Saturday 30 August 2014

Low Fat Vegetarian Pizza Recipe


Since I got back from Italy I have been desperate to try and create a healthy pizza and today (with my boyfriend off on holiday) I finally got the chance with this spur-of-the-moment lunchtime idea!

I had minimal ingredients (hence why this is a recipe for white pizza- no tomatoes!) and not much time so fussing around with yeast was out of the question. 

The combination of wholemeal and white flour helps lower the GI index of the pizza (in plain speak: it'll keep you fuller for longer). Adding sweet potato again adds nutrients whilst keeping the GI low and I used low fat cream cheese spread. 

Ingredients: (serves 2 for lunch or 1 hungry person for dinner)




(For the base)

100g white self-raising flour
75g wholemeal self-raising flour
(this ratio can be adjusted to your liking, just bare in mind that the more wholemeal you use the more water you'll need to add as wholemeal flour is a lot drier and heavier)
2 tbsp olive oil
95ml water
Pinch of salt

(For the topping)

1 egg
1 medium sweet potato
1 garlic clove
a few generous dollops of cream cheese
2 tbsp pesto
1 whole pepper
oregano
grated cheddar cheese 
(to own taste. I love a really cheesy pizza but reducing the amount of cheese hugely reduces the fat content. You can also swap out cheddar for a much stronger cheese like parmesan to allow you to reduce the amount but keep the taste)

Instructions:

I have to admit I'm really not a recipe-following kind of cook. I only ever measure or weigh when I absolutely have to (I'm pretty lazy) so a lot of my recipes need you to use your own judgement!

1) Mix the flours, oil and water together in a large bowl along with a pinch of salt. 
    Since I'm at home I've been using my mum's fabulous mixer so I used that to work the mixture into a dough and knead it for about 2 minutes.

Here's a photo to show the consistency it should be at. (I'm going to miss this gorgeous piece of kit when I go back to uni!) 

2) While the mixer works (or your dough rests), add a drizzle of oil to a frying pan along with chopped garlic and gently heat. Then add the chopped peppers and grated sweet potato. 
Keep at a low heat to avoid the potato sticking (it's notorious for this so keep a VERY close eye on it).

3) While the potato mix is cooking pre-heat the oven to 180°C fan and make sure the tray you want to heat your pizza on is inside.
This helps to make sure the pizza base will be cooked through by putting it on a piping hot tray (just make sure you've got the oven gloves close by!)

4) Make sure your worktop is well covered in a coating of flour (I used white for this part) and roll out the dough into a circle using a floured rolling pin. 
The dough needs to be as thin as possible but make sure its not sticking to the table top or else there is no way you'll get it on to the baking tray. I used a sheet of non-stick paper on my tray to make sure there was no chance of it sticking but greaseproof paper or plenty of oil should work the same.

5) Evenly spread the cream cheese onto the dough taking it almost to the edges, then do the same with the pesto. Take the sweet potato mix off the hob and arrange it onto the pizza. Add a sprinkle off oregano here (optional).

6) Top with grated cheese and pop in the oven for about 20-35 minutes.
Check it regularly as cooking time largely depends on the thickness of dough/ topping you use. About 10 minutes before you reckon it's done, break the egg on top of it in the centre and nudge up the heat to about 200°C.

7) When the egg looks solid, bring the pizza out and enjoy!

Not quite a central egg but never mind, it adds to the homemade look!








4 comments:

  1. This looks yummy - will definitely try it out when I move back to uni!

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  2. Didn't think this combination would work but it really is lovely.

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  3. Thanks, make sure you let me know how it goes!

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