Because I’m a girl with a big appetite who is trying to follow a healthy diet plan, I became OBSESSED with “guilt-free recipes”.
My favorite cuisine is Italian and I’ve always wondered how Italian women can look that good if they eat Italian food all the time.
I love to make my own Italian dishes, but I do also enjoy treating myself to a meal at an Italian restaurant from time to time. One of my neighbors recently went on vacation to Germany and she told me that she found an incredible restaurant in Verden. You can take a look at the restaurant she went to and check out the menu here: https://portofino-verden.de/. Everything sounds so delicious, I would not where to start.
But enough about me, let’s get to the food. Here’s my all-time favorite recipe, which happens to be both guilt-free and Italian – homemade pizza, courtesy of Prevention magazine with some extra nutrition facts and tips from Women’s Health.
Firstly, let’s talk about the dough.
Making your own homemade dough might be an opportunity to spend some quality time with your family/friends as they can all get involved making, especially the kids.
Also, you can just make the dough and freeze it (wrapped tightly in baggies) for one month. Frozen crusts can go directly on the grill.
Although it is recommended to make your own dough, you can just get pre-made dough but make sure to opt for thin crust over the regular kind. (You’ll save 49 calories per slice!)
YIELD: 4 thin pizza crusts (10″ diameter)
SERVINGS: 2 per pizza
INGREDIENTS:
– 1 c whole wheat flour
– 1 c all-purpose flour
–1 1/2 tsp. Extra virgin olive oil
– 1 tsp. Kosher salt (you can also just use table salt)
DIRECTIONS:
1) Stir
Stir in 1 c whole wheat flour, 1 c all-purpose flour, 1 1/2 tsp. Extra virgin olive oil, and 1 tsp. Kosher salt.
2) Knead
Knead dough on lightly floured surface until smooth, about 2 minutes.
3) Put
Then put dough in lightly oiled bowl. Cover bowl loosely with plastic wrap and let dough rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
4) Divide
After the dough rises, divide it into 4 portions. Then roll, wrap, and freeze the crusts until ready to grill. Form dough into 4 balls.
5) Roll
Roll out dough ball on very lightly floured surface until 1/8″ thick (about 10″ diameter).
6) Transfer
Transfer to baking sheet lined with plastic wrap and cover tightly with another sheet of plastic. Repeat with remaining dough.
7) Freeze
Freeze dough until firm (about 10 minutes) or ready to use.
NUTRITION (per 1/2 crust): 120 Cal, 4 g pro, 23 g carb, 2 g fiber, 1.5 g fat, 0 g sat fat, 242 mg sodium
____________________________________________________________
Now that we have the dough, let’s talk the whole pizza
Example: Pizza Margherita
YIELD: 2 PIZZAS (10″)
SERVES: 4
INGREDIENTS:
– 1 Tbsp. Extra virgin olive oil
– 2 whole wheat pizza crust
– 1 tsp. Minced garlic
– 1 1/2 c shredded part-skim mozzarella
– 1 lb. Sliced Tomatoes
– 1/2 c fresh basil leaves
-1 Tbsp., balsamic vinegar
– 1.2 Tbsp., ground black pepper
DIRECTIONS:
Prepare grill for medium-high heat. Mix 1 Tbsp. Extra virgin olive oil and 1 tsp. Minced garlic. Now, unwrap 2 whole wheat pizza crust and brush 1 side of each with half of the garlic oil.
Then, put crusts oil side down on grill and heat until bottoms are golden brown (about 2 minutes).
Flip crusts, brush with remaining garlic oil, and sprinkle 1 1/2 c shredded part-skim mozzarella evenly over them.
Grill until bottoms are golden brown, about 2 minutes longer.
Remove to cutting board.
Scatter 1 lb. sliced tomatoes and 1/2 c fresh basil leaves evenly on pizzas.
Sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper and drizzle with 1 Tbsp. Balsamic vinegar.
Cut each pizza into 4 slices.
NUTRITION (per 2-slice serving) 295 Cal, 16 g pro, 30 g carb, 4 g fiber, 14 g fat, 6 g sat fat, 534 mg sodium
IF you have other toppings in mind, here is the needed info to keep in mind (per slice):
– Italian sausage: 44 calories
– Bacon: 43 calories
– Ground beef: 38 calories
– Pepperoni: 30 calories
– Chicken: 18 calories
– Olives: 13 calories
– Spinach, green peppers, roasted peppers, mushrooms, onions, or tomatoes: Fewer than 5 calories