By Emma Slattery, Student NutritionistPizza. Although it is originally Italian, us Americans have made pizza into an American classic. New York style, Chicago deep dish, Hawaiian pizza- all variations, all across the country. Yet despite its popularity- or maybe because of its popularity- pizza has a terrible reputation for being unhealthy. Which is absolutely wrong. Pizza is not only delicious but also can be a healthful part of a balanced diet. Now, I say "can be healthful" and not "is inherently healthful" because not all pizzas are equal. Mac and cheese pizza, a specialty offered by Slices on Route 1 next to campus, may not be the most healthful option. It's not a wrong option if you're really craving mac and cheese pizza or want to try it once, but it's not the most healthful pizza option. Back to the main point though, PIZZA CAN BE HEALTHFUL! Whether you make the pizza yourself, buy it frozen, or order it from a chain, you can certainly make a healthful and delicious meal out of pizza. Healthful Pizza
How to start: When you think of pizza it can essentially be deconstructed into 4 parts. You have the crust, sauce, cheese, and toppings. CRUST When ordering pizza look for thin crust or whole grain options. While a whole grain pizza crust is an uncommon option for pizza delivery, they are relatively common with frozen pizzas and very common in buying pizza dough to make your own pizza. Additionally a new trend- that I am 100% on board with- is the CAULIFLOWER CRUST. It is a premade pizza crust made from cauliflower and a fantastic way to pack a delicious pizza full of vegetables. You can even make your own cauliflower crust with the recipe here! Sauce Classic pizza sauce is a strong choice for healthful pizza because, if you haven't noticed, it's a tomato sauce! And what's in tomato sauce? Tomatoes! Which are a healthful vegetable (sometimes debated to be a fruit but that's a story for another post). Either way super healthful to include on pizza. Putting a base on olive oil instead of sauce can be healthful although I wouldn't necessarily recommend a ricotta base that some white pizzas have. Cheese is the topic of the next section and while very important, it is also very important to keep in moderation. My personal all-time favorite pizza sauce is instead of tomato sauce, brushing the crust with olive oil and layering sliced tomatoes. While I'm uncertain if delivery chains carry that kind of tomato base, definitely try it out if you make a pizza this summer! CHEESE I have a beautiful love/hate relationship with cheese. Cheese is so nutritious with high amounts of vitamin D and calcium that many Americans don't get enough of- but it also can be high in saturated fat. The solution? Look for low fat or fat-free cheese to put on your pizza. While low-fat cheese can certainly be an option when making a pizza at home, on your delivery pizza try to include cheese in moderation. It's important to have some but not too much. Normal cheese or half cheese pizzas are perfectly healthful, just try to maybe not put double or triple cheese on your pizza. TOPPINGS While there are some who love cheese pizza (nothing wrong with that) many of us enjoy a pizza with some toppings, some flair. Healthful toppings tend to be veggies or fruit (I see you pineapple pizza). Loading up your pizza with spinach, bell peppers, tomatoes, broccoli, or even olives is a great way to slide in another serving of veggies, add some color to your pizza, and increase the nutritional density. To satisfy the meat lovers of America, adding a meat onto pizza can still be healthful. Chicken tends to be the protein source lowest in saturated fat, but other meats can be added to a pizza in moderation. It's the balance of not to adding chicken, pepperoni, bacon, AND sausage all to one pizza. Besides the fact that the crust may not be strong enough to hold all of those, topping pizza's with tons of meat is not the most healthful. There you have it! Feel free to share in the comments your favorite pizza or a tip on how you make your pizza a little more healthful!
2 Comments
8/21/2017 03:09:33 am
It helps me in many ways.Thanks for posting this again.
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9/9/2017 12:11:49 am
Give me pizza as much as you want and I will eat it all but I can't make it by myself. Your blog is helpful in a way that I can now say I can try to make it. Thanks for shring it
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