How to Eat Pizza and Stay on Track

Like many others, pizza is a huge weakness of mine.  This recipe is perfect for someone who is trying to eat healthy but can't seem to get the tasty, cheesy thoughts out of their head.  When trying to eat healthy it can sometimes be hard to find things that satisfy the palate, but this grilled pizza with turkey sausage, grilled peppers, and onions will surely please a pizza junkie's needs.


You will need...

• 1/2 pound Italian hot turkey sausage. 
• 1 large red onion cut into 1/4-inch thick slices.
• 2 large red peppers, cored, seeded, and quartered.
• Olive oil.
• Salt and pepper
• 1 recipe favorite pizza dough, rolled into 4 (6-inch) rounds
• 1/2 pound grated fontina cheese
• 1 cup low-fat or skim milk ricotta cheese 
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Then to cook it...

Preheat a grill. 

Grill the sausage on both sides until golden brown and cooked through (about 10 minutes per side). 

Brush oil on onions and peppers and sprinkle with salt and pepper. 

Grill the onions and peppers until soft (about 3 to 4 minutes per side).

Remove the sausage from the grill and slice into 1/4-inch thick slices. 

Remove the onions, separate into rings, and chop. 

Remove the peppers and slice into 1/8-inch thick slices. 

Crumble the sausage into a saute pan and cook, over medium high heat, until browned.

Heat grill to high.

Brush dough with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and grill for 2 to 3 minutes or until golden brown. 

Turn over and grill for 1 to 2 minutes. 

Remove from the grill and place on a flat surface.

Divide the fontina cheese for each of the 4 pizzas, along with sausage, onions, and peppers over the cheese. 

Put the pizza on the grill, close the cover and grill until the cheese has melted (about 3 to 4 minutes). 

To finish in the oven, preheat the oven to 450. 

Place the pizza on sheet pans and bake until the cheese has melted (about 5 to 10 minutes).

Remove the pizzas from the oven and top with dollops of the ricotta cheese and sprinkle with chopped basil. 

Let rest for 5 minutes. 

Slice and serve. 

And after you finish the pizza should look like this...

Yummy!

If you love sausage, turkey sausage it a very healthy from alternative for regular (pork) sausage.  It contains half the fat of pork sausage and is much more lean which means it has less saturated fat.  It also has less sodium.  Even though there is cheese on this pizza, there isn't a lot.  A little bit won't hurt, especially if you are really missing your dear pizza. When dieting or trying to eat healthy, portion control is a huge factor. Buying low-fat cheeses are also a very healthy alternative and, in my opinion, seem to taste about the same as regular.  The peppers, onion, and basil sprinkle add a perfect amount of flavor and still keeping the meal low fat.  The grilling of the pizza also seemed to add an extra kick of smokey flavor and crunchiness to the crust. 

One slice of Sbarro's Supreme pizza is 630 calories, while this recipe contains around 400 for each small individual pizza.

So why eat this...

Greasy, artery clogging, and full of calories, when you can eat this fresh and delicious Grilled Hot Sausage, Pepper, and Onion Pizza!

Trying to eat right but LOVE food?

I am a huge fan of food, but I am also a big fan of eating right and keeping a healthy body weight. From growing up in a home with a mother who has the same love for food and being fit I have learned many recipes and tips for healthy cooking. Instead of giving in to delicious greasy foods that everyone loves, I have learned to open my mind (and taste buds) to lower calorie foods. It sometimes isn't easy to avoid my love for pizza and cheeseburger's but as I look for more low fat recipes, my cravings for fattening foods decrease more and more.   Many people think eating healthy requires to never eat out and always cook at home. Everyone needs a break from cooking, or some people might not even like to cook. But even at your favorite restaurants, there are healthy alternatives on the menu. I plan on taking a few of my mom's healthy recipes, looking for my own tasty meals, and also going to a few popular restaurants and giving information on healthier choices that might be available. In order to start eating healthy and break a fast food habit, one must open their mind to other flavors out there, other than greasy, salty, cheesy stuff.  After finding and trying these delicious foods, I hope I can find tasty but healthy alternatives for the grease lovers out there.