Pepperoni Polenta Pizza Recipe

For today's gluten free kitchen adventure, I decided to make mini pizzas using polenta slices instead of regular crust.

Unfamiliar with polenta?  It's basically just ground and cooked cornmeal that you can buy in tube-form at any major grocery store.  I like it because it has a surprisingly creamy flavor to it, and that's exactly what it adds to these little pizzas.  Don't expect them to taste the same as regular pizza; they are their own (delicious) animal.

This recipe yields 8 mini pizzas and takes 20 minutes to make (only 10 of those minutes are hands-on).

Ingredients:
1 tube polenta
8 tbs spaghetti sauce (I used Classico four cheese)*
1 tbs olive oil
1/2 of an onion
1 clove garlic
16 pepperoni slices (I used Hormel Natural Choice uncured pepperoni)*
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

*The brands I used are gluten free. Other brands of these products may contain gluten, so check their labels before you use them.

Directions:
- Cut 8 thin 1/4 inch slices from the polenta, place them on an ungreased cookie sheet, and bake them in a 350 degree (F) preheated oven for 15 minutes.

- While the polenta is in the oven, mince the pepperoni, onion, and garlic.  Place the pepperoni aside for later.

-  Saute the onion and garlic in the olive oil in a small sauce plan.

-  When the polenta is finished baking, remove the pan from the oven and layer the toppings onto each polenta slice in the following order: a spoonful of spaghetti sauce, a pinch of garlic and onions, several pinches of cheese, a sprinkling of pepperoni pieces.

-  Put the pan back into the oven to bake for 5 more minutes.

-  Remove from the oven, serve, and enjoy!

If you make these, let me know what you think of them!  I really hope you like them as much as I did.

Happy cooking!
xoxo
Laura