I love the classic, simple cheese pizza where the mozzarella and sauce, some fragrant basil and, of course, a crispy crust combine their unique textures and flavors to create one of the most delicious meals you’ll ever eat.
Simplicity goes a long way in the culinary arts. But if you’re eating a pizza for lunch every day, as I do, you’ll want a change of taste now and then. Toppings bring versatility of flavor to your pizza, and there’s unlimited opportunity for creativity by combining them just so.
Pizza toppings also can make your pizza more nutritious and healthful by adding extra vitamins, minerals, and fiber. Pizza toppings also can be calorie bombs, especially the fatty meat toppings like sausage, pepperoni, and meatballs. So you need to practice mindful eating even while enjoying your midday treat.
I’m not a nutritionist by any means, I’m a chef from Naples, but fortunately my partners, the editors at Eat This, Not That! magazine, are experts at gathering healthy-living information and have supplied me with the latest nutrition and weight-loss research. Try these favorite and exotic toppings alone or in combination on your pizzas. They’ll add a level of flavor and nutrition that will help you get the most out of the Pizza Diet.
Just two slices of anchovy pizza will get you more than halfway to your daily quota of heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids. Anchovies also are rich in calcium and potassium (both essential weight-loss minerals) as well as vitamin A. The downside of anchovies on your pizza is the added salt. If you want to reduce sodium but still want fish on your pizza, try sardines, which are much less salty and deliver more protein.
This fiber-rich plant contains more bone-building magnesium and potassium than any other vegetable. The leaves contain antioxidants that can reduce stroke risk and vitamin C for immune-system health.
Arugula is a tangy, peppery leafy green that provides as many nutritional health benefits as better-known kale and Brussels sprouts. A key nutrient in arugula is alpha-lipoic acid, which is used to reverse hardening of the blood vessels and prevent heart attacks and also lowers blood sugar. Like other cruciferous vegetables, it contains a powerful cancer-fighting nutrient called sulforaphane, plus calcium and vitamin K. While arugula looks beautiful atop a pizza pie, it can also be hidden inside if you cook it with your sauce, a trick that can help you get your kids to eat more vegetables.
Fresh basil is an aromatic herb that coaxes out the natural sweetness of the tomatoes without overpowering the flavor of the sauce or the cheese. Delicate, but powerful, basil leaves and stems contain essential oils and phytochemicals that have biological activity in the body, especially as an anti-inflammatory. Basil essential oils have been shown to lower blood glucose and triglyceride and cholesterol levels. And there is nothing better to top leftover pizza with the next day that will make the pie taste fresh baked.
Topping your pizza with sliced bell peppers can be an easy way to lower your cholesterol while adding texture and flavor to your pie. A study conducted at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, reveals that beta-carotene-rich foods, like bell peppers, can increase the proportion of beneficial HDL cholesterol to total cholesterol in rats, potentially reducing the risk of stroke and heart disease in those with high cholesterol. Tip: You’ll enjoy peppers even more on your pie if you roast them first.
This cruciferous vegetable is loaded with the potent nutrient sulforaphane, which has powerful anticancer properties, according to studies at Johns Hopkins University. Other good sources of the phytonutrient are cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and kale. Try some on your next pie.
Eggplant is good for more than just parmigiana. Thin slices of the shiny, purple vegetable make a nice, nutritious pizza topping as a meat replacement. It’s packed with powerful antioxidants called anthocyanins that provide neuroprotective benefits like boosting short-term memory and reducing inflammation.
This may sound nuts, but these tiny seeds are packed with fiber, vitamin B1, magnesium and heart-healthy omega-3s. Add a tablespoon to your sauce or sprinkle on top of the cheese after the pizza has baked. You’ll hardly taste it, and it adds only 35 calories.
Keep the powdered stuff on the shelf. Roasted garlic adds a mellow yet still pungent note to the flavor profile of your pie. Also try fresh garlic sliced thin, chopped, crushed or minced. It’s good for your cardiovascular system, keeping blood vessels flexible as you age. And it contains strong antibacterial powers.
Capsaicin, the chemical that gives hot peppers their bite, may raise your metabolism to burn more calories and help you lose weight, according to some studies. Other research in the journal Open Heart reveals that the capsaicin found in hot peppers can lower cholesterol.
Like almonds, kale kind of started the whole superfood obsession. It’s a hearty green, meaning it takes a little more getting used to than other greens like spinach, but it’s worth it. Kale is rich in phytochemicals like lutein and zeaxanthin that help maintain eyesight. It also contains a bunch of vital nutrients like phosphorus, vitamin E and folate.
For the most part, topping a pizza with meat, especially meatballs, pepperoni or bacon, will overpower the flavor of the cheese and sauce and leave greasy fat that you don’t need when trying to lose weight. If you want to load up on protein, add slices of lean chicken breast or anchovies/sardines (see above). If you must have processed meats, keep them to a minimum and only on occasion. Remember, the key principle of the Pizza Diet is learning to be mindful of what you are eating. By being careful in your choices, you can lose weight quickly and easily without feeling as if you are sacrificing your favorite foods.
They’re a common pizza topping, but why be common? Sample the nuanced flavors of shiitake, maitake, reishi and portobello mushrooms and others. All mushrooms contain significant cholesterol- and cancer-fighting properties. They are rich in potassium, which helps the heart maintain normal rhythm, fluid balance and nerve function, and selenium. A recent study published in the British Journal of Urology found that men who eat plenty of selenium-rich foods can reduce their risk of prostate cancer.
If you have high cholesterol, the only tears you should be shedding while chopping onions for your pizza are tears of joy. Researchers from the University of Colorado at Boulder’s Department of Evolutionary Biology found that antioxidant-rich onions can help those who consume them maintain a healthier LDL-to-HDL ratio.
You will never find this on a pizza in Napoli, but if you like sweet, juicy fruit on your pie, this one contains a potent mix of vitamins and enzymes that lower inflammation and have been shown to protect against arthritis and macular degeneration.
One reason pizza is considered health food is because cooked tomatoes and tomato paste deliver even more of the heart-healthy nutrient lycopene than fresh ones do. But don’t discount slicing some fresh meaty Romas as a topping. More lycopene is always better. It has been shown to protect against degenerative brain diseases and prostate cancer.
This fairly common topping is an excellent source of vitamins and minerals, calcium, fiber and protein, and is also very low in calories. And due to its subtle flavor and texture, spinach on your pizza boosts the nutritional value of every bite without overpowering the other flavors. (Try it in combination with artichoke hearts.) You might not even notice you ate spinach pizza, until you look in the mirror and see it on your teeth.
Just 1 cup of sun-dried tomatoes delivers you 7 grams of fiber, three-quarters of your recommended daily allowance (RDA) of potassium—which is essential for heart health and tissue repair—and 50 percent of your RDA of vitamin C, the superstar antioxidant that prevents DNA damage. They’re also rich in vitamins A and K, and metabolism-revving potassium.
Yes, sweet potatoes. Slice them thin like large rings of pepperoni. They are better for you than the popular pizza topping. Sweet potatoes contain glutathione, an antioxidant that boosts immune-system health and may protect against Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, heart attack, stroke and diabetes.
This leafy green made headlines when it topped the list of powerhouse foods in a study conducted by researchers at William Paterson University in New Jersey, which measured the nutritional density of various foods. Watercress surprised everyone by significantly outranking kale in the results. Consuming this superfood has been credited with helping to lower blood pressure, cutting your risk for cancer and diabetes and helping to keep bones healthy. Watercress is often used in salads, but its peppery flavor works well on top of pizza. But don’t go overboard; a little goes a long way.