I Went Out for Pizza Today

by Valerie on August 7, 2010 · 7 comments

Pete's Apizza GF Vegan Pizza

Those six little words sound pretty innocuous, but I had not eaten pizza out in over a year – between having to follow a gluten-free diet, needing to avoid dairy like it’s my job and having trouble digesting eggs, pizza can be a challenge (most gluten-free pizza crusts have eggs in them).  Fortunately, I had figured out a while ago that Pete’s New Haven Style Apizza (two locations in Washington, DC) has a vegan gluten-free crust.  Forgive me, dear gluten-free readers, but I cannot remember the ingredients in the vegan gluten-free crust – I called them a while back, and while I am sure the ingredients include brown rice flour and chickpeas, I cannot remember the rest. Since I avoid corn as much as possible, I doubt this crust has any cornstarch in it.

August 2010 016

Having gotten these details out of the way, let’s discuss the pie shall we. The gluten-free crust is thin and crispy – a little less chewy than traditional New Haven Apizza which is Pete’s style for the regular, wheat-based pizzas served there.  The crust reminded me of the crispy Italian wood-fired pizza I grew up eating which, from everything I have read, is closer to Roman/Lazio crust than Neapolitan crust.  Semantics aside, this is good crust.  It is satisfying and holds up under the toppings.  No gluten-free limp pizza sadness here.  When I called to discuss ingredients (I still wish I had the post-it where I took notes with the list of ingredients) I asked about cross-contamination and was told that the kitchen takes that seriously and the gluten-free crust is prepared separately and, while cooked in the same large oven, has its own little pan. I know a couple of people with Celiac’s who have eaten there and not gotten glutinized so, combined with the fact that Pete’s Apizza sounded super-gluten-friendly, I figured eating there was safe.

Pete's Apizza Gluten-free Vegan Pizza (half Teese, half zero cheese)

As you can see from the pie photos, I got tomato sauce, caramelized onions, broccoli rabe, sauteed mushrooms and, on half of the pizza, vegan cheese.  Now, this is perhaps the one real downside of Pete’s Apizza. They do not use Daiya cheese (boo!) which I actually really like (despite the fact it is so not a whole food and I am so a whole food kind of person) – instead they use Teese which I have not liked when cooking with it at home.  Ok, I hated Teese.  Now, I still tried it for the sake of the blog – well, partially – and I also tried it because I had read that there was a new Teese that was close to Daiya and that was much better.  So yes, I was really curious, plus I figured I could always pick it off if I did not like it.  Now, this Teese is very likely the new Teese as it tastes far better than the original Teese.  It really does look like regular mozzarella, no?

August 2010 019

And the veggie toppings were phenomenal.  The mushrooms were meaty and delicious, the caramelized onions were perfectly melty, the broccoli rabe added a touch of bitterness, and the tomato sauce – well just look at the picture. It was awesome.  Pete’s really holds up to its promise of fresh,simple ingredients.  Next time I will skip the Teese and just pile veggie toppings on the lovely gluten-free crust with great tomato sauce for  a lovely vegan gluten-free pie, though I might try their white anchovies too (I eat mostly vegan, with very occasional fish and even more occasional grass-fed meat).  But yes, next time I go to Pete’s, I am definitely skipping the vegan cheese and piling on the lovely vegan toppings.  Unless of course there is Daiya to be had. The setting at the Tenleytown Friendship Heights Location is lovely as well:

August 2010 021

It is in a cute neighborhood:

August 2010 024 

And there is an adorable coffee shop nearby:

August 2010 027

My husband will vouch for the meat and cheese toppings if you would like to top your gluten-free pizza with those, and his review of the regular wheat-based crust was that it was quite good, especially if you go for a pie rather than individual slices. And, like all traditional pizza crust, the wheat-based crust is vegan.  I loved my gluten-free pie.  It was flavorful, not heavy, not greasy, and had lovely ingredients (minus the Teese).  Here’s another shot of it:

Pete's Apizza Gluten-free Vegan Pizza (half Teese, half zero cheese)

I can’t wait to go back!!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
General Disclosures & Disclaimers

{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Vampires and Tofu August 7, 2010 at 11:36 pm

Looks delicious!

Reply

2 Pure2raw twins August 7, 2010 at 11:44 pm

Looks great, too bad they do not use Daiya cheese, love that stuff!

Reply

3 Analiese Marie August 8, 2010 at 2:11 am

Yum! It's nice that they are so gluten conscious.

I actually tried Daiya for the first time today! I sprinkled a little bit on top of a veggie burger. I thought the flavor and texture were decent, more so than other faux cheese products I've sampled in the past. You're right though, it's totally not a whole food, so I plan to use it in very limited amounts. (I'm eating mostly vegan now too, with the occasional piece of fish.)

Reply

4 Olivia (Green Junkie Living) August 8, 2010 at 2:47 am

Oh my goodness! I literally started whooping and hollering when I saw this. A place recently opened near my parents' in CT with GF crust, and now Pete's is smack dab in between my mother-in-law's and father-in-law's apartments. Yet another thing to look forward to. Wow!

Reply

5 Michael Wilkinson August 8, 2010 at 8:25 pm

Thanks for the great write-up! The crust is comprised of equal parts tapioca starch, chickpea flour and rice flour, plus water, salt, yeast and a splash of olive oil. There is a company that has been marketing GF crust to pizzerias nationwide, called Still Riding Pizza. Not sure how it compares, but I think the crusts are parbaked and sent in quantity to restaurants. Ours are made from scratch in our kitchen daily. I think that makes a difference. So glad you liked it, and that you took the time to write us up in your blog! Mike W. at Pete's

Reply

6 Carolyn August 9, 2010 at 1:52 am

Mmm those veggies look heavenly. I want to whip up a homemade pie sometime soon… the toppings possibilities are endless! Caramelized onions are a FAVE

Reply

7 Ivy August 9, 2010 at 3:31 pm

Wow the pizza sounds amazing and I am really glad for you that you can enjoy pizza again.

Reply

Leave a Comment

Previous post:

Next post: