Diabetes Direction

At our house, we used to regularly order delivery pizza from a local chain restaurant. We loved it! After our Diabetes diagnosis we stopped ordering it, figuring that it was too high in carbs for us, due to the crust. One night we decided that we had been good on our nutrition for long enough to deserve a treat, so we ordered a pizza. We waited, anticipating that melted cheese and ooey gooey goodness, for the pizza to arrive. Plates, napkins and a movie were all in place, ready to go. Finally we were able to take that much missed slice from the box, took big bites…and were sorely disappointed. The pizza tasted horrible! It was very sweet tasting! Having so much sugar in our diet before Diabetes made us not even notice the sugar that is on the delivery pizza. I guess it is the crust, but we didn’t even want their pizza anymore. Not to mention that it really spiked our blood sugar levels, even with just a couple of slices.

I had made homemade pizza often in the past, but sometimes you just really don’t feel like cooking, you know? Well, I decided to give it a go and see if it affected our blood like the delivery one did. We found that it did NOT spike our blood sugar really high, and we are able to eat up to three good slices without a problem! Yay! I love to experiment with the toppings, and try a variety of vegetables.

This picture is of a pizza I made a couple of nights ago. To top it I used ground turkey seasoned fairly heavily with an Italian seasoning mix, garlic powder and onion salt. Ground turkey doesn’t have a lot of flavor on it’s own, but seasoned it is a great and more affordable substitute for beef. Also on this pizza was spinach, green bell peppers and a mix of cheeses. Believe it or not, one of the toppings I occasionally use that my kids love is carrots, sliced into thin ovals. They really are quite good on a pizza!

To make the crust, I use about 1/2 a cup of very warm or slightly hot water with half a teaspoon of sugar and a good teaspoon full of quick acting yeast. I mix these together and let it sit for 10 minutes or so, to give the yeast time to eat up the sugar. When it has foamed up to the top of my measuring cup it is time to add the rest of the ingredients.

I use a glass casserole dish that has a lid to make mine in so that I can cover it easily while it rises. You can cover your bowl with any other type of cover that you have.

First thing into the bowl is about 1 1/2 tablespoons of olive oil. To this I stir in the water and yeast mixture. Using a 1 cup measuring cup, I fill it about half way with all purpose flour and mix a teaspoon of salt, and then I stir it into the water. I mix in flour until the dough is no longer sticky, but is not tough. This is about one cup. You may need more or less, depending on things like altitude, humidity, etc. so just go by feel.

While all purpose flour isn’t the best for us, it works well for pizza dough, and this makes a large thin crust pizza with a nice edge. You can substitute for whatever type of flour you like, but all purpose is what I use.

Once you have your dough, give it a few kneads using your hands. Take the dough out of the bowl and pour in another tablespoon of olive oil. Roll the dough ball in the oil to prevent any drying out. Cover and let sit in a warm area for an hour or two. The longer it sits, the more of a yeasty taste your crust will have. I have let it sit in the fridge overnight before with good results, but I typically let it rise for 2-4 hours, depending on how hungry we are!

I have a pizza stone, but truthfully it is easier to use a cheap pizza pan. Press the dough into the pan until the pan is covered. You will want to be sure that it is thin. Any thicker spots can be pressed to the edges to make a nice crust. Once this is finished, I like to brush oil and vinegar salad dressing on. It gives a nice added flavor to the dough. Be sure to get the whole thing covered, especially the outside crust! Then spread on some sauce. I use spaghetti sauce that is low in carbs, or sometimes I like to change it up and use green chile enchilada sauce. Top this with a thin sprinkle of cheese and then add your meat and veggies, and then top with more cheese. Slide this into a preheated 500F oven. Yes, that is 500. It is very hot, but it bakes the pizza perfectly! Give it 8-10 minutes or so, and you will have a delicious and affordable pizza, and best of all is that you will know exactly the ingredients used!

I use a cooling rack to slide the finished pizza on, letting it cool with air all around, keeping the bottom crust nice and firm enough to hold the toppings. A few minutes will be just perfect!

Give it a try, and experiment with sauces and toppings!

One Response to “Pizza for dinner!”