How to make tasty, healthy thin-crust pizza

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Americans love their pizza. But in the name of health, many people are putting aside the thick crust, heavy cheese and fatty meat. We'll show you how to make the super-thin Neapolitan pizza in your own kitchen.

"We like to cook everything here we call GBD- Golden, brown, and delicious," said Jason Harley, chef and owner of Pici Enoteca in Beverly Hills.

The Brooklyn native is on a quest to share his thin crust Neapolitan pizza with Californians.

"Everyone's more on a healthier kick these days, and I think the less dough is a lot more appealing to people," said Harley.

No deep dish, double-crust lovers' specials here. Jason Harley makes his signature pizzas with these ingredients: tomato, lemongrass, carmelized onions, crispy ginger garnish and some roasted butternut squash.

Make your own dough using flour, yeast, water and a pinch of salt, although, store-bought dough and tomato sauce works when time is short, as his sauce takes three days to make.

Harley said if your dough is done right, it should look paper thin. His tips? No heavy or watery ingredients, and roast veggies first to keep it crispy.

"You want to go everything light. Light sauce, light cheese, light toppings, because if you put it too heavy, it's not going to work," he said.

His secret weapon isn't the oven, but a strong-to-last-long pan, which costs about $100. He heats the pan up in the oven while prepping his pizza.

"If you don't hear that sizzle, you're not cooking," said Harley.

He adds snappy extras, such as fresh crispy ginger or parsley, for taste and color.

While it's nice to see how many veggies you can top your pizza with, you also want to pair it with a salad. That way, you're upping your produce quotient and that's going to help you feel fuller longer.

"We have fresh green apples, sun-dried cranberries, some crushed walnuts and gorgonzola sprinkled all over," Harley said.

Other pie favorites? Roasted shitake mushroom and truffle oil or Mediterranean olive and feta with spicy paprika oil, which you make at home by adding paprika to olive oil and let sit for a week.

See these pizza-making tips through photos.

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health, food, recipe, food coach, lori corbin

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