Hello @mnev1155 and welcome to the forum!
Yes, you can use the strain gauge in a quarter Wheatstone bridge formation with the HX711. In the following image you can see a sketch of the connection.
Load cells are actually based on the same principle, they use different configurations of Wheatstone bridges with strain gauges and the HX711 module only amplifies and discretizes the difference of potential generated in the bridge caused by the mechanical deformation, you can find more information about this here.
Because you said you are struggling with the code I suggest you take a look at the Arduino examples available, you can find them here along with a very nice tutorial.
I hope that answers your question, let us know if you have any other doubts 