JoJo Herda: FOOD: Low-Sodium Pizza

By now you know that I have a little bit of a "bum ticker".

I mean my ticker has done quite well since my last major surgery. But, I am always watching it.

So, I work hard at eating healthy.... especially a low-sodium lifestyle.

Some people may call it CLEAN EATING.

Don't get me wrong... I TOTALLY ~~devour~~ love a big gooey juicy jalapeno bacon cheese burger every now and then.

Anyway, back to my low-sodium cooking...

I wanted to show you how I cook a pizza. With a VERY low-sodium crust and pizza sauce!

Yes, it all is pretty much made from scratch, but once you get it down, it's pretty darn easy.

It would really be beneficial if you have a bread machine for the crust, unless you want to knead and knead and knead the dough on your own. This is my machine which I purchased on Amazon about 5 years ago... and it is still ticking, even after the beating upon beating I have given it!

I have altered a recipe I found in the No-Salt Lowest-Sodium Cookbook by Donald A. Gazzaniga to be whole wheat.

INGREDIENTS for the CRUST

1 1/2 cups of whole wheat bread

3/4 cups best for bread machine flour {or white flour}

3/4 cups plus 1 Tbsp lukewarm water

2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil

1 1/2 tsp of bread machine yeast

DIRECTIONS

1. Coat your bread machine bucket with a thin layer of cooking spray.

2. Load the ingredients into the bread machine starting with the dry ingredients first. Place the bread machine yeast into the appropriate compartment of your bread maker.

3. Set the bread machine on the dough cycle and let it run. {My machine takes 45 minutes}.

4. Remove the dough and roll it out on a lightly floured board until the desired size of your pizza.

5. Transfer the dough to your pizza pan.

6. Flute the sides to create a crust.

7. Use a fork and prick holes throughout the crust's surface.

8. Cover the crust with a light towel and let rest for 30 minutes.

9. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.

INGREDIENTS for the SAUCE

2 cans of Hunt's No Salt Added Tomato Sauce

3 Tbsp garlic {or less according to your taste}

2 Tbsp dried basil

1/2 Tbsp dried oregano

1/4 cup of finely chopped onions

DIRECTIONS

1. Place all ingredients in sauce pan and bring to a boil.

2. Reduce to simmer and cover.

3. Let simmer during bread machine process of the the crust.

Note: You can use fresh tomatoes in this process. However, I do take it to the extra levels of boiling and peeling them, etc. So, utilizing the No Salt Added Diced Tomatoes {you will need to pulse this mixture to create an actual sauce} .