Pizza is generally considered to be rather unhealthy – after all, many pizzas provide large amounts of fat and therefore many calories. But depending on the dough and toppings, pizza is actually not that unhealthy. According to an Italian study, regular consumption can even protect us from a heart attack. Of course, pizza is healthiest if you prepare the Italian specialty yourself. We reveal which toppings are healthy and give you a delicious recipe to follow along the way.
Pizza: rich in calories
How many calories a pizza contains is decided by the dough and toppings. A typical Italian pizza with thin dough, lots of vegetables and little cheese, for example, brings it to about 550 calories. A Quattro Formaggi pizza, on the other hand, quickly adds up to 850 calories. If you want to save calories, keep the toppings to a minimum, especially the cheese and salami. In addition, the thicker the dough, the more calories the pizza will have. For example, the difference between a thin Italian pizza and a thick American pizza can be as much as 300 calories. The calorie content is particularly high if the crust is also filled with cheese.
Regular consumption protects against heart attack
According to a Milan study, regular consumption of pizza is not bad for our health at all, despite the many calories. In fact, the study found that people who eat pizza twice a week are only half as likely to suffer a heart attack as people who eat pizza only occasionally. Whether pizza is healthy or not depends primarily on the toppings. If you reach for masses of sausage and cheese, the meal is certainly anything but healthy. Instead, go for plenty of vegetables when topping. But not only the topping, but also the dough plays an important role. When preparing the dough, make sure you use high-quality ingredients and then roll it out as thinly as possible. It is best to prepare the dough with olive oil: because olive oil is rich in unsaturated fatty acids, which have a beneficial effect on blood fat levels. Healthy or unhealthy?
Topping pizza healthy
To make the pizza as healthy as possible, the following ingredients are recommended for topping:
- Tomatoes: Tomatoes should not be missing on any pizza – whether sliced or as a sauce. Because the red fruits not only contain few calories, but are rich in vitamin C and lycopene. The pigment has an antioxidant effect in the body and can thus protect us from cardiovascular disease and cancer.
- Spicy herbs: Not only tomatoes, but also herbs such as basil, marjoram, oregano, rosemary and thyme containe many antioxidants. So feel free to spread the herbs generously on your pizza. Thus, you can also save some salt – of it is in the dough namely often too much.
- Onions and garlic: onions and garlic contain many sulfur compounds that counteract the clumping of blood platelets. Thus, they help to prevent a heart attack.
- Bell peppers: bell peppers are extremely low in calories, but still contain plenty of vitamins and minerals. Reach best for red peppers, in them is particularly high in vitamin C.
- Olives: Olives have more calories than peppers, but are still healthy: because they are rich in unsaturated fatty acids and phytochemicals that can protect us from cardiovascular disease and cancer.
- Mushrooms: mushrooms consist largely of water and can therefore be consumed without a guilty conscience. They are also healthy because they provide our body with valuable calcium and magnesium.
While you can access vegetables without worry, you should be sparing with salami or ham on the other hand. If it should be absolutely sausage, lean ham is better than greasy salami. It is best to cut the ham into thin strips, so that the pizza can be topped well even with small quantities. Cheese should also be used in moderation when topping, as it contains large amounts of animal fat. However, it is also rich in calcium and thus strengthens our bones and teeth.
Frozen pizza rather unhealthy
While frozen vegetables are considered relatively healthy, convenience foods such as frozen pizza are more likely to require caution. This is because many ready meals are produced in the laboratory using colorants, flavorings and preservatives, as well as flavor enhancers and binders.However, there are big differences between individual products. Therefore, when buying frozen pizzas, always make sure that the product is of high quality. Take a look at the list of ingredients directly in the store and make sure that you get a pizza without many flavor enhancers and flavorings. If you then spice up the pizza at home with some fresh vegetables, even a frozen pizza is not so unhealthy anymore.
Healthy pizza: recipe to make yourself
Preparing pizza yourself is not only fun, but also healthy. Because then you can decide for yourself which ingredients go into the dough and on the pizza. Here is a delicious recipe that allows you to easily make pizza yourself. 1. mix the following ingredients together for the dough:
- 400 grams of flour
- A sachet of yeast
- Two teaspoons of salt
- 200 milliliters of lukewarm water
- Five tablespoons olive oil
Instead of light wheat flour, use at least partly dark whole wheat flour. This contains more vitamins, minerals and fiber and also makes longer full. 2. then let the dough rise in a warm place for at least 30 minutes and then roll out thinly. 3. brush the dough with tomato sauce and then top the pizza as you like. 4. The pizza can then be baked in the oven at 200 °C until golden brown. Ideally, you combine the pizza with a fresh salad or a delicious fruit salad for dessert. This way you can enhance the meal as a whole and don’t have to feel guilty if a little more cheese did end up on the pizza.
