Really Healthy Pizza
Written by Mike Cheliak on May 23, 2009 – 2:07 pm -Pizza always used to be my Kryptonite. I used to get weak in the knees when I saw a triple meat, carnivore lovers pizza just oooooozing with cheese. What’s not to love with a meal you can pick up in your hands and munch happily, piece after piece?
The cold reality is that pizza can really be a nasty, heart clogging mess if you jam it full of saturated fats and unhealthy toppings. The other side of the equation however is that pizza doesn’t have to be a bad choice. In fact, done right; pizza can be downright healthy AND satisfying! Take it from me…I HAD to find another way to enjoy pizza!
I mostly avoid processed foods such as breads and pasta. I do however enjoy Sprouted Grain Breads and Spelt flour products. Spelt is similar to wheat in appearance. However, spelt has a tougher husk than wheat, which may help protect the nutrients in spelt. Spelt flour has a somewhat nuttier and slightly sweeter flavor than whole wheat flour. Spelt contains more protein than wheat, and the protein in spelt is easier to digest. This means that some people who are allergic to wheat may be able to tolerate spelt. Spelt has gluten, just like wheat, so spelt is not suitable for a gluten-free diet.
This fit in perfectly when I was searching for my Holy Grail of healthy pizza. I researched a lot of information, menus, recipes, ideas and actual products in order to come up with my favorite pizza combo. The Spelt Pizza dough is amazing, tasty and very easy on the digestive system (it’s higher in protein as well).
Before I post the dough recipe, I just want you to imagine some of the toppings you would like to add to your pizza. The only rule is that the topping should ADD to the nutritional value and not DETRACT from it. All the veggies in the world are great, some pickled varieties such as artichokes or pickled eggplant are great as well (just watch the oil content). Lean meats of any sort are terrific choices and they even have healthy turkey pepperoni that is less than half the fat and calories of its traditional cousin.
As far as the basics go, you don’t need to always use the same sauce and cheese. My favourite combo is homemade pesto and goat cheese as my sauce and cheese. Mix that with roasted chicken, wild mushrooms and fire roasted red peppers and you have a gourmet pizza that will satisfy anyone (including ME).
Use your imagination, bring the kids in to make their own healthy choice personal pizza. My son loves regular tomato sauce and low fat mozzarella with roasted chicken, onions and mushrooms. My daughter loves using a light bechamel sauce with chicken and green peppers. My lovely Italian Wife Rose always goes for the pesto sauce and goats cheese with chicken, caramelized onions, mushrooms and roasted red peppers.
Making your own pizza is a tonne of fun, a healthy alternative to ordering the heart clogger special and most of all a good reason to get the family involved in making healthy choices and learning to work in the kitchen.
HERBED CRUST SPELT PIZZA DOUGH
Preparation Time:
3 hours
Tools
A good stand Mixer with dough hook makes this a lot easier but hand kneading is very “earthy” and can be fun as well.
Ingredients
1 3/4 cups warm water
1 tablespoon sugar
1 packet active dry yeast
6 cups sprouted spelt flour (you can use ½ white spelt and ½ whole grain spelt for lighter crust)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon sea salt
1 tablespoon Italian Herbs (basil, oregano, etc)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder or 1 tsp fresh minced garlic
Instructions
Making the dough: Pour the warm water into the mixing bowl with the sugar and the yeast. When the yeast is active, mix in the first cup of flour. Mix in the olive oil, salt, herbs and spices. Add 4 1/2 cups of flour, 1/2 cup at at time, while continuing to mix the dough.
Kneading the dough: Sprinkle the last half a cup of flour out onto your kneading surface, turn out the dough and knead for about 6 minutes. Let it rest while you clean and grease your bowl. Continue kneading your dough till it feels smooth and springy.
Rising: Form the dough into a ball and place back in the greased bowl. Turn the dough so it is evenly coated with the oil. Cover it to keep it away from drafts. Let rise till it has doubled in size. Preheat oven to 400.
Shaping: Turn your dough out on a floured board. Punch it down and break up the large bubbles. Cut it into 2 even pieces for thick crust or 3 pieces for thin crust. Roll the pieces out to the desired size and thickness. Take a fork and jab your dough (known as docking) about every inch so that the crust does not inflate while prebaking. Oil a pizza pan with extra virgin olive oil and form your crust to the edge. Bake for about 10 minutes in the preheated oven.
Top it with your amazingly creative choices. Place your built masterpiece bake in the oven for around 5-8 minutes or until the toppings are cooked nice and evenly
By precooking the crust, you no longer have to be concerned with making sure the crust is fully cooked. If you pre-bake your crust you can cool it, wrap in plastic wrap and store in the freezer for 1-2 weeks. To cook, remove from freezer and let sit for about 10 minutes, put toppings on and cook for 20 minutes at 400.
In happiness and health as always…
Mike C.
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