a chunky paste for apx. 20 seconds.  Store in a glass jar in the fridge with a bit of olive oil on top.