Margherita_Pizza2

Margherita Pizza – LADL Flowchart Recipe

Origin: Italy

About: Although Raffaele Esposito is credited with the creation in 1889 and probably named the pizza after Queen Margherita, contrary to popular belief, it is unlikely that the queen ever selected this as her favorite pizza (BBC Food, 2012). None the less, Margherita pizza is one of the most famous pizza recipes in the world.

How can I make this pizza healthy?!

In 2013, a team of scientists at Glasgow Caledonian University set out to reformulate Margherita Pizza’s ingredients to meet nutritional guidelines for public health in a ready meal. By applying dietary guidelines they wanted to generate a single-item pizza meal containing 30% daily amounts of energy and all nutrients.

From analysis of existing pizza options, the team found that traditional Margherita pizza ingredients provide insufficient Fe, Zn, iodine, and vitamins C and B12. The proportions of bread base to Mozzarella cheese also needed to be adjusted to correct the carbohydrate/fat/protein ratios and minimize saturated fat content (Combet et al., 2013).

Here are some of the teams recommendations,

Additions:

  • Red peppers, mixed into the tomato sauce to get the recommended vitamin C amount.
  • Whole wheat flour, mixed into dough
  • Seaweed, mixed into dough (fibre, Fe and vitamin A, also increasing the iodine and vitamin B12)

Remove:

  • Some Mozzarella, most of the fat and saturated fat comes from the cheese topping, with a small contribution from oil.
  • Some Salt, most pizzas recipes exceed the recommended limit.

Emilie Combet, Amandine Jarlot, Kofi E Aidoo and Michael EJ Lean (2014). Development of a nutritionally balanced pizza as a functional meal designed to meet published dietary guidelines. Public Health Nutrition, 17, pp 2577-2586. doi:10.1017/S1368980013002814.

 

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