Lately, I've been trying to think of other things I can share when I'm not sharing my sad, depressing poems and stories. Food has continued to come to thought.

I don't mean I'm telling you I'm hungry, I'm saying I'm gaining interest in posting an occasional recipe or summary of dinner/lunch, etc.

So, I wanted to share a pizza recipe I use frequently.

Admittedly, it's somewhat of an insult to true pizza, but if you are like me you are on a budget. If you're also like me, you're trying to budget your food/fat intake, as well.

By no means is this pizza a weight-loss godsend, but it's not unreasonable considering the hit on our waistlines from traditional, purchased pizza. It also only takes a few minutes to prepare and 20-25 minutes to cook.

Here's what you need (or at least what I use):

• 1 large flour tortilla wrap (about the size of a large dinner plate)
• 3/4 cup cheese (low-moisture part skim mozzarella)
• 3/4 cup pasta sauce (I think I use mushroom/onion/garlic flavor)
• 1 serving of turkey pepperoni (17 slices)
• 1 Roma tomato, thinly sliced
• 1-3 onion slices (I use 2-3)
• 3 tbsp. of light mayonnaise
• 3 tsp. of sriracha sauce
• garlic powder (if desired)
• cardamom (personal preference)

As you would have expected, you begin with the flour tortilla and then spread the pasta sauce. I use the cheapest pasta sauce available, which is only $1 USD and you can get 3 uses out of one jar.

Next, I add light (low-fat) mayonnaise. This is really not necessary especially if you are being more adamant about your fat intake, but I use it because it adds a bit extra creaminess. If you don't use any of the light mayonnaise, you can subtract about 100 calories, 10.5 grams of fat, and 1.5 saturated fat. I'm sure you could figure something out by using Almondmilk in its place in that event.

Add sriracha sauce, and then you can add the turkey pepperoni. I personally try not to eat beef so I've been cautious lately about what I eat - and turkey/chicken is naturally leaner. I sometimes shred a chicken breast instead of using the turkey pepperoni.

I thinly slice one Roma tomato and spread about 3 slices of onion over the pepperoni - and follow that by adding garlic powder and cardamom. I also like to add cilantro when I have it, which is also cheap.

The garlic powder and cardamom probably aren't exactly necessary either, but I guess I like to feel like I'm actually creating something. Cardamom isn't especially cheap, but if you purchase the off-brand version and aren't going crazy with your usage, it's probably less than 10 cents per pizza.

Finally, you can add the cheese. Again, I've been trying to lose weight and be mindful of certain things that I eat, therefore I use a type of mozzarella cheese that is referred to as low-moisture part-skim. I'm assuming it's made using skim milk and a certain method that causes it to be lower in fat. The cheese is fine, but only melts about 75%.

I also add about a teaspoon of brown sugar just for the heck of it.

You can then cook your pizza on a griddle. I'm sure you could use the oven and it may even work better, but I try to keep it simple and just use the stovetop and griddle. Turn up to 7/9 heat and let cook for 20-25 minutes.

Note: some of the sauce will boil to the top.

Voila. You have pizza.

Overall, this pizza as I have made it only costs about $2.80 USD assuming you buy off-brand ingredients. This is tremendously cheap all things considered. Of course, this price is per serving. The sum of all the ingredients would cost you more.

Nutritionally, it's extremely carb-friendly with only around 65 total carbs. With light mayonnaise, there is around 40 grams of fat, 790 calories, and 16.5 grams of saturated fat. Without it, you can subtract about 10 grams of fat, 100 calories, and 1.5 grams of saturated fat - a pretty noticeable drop.

A little under 700 calories is right on par with what one meal should be in a day for a man so that isn't too bad if you're foregoing the mayonnaise. You would still need to make sure you are watching your fat intake from your other meals, of course.

If you are a female, it may even take less than a full pizza to satisfy your hunger (or you could simply just eat half and have sides of fruit or other healthy options). This could probably serve as an appetizer for a small group of friends, too!

Ultimately, we all love pizza and it's very difficult to enjoy it regularly without it effecting our weight. I feel this is a reasonable way to continue to enjoy pizza even if it's not totally the real thing.

Thanks for reading!

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© This writing was created by and remains property of the username, lionsmane. It is to be claimed as an original piece only on whaleshares and steemit under this username. Creation date: May, 2019

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