Yes, it can be done.
Of course, pizza in general has a lot of carbs, but you can do some reasonable compromises or make a low carb version yourself with a little time. Naturally, the heavy cheeses and meats are really what kills you. The bread can be a healthier multigrain thin crust version, and of course some light or goat cheese and veggies are reasonable. Chicken is available most places. And if you’re making it yourself, watch the sugars in the premade sauces. You’d be surprised.
1. Frozen. Cheap and quick. I recommend Kashi and Dr. Oetker. Pretty much any of the veggie/cheese versions. About a 10″ pizza is under 1000 calories. I need 3000-3200 per day so it’s not that much of my daily even if I eat the whole thing which I usually don’t. Read the label for total calories and fat. Examples that are decent: spinach, mushroom, grilled veggie, plain multi-veggie, veggie and goat cheese. Kashi is a multigrain crust.
2. Eating out. Even CiCi’s will make you a custom version if you ask. Thin crust, light cheese, sauce, veggies and chicken.
3. Make it yourself. Buy the premade best thin crust you can or make it. Then just use the healthiest toppings as mentioned above. Hard cheeses like Pecorino Romano add lots of flavor and not much fat. Season it well.
Remember: carbs are fine as long as you burn them. And you need a certain amount anyway. We’re just trying to stay way from the REALLY bad stuff. 🙂
Bonus: low carb cauliflower pizza crust. (From www.thebewitchinkitchen.com)
Cauliflower Pizza Crust
Ingredients
- 1/2 head of one large cauliflower
- 1/2 cup of plain greek yogurt
- 1 egg
- 2-3 tsps garlic powder
- 1 tbsp parsely/basil/italian seasoning (whatever you have on hand)
- sea salt and pepper to taste
Method
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Break off your cauliflower in pieces and place in a blender/food processor. (I have Ninja blender and it works awesome for this.) Pulse until you have what appears as cauliflower “rice”, if it turnscreamy – you have gone too far.
- Transfer cauliflower to a bowl and stir in yogurt, egg and the rest of the ingredients. Mix throughly. *I use sea salt because it is the least processed salt, but regular table salt will work fine as well.
- Spread the cauliflower mixture on a greased baking sheet, about 1/2 – 3/4 inch thick. Place in oven and bake for 30-35 minutes, until it’s nice and firm. *I used a pizza stone, and because pizza stones absorb as much moisture as possible it really helps the crust from falling apart. That being said, I have made this recipe on a cookie sheet and it was fine.
- Top with pizza sauce and desired toppings and bake another five minutes, or until cheese has melted.
