Healthy Boy Recipe

WHOLE WHEAT PIZZA

Who doesn't love pizza? That crunch you get as you bite into a crispy crust followed by an overflow of cheese and sauce is enough to make you roll your eyes into the back of your head with enjoyment. The problem is however we all know that our favorite piece of pie comes with a whopping load of calories and sodium, white processed refined carbohydrates, not to mention more saturated fat than what is recommended to be consumed in an entire day. Yes just one piece can potentially ruin any healthy eating plan and could see your figure go from the size of a lettuce munching Kate Moss to french fry fanatical Tyra Banks in just a few bites.

Lets take a look at the calories and nutritional information in some of our favorite pizzas:

Large Slice    Calories     Total Fat     Sat Fat     Sodium       Carbs

Meatlovers        480             28g           10g         1190mg       37g
Cheese              360            17g            7g          740mg         37g
Pepperoni          380            19g            7g          850mg         37g
Supreme            420            22g            8g          890mg         38g

But who can stop at just one slice?

Whole Pizza    Calories     Total Fat     Sat Fat     Sodium       Carbs

Meatlovers        3,840          224g          80g        9,520mg       296g

Cheese             2,880          136g          56g        5,920mg       296g

Pepperoni         3,040          152g          56g         6,800mg      296g

Supreme           3,360          176g          64g         7,120mg      304g

Throw in a large soda, some hot wings or some bread sticks, and you could potentially be eating the equivalent of two to three days worth of calories in just one sitting. Maybe you only down a couple of pieces of pizza or aren't that concerned with calories, so then lets take a look at the ridiculously high levels of sodium. Our bodies only need around 500mg of sodium per day to survive, and the maximum recommended daily intake is 2400 mgs per day. As you can see just two slices of cheese pizza will well and truly have you almost reaching this limit in one sitting.

Now you maybe thinking: "Im young, I don't need to worry about sodium until I'm older" or "My blood pressure is fine and this doesn't concern me" but it does and here's why; excess sodium when consumed courses through your body like shards of glass, shredding your arterial walls to pieces, creating hypertension, cardiac and vascular damage, and causing your body to hold onto water. What happens when you hold onto water? You get bloated, your skin turns pinkish, and your body holds onto fat leaving you looking like a Hollywood starlet after a big night out on the town.

So how can you still enjoy eating pizza but avoid all the unnecessary calories, excess sodium, fat and refined carbohydrates? Make your own! Healthy Boy has a pizza recipe that is quick and easy to make, doesn't require you to be a hairy Italian expert pizza tosser, and will leave you trim and healthy and walking down that catwalk in no time. Check it out.

What you'll need

Ingredients

Whole Wheat Flour         3 Cups

Active Dry Yeast             1 Package (found in the baking section)

Olive Oil                        2 Tablespoons

Sugar                             1 Tablespoon

Salt                               1 teaspoon

Very Warm Water           1 & 1/4 Cups

Yields: 4 - 8 pizza crusts (depending on how thick you like your crust)

Directions

1. Combine the water, sugar and yeast in a large mixing bowl and stir to dissolve. Stir in half of the flour and let sit for 10 - 20 minutes (the longer the better). 

2. Stir in the salt and the remaining flour until you get a kneadable dough. It may get a little sticky at first and require a little elbow grease, but bear with it for a minute or so and your ball of dough will appear.

3. Sprinkle a little flour on a hard surface (so the dough doesn't stick) and knead for about 5 minutes or so or until it gets elastic. Use your hands, knuckles in a rocking and rolling motion to knead it. Have fun with it.

4. Dive the ball into 4 - 8 pieces, shape each piece into a ball, place into individual bowls and cover with a clean damp towel or cloth. Now you need to let it rest and rise. The more you let it rise, the fluffier the pizza crust will be. If you are impatient, leave it for 10 minutes, if not, leave for around an hour.

5. Take one of the balls and put onto a floured flat surface and use your knuckles to rock out the dough to make into a flat crust. If you have a rolling pin, then flour and use that. Once again, you can determine the thickness of the crust. Repeat with other dough balls, or put them in the freezer so you can use at another time.

6. Brush each side of the crust with oil, and place on a baking sheet. 

7. Preheat your oven to 500 degrees.

8. Pace your favorite sauce and toppings on your pizza. You can use pre-made tomato sauce, marinara sauce or low sugar BBQ sauce. Throw on some lean protein like chicken and layer with some vegetables and some cheese. The options are endless and you can design it to your liking.

9. Cook at 500 degrees for 10 - 12 minutes or until dough is cooked through and toppings are crispy.

Note: If you are using full fat cheese, only use a little bit and don't overdo it. If you are using low fat cheese make sure you keep an eye on it as it doesn't melt like full fat version and may burn if left in too long.

This recipe is very basic and you can add anything you to want to it. Add garlic powder, herbs and spices to create different types of crusts. You can even use it to make bread, calzones and other healthy baked goods.

Enjoy!

Healthy Boy x

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