Healthy Pizza

[cmotherofpirl]

Healthy pizza not a half-baked idea
Increased bake time, temperature hiked antioxidants in whole-wheat pies
Reuters
Updated: 6:52 p.m. ET March 26, 2007
It’s the junk food junkie’s wildest dream come true — pizza as health food.

University of Maryland food chemists said on Monday they had found ways to enhance the antioxidant content of whole-grain wheat pizza dough by baking it longer at higher temperatures and giving the dough lots of time to rise.

Antioxidants are substances that protect cells from damage caused by unstable molecules known as free radicals. Some experts believe antioxidants can lower the risk of cancer, heart disease and other ailments.

Liangli Lucy Yu, a food chemistry professor, said the findings arose from broader research into ways to improve health-promoting properties of wheat-based food products.

“The reason that we chose pizza is just because it is a very popular food product, not only in the U.S. but worldwide,” researcher Jeffrey Moore added.

“So we thought if we could find ways to improve (its antioxidant) properties, doing this for such a product could have a larger impact on public health,” Moore added.

But Moore had a slice of advice for pizza aficionados who might want to cover their crust with mounds of fatty toppings like extra coagulated milk, pepperoni, sausage and ground beef.

“If you’re adding back all these other things that have potential negative health consequences, then you’re negating anything that you’re adding in terms of (health) value,” Moore said.

The research was served up at a meeting of the American Chemical Society in Chicago, a mecca for deep-dish, thick-crust pizza.

The researchers experimented with baking temperatures, baking time and fermentation time — the time the pizza dough is given to rise.

Turn up the heat
Antioxidant levels rose by up to 60 percent with longer baking times and up to 82 percent with higher baking temperatures, depending on the type of wheat flour and the antioxidant test used, they said. The precise mechanisms involved are unclear, they said.

Baking time and temperature can be increased together without burning the pizza when done carefully, the researchers said. They used oven temperatures from 400 to 550 degrees Fahrenheit, and baking times from 7 to 14 minutes.

They looked at fermentation times up to two full days, and found that longer periods in some cases doubled the dough’s antioxidant levels. This probably stemmed from chemical reactions caused by yeasts in the dough that had more time to release the antioxidant components, Moore said.

A common fermentation time is about 18 hours, Moore said.


The study used only whole wheat dough. Most of the antioxidants in wheat are in the bran and endosperm components that are generally removed in refined flour, Moore said. Thus, longer and hotter baking and longer fermentation likely would be less effective in making more healthful pizza with refined flour, he said.

The study was funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and grain organizations, but not by the pizza industry.

Copyright 2007 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters.
URL: [url="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17803437/"]http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17803437/[/url]

[dUSt]

Okay, so basically... If you want healthy pizza, just burn it.

[iggyjoan]

all pizzas healthy for you.
think about it:
bread (crust)
vegtables or fruit (tomato sauce)
dairy- coagulated milk
meat - pepporoni or sausage or w/e
fruit - pineapple ( i know people i know)

just take away all the extra oil and fat and junk and what are you left with?!?

(drum roll please..)


HEALTH FOOD!

[Proud2BCatholic139]

Good, I'm glad you didn't say healthful.

Veggie pizza is good!

[goldbug16]

I love Veggie Pizza... Onions and peppers are my favorite.

[Dudette]

[quote name='iggyjoan' post='1224123' date='Mar 31 2007, 12:39 PM']all pizzas healthy for you.
think about it:
bread (crust)
vegtables or fruit (tomato sauce)
dairy- coagulated milk
meat - pepporoni or sausage or w/e
fruit - pineapple ( i know people i know)

just take away all the extra oil and fat and junk and what are you left with?!?

(drum roll please..)
HEALTH FOOD![/quote]

*ahem* If I may be so bold, 50% of food that is is generally perceived as 'healthy' actually has a lot more to it than you think.

Bread crust, if it's white, it's not healthy for you. Only 100% whole wheat bread is [b]better[/b] for you. While tomatoes are good for you, tomato sauce can be dangerous, go take a look at the list of ingredients on the can, yeah you see spices etc, and then you get to 'flavouring.' Do anybody have [i]any[/i] idea how much carp goes into that flavouring? No thanks, I'll pass. Same goes for processed meats, yuck.

Just thought I would point this out.

Edited April 1, 2007 by Dudette

[Violet]

[quote name='goldbug16' post='1224270' date='Mar 31 2007, 04:00 PM']I love Veggie Pizza... Onions and peppers are my favorite. [/quote]
Onions give you bad breath.

[Guest T-Bone]

[quote name='iggyjoan' post='1224123' date='Mar 31 2007, 11:39 AM']fruit - pineapple ( i know people i know)[/quote]

Pineapples do not belong on pizza!

[Violet]

oh, thats yummy pinapple pizza!

[Ora et Labora]

[quote name='dUSt' post='1220553' date='Mar 27 2007, 02:53 PM']Okay, so basically... If you want healthy pizza, just burn it.[/quote]

[Sojourner]

[quote name='Dudette' post='1224599' date='Mar 31 2007, 08:55 PM']*ahem* If I may be so bold, 50% of food that is is generally perceived as 'healthy' actually has a lot more to it than you think.

Bread crust, if it's white, it's not healthy for you. Only 100% whole wheat bread is [b]better[/b] for you. While tomatoes are good for you, tomato sauce can be dangerous, go take a look at the list of ingredients on the can, yeah you see spices etc, and then you get to 'flavouring.' Do anybody have [i]any[/i] idea how much carp goes into that flavouring? No thanks, I'll pass. Same goes for processed meats, yuck.

Just thought I would point this out. [/quote]
Actually whole grain bread is not better for everyone. Certain types of intestinal issues are exacerbated by too much insoluble fiber, so white bread can actually be best for people who have this. Good white bread, not wonder bread.

The other stuff you're right on though.

[Violet]

What do you mean?

[Sojourner]

White bread has soluble fiber, which moves easier through your system than insoluble fiber. If you have a sensitive colon, insoluble fiber can really irritate it and can be quite painful. People with IBS, for example, should stay away from whole grains, or at least limit them.

[Violet]

I hate whole wheat bread. ish!

[Totus Tuus]

I just had a healthy dinner. My pizza was burnt to a crisp (it was my fault...)