Pizza is generally considered a favorite junk food and arguably the most popular food in North America. Pizza crusts vary depending on your region or personal preference but most pizza chains produce greasy, salty, high in fat versions of the original Italian dish; which ironically wasn’t very unhealthy at all.

Many people believe making pizza from scratch is difficult, and as a result most either purchase frozen pizzas from supermarkets which are high in saturated fats, or from pizzerias, which are not only unhealthy but can be quite costly. By making your own pizza at home, you are not only in control of exactly what ingredients and calories you are consuming, but saving money as well.

Below is my healthier version of pizza, which consists of a whole wheat crust, low-fat cheese and chicken breasts.

Pizza Crust for 2 12-inch thin crust pizzas

This pizza crust recipe produces a thin and somewhat crunchy crust because the dough is rolled very thin in order to produce two pizza crusts, however you may not split the dough in two and use all crust for the same pizza. This will result in a thicker, softer crust however the calories will be doubled. Also it should be noted that this is a very quick and easy recipe for pizza dough, and the more traditional way of creating the crust is more complex. Because of this series being “quick, easy and healthy” I have limited the steps as much as possible in order to make preparation as simple and painless as possible. This recipes yields enough dough for 2 12 inch thin crust pizzas (16 servings)

Time to Prepare:

30 mins

Amount per servings:

Calories: 95

Fat: 2g

Carbs: 15g

Cholesterol: 0mg

Ingredients

1 Package of active dry yeast or 2 1/4 tsps.

1 tsp white sugar

3/4 to 1 cup warm water

2 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour

2 tablespoons of olive oil

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp garlic powder (optional)

1/2 tsp onion powder (optional)

1/2 tsp of Italian Seasonings (optional)

1 tbsp of Parmesan Cheese (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 F. Put warm water in a bowl and sugar and yeast, wait until dissolved, around 10-15 mins.

2. Once dissolved, stir in flour, olive oil and the salt. Let rest for 10 mins.

3. Roll dough into a round shape on a floured service, cut in half. Set aside one half and roll out the first half into any pizza shape you prefer. Transfer dough to a pizza pan (you may add a small amount of oil to the pan, but this will add calories). Spread with pizza sauce (recipe below).

Pizza Sauce for 2 12-inch pizzas

Time to Prepare:

20 mins

Amount per servings:

Calories: 45

Fat: 0.7g

Carbs: 9g

Cholesterol: 2mg

Ingredients

1 can tomato paste (175 ml)

3/4 cup warm water

3 tbsp of Parmesan cheese

2 minced garlic cloves

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp of oregano

1/4 tsp basil

1/4 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp pepper flakes

Pinch of salt

Directions

Mix all ingredients in a small bowl and let rest for 5 mins. Then spread equals amounts over the two pizza crusts.

Toppings:

2 cup of shredded low fat mozza

2 cup of diced or shredded grilled chicken breast

2 garlic clove, minced

1 onion, diced

1 green pepper, diced

2 cups of chopped mushrooms

Calories per serving: 80

Sprinkle toppings on the sauced pizza crust and bake in pre-heated over (425F) for 15-20 mins or until the cheese is golden brown. Let the pizzas rest for about 5 mins before slicing. You may freeze the uncooked pizza to eat for later as well.

Total calories per serving: 220