Pizza

Pizza is a popular fast food that always seems to be consistently done in the wrong way, like hamburgers and fried chicken. They seem to be just commodities to be consumed; taste is not important, just convenience. Fast-food pizza is often laden with saturated fats and salt, and a soggy base. Prepared properly, so that it has a thin crust and light topping, however, and served with a nice salad and a glass of red wine, pizza can be healthy convenience food.

The most important step to making good pizza is not to put on too much topping. It’s easy to get carried away and to think that you’re being generous, but all that does is make the pizza heavy and soggy. Make your own tomato sauce and use full-flavoured cheeses. Cook the pizza at high heat so it seals quickly and allows the base to stay crisp. A pizza stone, available from good cooks’ supply stores, is terrific for this and for making bread.