Spinach Crust Pizza

This is originally Jamie's find but I'm sharing it!! It's so good!!!

Spinach Crust Pizza

 

Ingredients

Crust

2 cups raw spinach leaves

1 egg (large)

1 cup shredded Kraft Italiano cheese blend

spices (I used salt, pepper, and seasoning salt - a sprinkle of each)

 

Pizza Sauce

24 grape tomatoes

2 cloves garlic

 

Toppings

2 rounds of Canadian bacon, diced

1/4 cup onion, diced

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded

 

Directions

Preheat oven to 425. Line a 12 inch pizza pan with parchment paper (Definitely do this. DO NOT skip the parchment paper. I found that where the crust touched the pan it stuck horribly! It peels off the paper no problem.). Set aside.

In a blender (or magic bullet), blend spinach until it is a baby food consistency. Add egg and pulse until combined. Add in cheese and spices and pulse until just combined.

Spread evenly in prepared pizza pan. (If you are like me you are going to think there is no way there is enough to cover a pizza pan. There is. Just spread it out slowly and carefully and it will get there!)

 

 

Bake at 425 for about 15 minutes. Edges will be browned and crispy.

 

 

Prepare pizza sauce by placing tomatoes and garlic in blender (or magic bullet) and pulse until smooth.

Spread evenly over cooked crust. Top with diced Canadian bacon, onion, and Parmesan cheese.

 

 

Place back in oven and broil until cheese is melted.

 

 

600 calories, 37 fat, 18 carbs, 48.7 protein.

That's for the entire pizza.

I know, right?!? But seriously- this pizza is delicious!

Helpful Website

Here's a website that helps breakdown foods!
http://nutritiondata.self.com/


EAT MORE VEGETABLES!!!

Food Isn't Just for Eating....

Hey guys!
So as the nutritionist in the family, I feel the need to keep everyone up to date on Nutrition related stuffs. So something that I would like all of us to do is make a goal to do our best for preventative health care by being conscious of what we eat! So here are a few things:

1. We have food labels for a reason people. Read them.

2. Trans fats are so much worse that anyone tells you. The reason is because of how they're metabolized. They greatly increase LDL levels(bad cholesterol) and slightly decrease HDL levels(good cholesterol), putting you at greater risk for cardiovascular disease. We really need to be conscious of this- it runs in our family. So avoid foods that have partially hydrogenated vegetable oils as an ingredient- just because it says 0g Trans fats doesn't mean anything. That's just per portion size. In some European countries- it's illegal for companies to sell food that contains trans fats- something to think about.

3. Sugars. Seriously, there are so many different ways to say it: sugar, corn syrup, sucrose, dextrose, high fructose corn syrup.....I can go on. Just be aware of how many kinds of sugars it lists on a food label. High sugar foods trigger a high insulin response that spikes above normal levels then will drop, putting you in a hypoglycemic state. This is in normal people, not diabetics. This response can increase the risk of metabolic syndrome. And weight gain. And diabetes.

4. Because of the high cardiovascular disease risk for our family, really try to replace trans and sat fats with Polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats. Use oils like olive and safflower. Try eating fatty fish like salmon once or twice a week. If you don't like fish, try a fish oil supplement.

5. Fast food restaurant portion sizes are much more than you think! A meal at Carl's Junior: Low Carb $6 Burger -570cal, medium fries- 430cal, medium soda- 170. That's 1170 calories right there for one meal. Average calorie intake for women is usually around 1500cal. So something that you think was a healthy, good lunch may not always be that way. Most restaurants have nutrition information posted or available on websites so don't be afraid to check it out to help out!

So, those are the big points for now. Love you all!

EAT MORE VEGETABLES!!!!

Tomato Avocado Salad

Okay! I LOVE this salad and it's full of lycopenes and other wonderful antioxidants, not to mention MUFA's(a good fat!). This salad also has a low glycemic index, so long as you don't drink the dressing!

Recipe for 1 serving:
1 tomato
1/2 avocado
2 oz or so of mozzarella cheese
2 or 3 tbsp of Cheesy Fantastico (I use the light version=25 calories)

Chop up tomato and avocado. Slice cheese. Pour on dressing and you're done! So easy and also a good source for potassium! Good eating!

EAT MORE VEGETABLES!!!!