Meatless Monday

One of my favorite quick and easy meatless dinners is vegetarian pizza.  Here are a few healthy tips you can apply when making pizza at home or when ordering out:

• Order thin crust and save roughly 50 calories & 3 grams of fat per slice!
• Add extra veggies to boost the nutritional value and flavor of your favorite pizzas
• Ask for half the cheese that they would normally use when ordering out

When making your own pizza in the comfort of your own kitchen, you have a lot more control and can turn this high calorie splurge into a healthy dinner staple! Here's how:

• Use a whole wheat crust
• Making pizza for one? Use a thin whole wheat flat out wrap as your crust. Cook in the oven for 7-10 minutes to make it crispy
• Swap high fat cheese for low fat versions like part-skim mozzarella
• Also try using sharper cheeses like Cheddar or Blue Cheese to top your pie.  You can get a more flavorful taste by using less of these cheeses.
• Make your own pizza sauce with tomato paste, tomatoes & fresh basil and oregano.  You'll avoid the added sugars and artificial flavors used in the premade types

 The recipes below serve one but you can apply the ingredients to a whole wheat pizza crust to create a veggie pie for your family or roommates.

Thin Crust Mediterranean Pizza

• 1 Whole Wheat Flatout Wrap
• 1/2 cup tomato sauce
• 1/4 cup feta cheese
• 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes
• 1/2 fresh spinach

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pre-cook flat out for 6-10 min, until crispy. Top with tomato sauce, sun dried tomatoes, spinach and feta cheese, cook for an additional 3 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Nutritional Information

Amount Per Serving
Calories		287.3
Total Fat		12.4 g
	Saturated Fat	5.7 g
	Polyunsaturated Fat	0.4 g
	Monounsaturated Fat	1.8 g
Cholesterol		33.4 mg
Sodium		1,663.2 mg
Potassium		569.6 mg
Total Carbohydrate		37.6 g
	Dietary Fiber	11.0 g
	Sugars	15.1 g
Protein		18.7 g

Three Cheese Flatout

• 1 Whole Wheat Flatout Wrap
• 1/2 cup tomato sauce
• 1/8 cup part skim mozzarella cheese
• 1/8 cup low fat Monterrey jack cheese
• 2 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Pre-cook flat out for 6-10 min, until crispy. Top with tomato sauce and cheese, cook for an additional 3 minutes or instill cheese is melted.

Nutritional Information

Calories		256.0
Total Fat		10.2 g
	Saturated Fat	4.0 g
	Polyunsaturated Fat	0.2 g
	Monounsaturated Fat	1.8 g
Cholesterol		19.1 mg
Sodium		1,288.7 mg
Potassium		31.9 mg
Total Carbohydrate		29.0 g
	Dietary Fiber	9.0 g
	Sugars	10.0 g
Protein		22.0 g