My family adores pizza. It love making it for them because it's one of those standbys that my toddlers (and husband) will gobble up every time. But it has a reputation, ya know? Not a healthy one. I've been trying to break it down into its components to see what is just fine and what can be improved so I can serve it to my family as a healthy treat, not a once-in-a-while compromise. Here we go:
Crust: The lovely, spongy crust of Pizza-Hut fame doesn't have much going for it nutrition-wise. I've tried some yeasted recipes and like the texture, but a 50-50 whole wheat/all purpose mix is about as whole as I can get it without making it brick-like. Until today!!
I started with Yogurt Dough from Nourishing Traditions by Sally Falon, then added some moisture and leavening. It looked like this:
3 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup yogurt
1 cup butter (softened)
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 tsp baking soda
Blend yogurt and butter, then mix in flour and salt. Soak 7-24 hours at room temp. Mix in eggs and baking soda (this would take forever by hand; I used a stand mixer). Divide in half. Using a little extra flour to reduce stickiness, roll dough out into pizza shape. (I LOVE that this dough is incredibly easy to work with). Prebake at 350F about 15 min.
Sauce: This was my 1% guilt, because I used tomato sauce from a can (BPA scare!). But it's just tomato sauce with Italian seasoning, and no added sugar like most prepared pizza sauces
Cheese: I am fine with cheese as-is. Some day maybe I'll be able to afford lovely raw cheese, but it bakes anyway, right?
Toppings: Uncured pepperoni and some homemade turkey sausage (recipe also from Nourishing Traditions) made this pizza very hearty and man-friendly. It was my first time to make homemade sausage, and it was delish.
When assembled, bake another 20ish minutes, or until cheese is melted. The crust doesn't come out chewy, but it's more flakey/crispy. I was very flattered that my husband compared it to the whole wheat crust of a popular gourmet pizza restaurant that we love!
And there it was, coming out of the oven, delicious and delightfully healthy. And it disappeared before I could take pictures.
Posted at Simple Lives Thursday at Sustainable Eats.
I will give this a try. I have only made yeasted pizza doughs, but this one looks interesting!
ReplyDeleteI hope you enjoy it! It is a pretty different texture from yeasted doughs, but delicious in its own way. :)
ReplyDeleteI am anxious to try the crust recipe! I have been searching for a good and good-for-you crust recipe for some time now. Also, for the sauce, you can easily make your own (though it still partially comes from a can) like this: saute thin onion slices in EVOO. Add one small can tomato sauce (the pure sauce). Add salt, pepper, oregano and basil to taste. That's it :)
ReplyDeleteJenna, I hope you enjoy the crust recipe! Your sauce sounds delicious - I especially like the idea of the sauteed onions. Yum!
ReplyDeleteInteresting recipe...will definitely give it a try :)
ReplyDelete