Healthier Choices To Consider When Ordering Pizza
Even though you may not consider pizza to be a healthy food choice, it can be made healthier with a little tweaking of the traditional combination of crust, sauce, toppings, and cheese. You can research the websites of the most popular local pizza delivery companies, who are very eager to offer healthier varieties of popular menu choices.
Most pizza restaurants will also customize pizzas by request, to accommodate those with health or dietary concerns. All you need to do is to become informed and to embrace the idea that pizza can be enjoyed in many forms that are better for your health.
Healthier choices in pizza crusts
Whole wheat crusts
Whole wheat is healthier in every form than heavily processed white flour, adding more fiber and protein. Whole wheat crusts also provide the same chewy texture as their less healthy white counterpart because of gluten, a protein found in wheat products.
Gluten free crusts
Many pizza delivery companies now offer gluten free crusts for those with gluten intolerance or Celiac Disease, an autoimmune disorder in which ingestion of gluten limits the ability of the small intestine to absorb nutrients, resulting in possible malnutrition.
Of course, the absence of gluten means that the crust cannot have the smooth and elastic texture as before, but it allows those who cannot tolerate gluten to order and enjoy a pizza just like everyone else.
Thin crusts
Consumers who wish to limit their intake of carbohydrates for reasons of health or weight control can opt for thin crusts, which contain substantially less calories than traditional crusts.
Cheese
When consumers think of pizza, they envision huge mouthfuls of melted cheese, yet while mozzarella cheese, the traditional pizza cheese, is relatively lower in fat than some other cheeses, it is still high in fat and sodium content.
If you want a traditional mozzarella cheese pizza, look for a pizza shop that uses fresh mozzarella, rather than the prepared shredded variety. Fresh mozzarella has a much lower sodium content. You might want to seek out a shop that offers a lower fat, part skim mozzarella option, which has the same creamy texture with less fat and calories.
No cheese pizza
It may sound like heresy, but you can still enjoy a pizza with just sauce and toppings. You may opt for adding your own healthier cheese or cheese substitute after ordering a cheese-free pizza from a shop with your favorite sauce or crust.
Sauces
For many consumers, pizza sauce is the key to becoming and remaining a steady customer of a pizza shop. Check out the websites of your favorite shops to see the sodium and sugar contents of their sauces to choose the healthiest of your top choices.
Great pizzas don't result from simply adding more salt and sugar. Pizzas are culinary works of art to proud pizzaiolos and pizzaiolas, who are as proud of their sauces as any artists are proud of their works. Seek out the best sauces and you can adapt a pizza at will and still be satisfied.
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