Making Pizza Healthy

Yesterday I posted how I make tons of pizza dough and freeze it for future use. I thought while I'm on a pizza kick that I'd share how I make my pizza healthy.

First, I make it myself. If you control your ingredients, you control what you eat. Makes sense.

Second, I use as much whole wheat flour as I can in the crust without getting kickback from the husband and kids. Usually it's about 1:1 wheat:white.

Third, I sneak a layer of pureed vegetables on the crust before I put on the sauce. Not one single time I've done this has anyone been able to tell. I started off doing a little and when no one noticed, I kicked it up to about a quarter to a half a cup per large pizza. I always serve the pizza with fresh cut veggies, but if the kids don't eat them hahahaha they just ate carrots anyway.



Finally, use healthy ingredients. I usually don't put meat on my pizzas unless it's turkey pepperoni or a little ham. I personally don't like lowfat cheese because I find it rubbery, so I use full fat cheese but just less of it. There's nothing saying you shouldn't see the sauce through the pizza, and if you have lots of healthy yummy ingredients on it your family won't miss it a bit!

Inexpensive Pizza That's Nutritious and Delicious

Most everyone loves pizza. On any given night when I give my kids a choice "pizza" is usually the first word out of their mouth (even if that wasn't one of the options).

We live in a rural area where pizza delivery isn't an option. Even if it were, for what you get good pizza can be pretty expensive (yes, I said GOOD pizza).

I love making homemade pizza, but it takes a lot of time. So, what I've started doing is making several batches of dough at a time (which is the part that takes so long) and freezing them. Then, in the morning before I go to work I remove a frozen dough ball from the fridge and it's thawed and ready to roll out and use that evening.

Here's my recipe (this is a double recipe, for which I get about 4 good-sized dough balls):

Dissolve two packets of yeast (usually 4.5 tsp) into two cups of warm water. Add two teaspoons of sugar and stir. Allow the yeast to "bloom" or get good and foamy, usually within five minutes or so.



Place all that in a bowl (I use a stand mixer which makes this process infinitely easier) and add two tablespoons of kosher salt and four tablespoons of olive oil. Gradually add five cups of flour (I usually use a mixture of white and wheat), mixing as you go.



When all the flour is incorporated, add a sixth cup of flour gradually until the dough forms a ball and no longer sticks to the inside of the bowl.


Dump the ball of dough into a greased bowl, turning once. Cover with plastic wrap (or damp towel) in a warm spot and wait about an hour til it is about twice the size.




Punch the dough down and roll it out to make your pizza. Bake the pizza at 475 degrees (yes, hot) for 10 minutes or so.



With the dough you have left over, form it into balls and tightly wrap it with plastic wrap and drop the wrapped balls into a freezer bag. These'll stay good for a few months (but chances are you'll use them long before they go bad).

Save Money on Herbs

I love having an herb garden. There is nothing better than fresh pesto, rosemary potatoes or sage-stuffed roasted chicken. Each spring I plant herbs and each spring has me out in the garden wondering which of my herbs survived the winter and while I'll have to replace. Last year I got lucky and my thyme and sage survived while my rosemary and oregano bit the dust. This year I'm doing something different- I'm starting cuttings inside this winter.

I've started lots of plants this way. I have a plant of my great grandmothers that I'm scared to death to lose, so I have started that one over and over for fear I lose one. I figure starting new herbs will be similar.

Start by clipping the herbs close to the ground.



Bring them inside and clear the lowest leaves. Leaves left on the stem below the water level will just rot and hurt the chances of your cutting producing roots (which is the goal).



Place the cuttings in water on a sunny windowsill. Over the next several weeks, they will produce roots. Fight the urge to clip and use them during this time! When spring comes, the plants will have enough roots so that you can plant them outside.



Buying fresh herbs to plant in your garden every year can become costly (at $3 to $5 per plant). Starting your own will definitely save you money.

I've pictured rosemary here. You can also do this with the following herbs: lavendar, lemon balm, marjoram, oregano, tarragon and thyme.

Save Time by Making Extra

I don't get home from work until after 5:00 each day. By then, everyone is hungry and it's hard for me to cook a nice nutritious dinner when my two and three year olds are tugging at my pants and wanting snacks.

Most of the cooking I do, I do on the weekends. I'll make a lasagna or roast a chicken or make a pot of chili and it will last for at least a couple meals during the week. When I do cook, I always make extra and freeze it.

Last weekend I made a lasagna to eat, and one to freeze. Here's a tip to avoid freezing your entire pan and having to go without.

Line a pan (I use 9 x 9 but you can use any size) with aluminum foil. Use two pieces placed perpendicular to each other and make sure the entire pan is covered.



Fill the pan with your casserole, lasagna or whatever it is you're making that day.



Wrap it with the foil and place it in your freezer. Once it's frozen, remove it from the pan, foil and all, and wrap the foil tightly around the frozen food.



If you use a 9 x 9 pan you should be able to easily slide this into a gallon-sized freezer bag (which is why I use this size pan). Otherwise, you'll want to wrap it in another layer to prevent freezer burn. Don't forget your label, and place it back into the freezer.

Post-Halloween Money Saving Opportunity

Before Halloween I saw these cute little sugar pumpkins with faces painted on them for about $5.



Yesterday I went to Walmart and they were a dollar apiece. So, I bought two. These little pumpkins yield the equivalent of two to three cans of pumpkin, and canned pumpkin costs nearly $1 a can. I figure I made the equivalent of four to six cans for $2. They're relatively easy to roast, puree and freeze.

First, cut each pumpkin in half and remove the seeds and stringy goo. Of course, save the seeds so you can roast those too!



Place them cut side down on a cookie sheet and roast them for 45 minutes or so at 350. Take them out of the oven and allow them to cool long enough so that you can pull the skin off easily. If it doesn't come off easily, it's probably not cooked all the way yet.



To toast the pumpkin seeds, rinse them a little and add a teaspoon or so of salt, mixing well. Dump them on another cookie sheet and put them in the oven with the roasting pumpkins for 20 minutes or so or until they are as done as you like.

Put the pumpkin in a blender or food processor. You should end up with a bowlful of puree and some toasty pumpkin seeds.



You can put the pumpkin in a freezer bag, or seal it up with a food sealer and freeze it.



Here is two pumpkins worth of puree:


Make sure to label the bags well with the contents and date.