In the gluten free world, Schar has been around for quite a long time. In truth, Dr. Schar "has been making products to support a healthy diet" since 1922. In collaboration with doctors and Celiac support groups, they launched their first gluten free line in 1981, over 30 years ago. Although their headquarters are in Italy, they have production facilities in Germany, Spain, United Kingdom and in the United States.
Recently they reached out through social media looking for bloggers to write about their products. As they have been a gracious supporter of our support group and a leader in educating Celiac patients and doctors, I was definitely willing to give them a little press.
So they recently sent me a really large box with three individual boxes of
pizza crusts as well as three packages of their new
marble pound cake. Each individual box contains two shelf stable pizza crusts which are gluten free and lactose free, as well as cholesterol free and trans fat free.
The very first pizza we made was a sloppy joe pizza. I know it sounds bizarre, but it was a lot of fun.
As some of you may or may not know, I am also the chairperson of our local Celiac Support Group, CSA Chapter #59. Our upcoming meeting was focusing on foods that incorporate fruits and vegetables. I decided it would be a great opportunity to make some veggie pizzas and share this product with our members. They were quick to throw together with some store bought Prego sauce, a blend of frozen peppers and onions, and some cheese. Less than 20 minutes from box to finished product.
I made one with daiya cheddar cheese slices for those group members who are dairy intolerant. In some ways I liked this pizza better than the dairy one. In fact, I think they were both better reheated the next day.
While I will admit that the crust is not as good as my homemade crust, it's incredibly convenient. Sometimes my extended family likes to order pizza for a simple family gathering, and these would be handy to have on hand to make a personal pizza. For this reason I think it would be great for non-gf grandparents to have on hand when their gluten free grandkids come to visit. My non-gf husband thought they were tasty!
I also like that the crust has a deep well in the center. This prevents the sauce from sliding over the edge and guarantees a good "crust handle" for eating your pizza.
Last night I made a meat lover's pizza.
After having to pass on one last weekend at a friend's house, it was
making me want one of my own! As my husband has a pork allergy, I topped
the pizza with sauteed onions and bacon, turkey pepperoni and beef polish sausage. I found that it tasted best baked on a pizza stone.
So have you tried Schar pizza crusts? Not only do they make the plain crusts, they also make frozen cheese and veggie pizzas. They also make bread, ravioli, crackers, and just about
anything else you can imagine.
Schar is also often present at many events around the country. Check out their
events calendar to see where they will be next. Hopefully you can get a chance to meet their dietitian Anne Lee in person. She's a wealth of information as well as incredibly friendly!
Labels: product review
