The meal: Pizza
Pizza is the ultimate diet-ruiner: you can’t live without it, but you can’t make it healthy. Or can you? In fact, by choosing toppings carefully and using a touch of dough-faking magic, you can turn a cheat meal into a health-boosting snack. Sadly, we can’t help you with the garlic bread.
The swap: Flour for cauliflower
Making your base from chickpea flour and raw cauliflower instead of high-GI white flour will make you feel a lot less bloated,’ says Gray. ‘It will also give you a hit of immunity-boosting vitamin C and dietary fibre.’
The bonus: More energy less fat storage
Spinach is rich in energy-boosting folate, while coriander contains high levels of manganese, which helps the body to metabolise fat.
The recipe: Ingredients (serves 2)
For the base: 120g chickpea flour / 200g raw cauliflower, grated / ½tsp baking powder / 1tsp ground cumin / 1tsp ground coriander / 3 spring onions, finely chopped / 160ml semi-skimmed milk / Salt and pepper / 50ml rapeseed oil
For the topping: 300g passata / 200g cooked free-range chicken breast, sliced / 50g baby spinach leaves / 50g Parmesan cheese, grated
To make
- Mix the chickpea flour, cauliflower, baking powder, cumin, coriander and spring onions together in a bowl.
- Slowly add the milk and mix until it forms a dough. Season to taste.
- Cover the bowl with cling film and place in the fridge for ten minutes.
- Place the dough on a clean work surface. Gently press flat until you have a disc the size of a small dinner plate about 5mm thick.
- Place the pizza base on a baking tray that has been lightly greased with half the rapeseed oil.
- Spread the passata evenly over the base, then arrange the chicken and spinach on top. Pour the remaining rapeseed oil on top and finish with a layer of grated Parmesan.
- Bake in the oven at 180°C/gas mark 4 for 18-20 minutes, or until the base is golden brown and the topping has melted.
The chef: Adam Gray
Adam Gray is executive chef at Skylon in the Royal Festival Hall, London. He has been a chef for 28 years and has held a Michelin star for 11. He cycles 30km a day, competes as a runner and trains in krav maga.
