I thought it only fitting that my first blog post should be about something I love. And for the sake of my self esteem, I’ll start with one that my girls rave over. As a mother, one of the many things I lose sleep over are the foods that sneak into the trash rather than into my girl’s little tummies. Finding ways to make a meal fun, interactive and also healthy is tricky but I think it CAN be done…on occasion.
Enter pizza.
Seriously, the beauty of this is almost too good to be true. Even with food allergies you can make a delicious and satisfying meal for all the tummies in your family. Just takes a little creativity.
Planning this meal is also fun. If your babes are old enough, and you’re feeling completely insane like me…pack them up and take them to the grocery store with you. Lay out the plan and let them help find ingredients.
I like to purchase the pizza dough from the refrigerated section of the store. It’s fresh, easy to roll out and less mess. I have also used “Jiffy” mix and Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Pizza crust.
If there are food allergies in your family, or you’re simply trying to eat healthier, these options are pretty great!
Now for the sauce. This is actually important. It depends on your preference of course, but I’ve found that straight up marinara sauce is perfect. And I’ve currently been craving BBQ Chicken pizza so really, the sauce is up to you.
The Goods
I like to let the girls choose. Allowing them to pick some of the toppings gets them excited to try new foods and explore tastes. It helps them feel responsible and in charge of something.
Stick to the produce section. I am challenged to eat better, and healthier when I keep this mindset as well! Here are a few of our tried and true toppings:
Sweet bell peppers (any color)
Onions
Mushrooms
Basil
Cherry Tomatoes
Artichoke hearts (We use canned for the sake of time)
Fire roasted tomatoes
Kalamata olives
Bacon
Chicken
Italian Sausage
Parmesan Cheese
Turns out, if it’s on a pizza…it’s usually pretty ding dang good. So try a few new things, and see what you like. Half the fun is doing something together and making the memories.
Mise en place
Every time I say that, I can still hear Chef yelling it till our ears rang. But it’s true- “everything in it’s place” will make for a much more enjoyable experience in the kitchen. Ten times over when there are children involved.
take another little pizza my heart now baby.
So lay out your cutting board, chop up your veggies and pull the dough out of the fridge. Preheat the oven- 450 degrees is perfect. As the oven preheats, I like to cook my meat. And when I say meat, I mean bacon. Because it’s not pizza in the Callaway home without bacon. With the rendered fat, I saute our onions and/or other veggies and season with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Chop the bacon into small pieces and get ready to roll the dough out.
P.s This is also a great way to use up leftover meat or veggies from previous meals.
The dough needs to be close to room temperature so that it’s easier to roll out. I make sure my surface is clean and dry, and then scoop about 1/4 cup flour to act as a barrier for the sticky dough to cling to. I also pat my hands with flour so when I remove the dough, it doesn’t stick to my hands. After most of the work is done, I let my girls try their hand at rolling it out.
Tip: We like to bake our crust for 3 minutes before saucing and topping it. Helps the crust to bake evenly and not get soggy from the density of our healthier toppings.
Once it’s baked for 3 minutes, I pull the pizza tin from the oven and we lay our sauce on. (enough to cover the crust, but not smother it!)
Parmesan cheese goes on half (I have a sensitivity towards dairy) and then on goes the veggies, meats and bacon. Turn on the oven light, pop that tin back in for about 14 minutes and let the kids watch it bake.
Top: Marinara/ Bottom: BBQ Chicken
Having the ability to create your own can a give you more options, save money and eat healthier!
Let it cool on a wire rack for about 10 minutes, pull out the paper plates and enjoy your hard work. The girls don’t even want store bought pizza anymore, and the crazy thing is… they pick off those toppings anyways! With our home made kind, they gobble every bite and ask for more.
That feels good to my mama heart.
Let me know if you try this, I’d love to hear how the adventure goes!
xoxo,
Hanna