Indulging in National Pizza Week: A Delicious Celebration of Flavor and Nutrition

From the 14th to the 20th, America’s beloved dish takes center stage during National Pizza Week; a week-long celebration that appeals to everyone. Beyond its delicious taste, pizza is surprisingly nutritious.

When contemplating pizza, healthiness might not be the first thing that comes to mind. However, pizza inherently combines elements from three distinct food groups, with the potential for added nutritional value through toppings.

While the convenience of ordering pizza is undeniable, making it at home can be equally simple. Homemade pizza affords you greater control over the ingredients, providing opportunities to enhance its nutritional profile with thoughtful choices.

Health Benefits of Pizza

When ordering pizza from the shop, there are some swaps you can make to ensure that you are maximizing its health benefits. Here are various ways in which pizza can contribute to a healthy diet:

Requesting whole wheat dough over white dough and you’re adding nutrients and fiber to your pizza slice.

If available, choose a slice with vegetable toppings to add fiber and a nutritious addition that will make a single slice more filling.

The tomato sauce on pizza contains lycopene, an antioxidant found in tomatoes that gives them their red color. According to the American Cancer Society, people who eat foods rich in lycopene appear to have a lower risk of certain types of cancers.

The cheese on pizza provides you with a serving or two of dairy, which also contains some protein. If you want to increase the lean protein in your pizza you can top with grilled chicken.

The last food group pizza can provide (believe it or not) is fruit. Some varieties of pizza are topped with warm sliced pineapples or apples.

Making Pizza at Home

Though pizza can treat you to all of the food groups, it is hard to make that happen when ordering from a restaurant. That is why the best way to make sure you’re treating yourself to the healthiest possible slice of pizza is to make your own homemade pizza creations. Here is an outline of simple steps to follow to help you create a delicious homemade pizza from start to finish:

Go to your local pizza parlor and ask to purchase raw dough; you can even ask for whole grain!

Roll out the dough on a piece of parchment paper to make one large round pie crust. If you want to make two separate pizzas with different toppings, split the dough in half so that you end up with two small pizza pies.

Coat the dough with tomato sauce. You can either make your own homemade sauce or purchase a jar from the food store.

Top with your favorite shredded cheese. Mozzarella is the typical cheese used for pizza but don’t be afraid to try out new flavors such as Gouda, feta, ricotta, provolone, or gorgonzola.

Now for the fun part. Finish your pizza off by adding any fun toppings you want. Add vegetables like broccoli, eggplant, spinach, peppers, onions, and/or mushrooms. Include lean sources of protein such as grilled chicken, lean ground turkey, or tuna. Top with herbs and seasonings like fresh parsley, basil, oregano, or cracked red pepper.

Bake pizza in a preheated 550-degree F oven. If you want your pizza extra crispy you can raise the heat to its highest setting. Place the pizza in the oven (preferably on a baking stone) and bake for 5 minutes. Rotate the pizza and bake for another 3-5 minutes.