Sometimes, you really need Pizza...
Yes, Delivery Pizza!!!
I mean, when only delivery will do, 30 minutes or less, tip the driver, two pieces gone by the time I walk it from the front door to the kitchen. . . I NEED pizza! It was hard to accept the idea that in order to lose weight, we would have to give up all delivery pizza! I mean, we don't eat it often anyway, but it's one of those things that when you want it (within reason), you have to have it, nothing else will do. Sometimes, I think, if you splurge a little now and then, you won't go "buck wild" A LOT later.
Now, we do love homemade pizza and have come up with several fun recipes like Chicken Cordon Bleu Pizza, Pesto Pizza, Mushroom Pizza, Pizza Knots, and Others. Just search for pizza on the blog to find all the recipes.
Delivery Pizza
On those occasions when we are a little lazy and are super hungry for pizza, we usually go for a delivery pizza. We make sure not to go wild and order the full menu of what we used to get for delivery. That would have been a large pizza, wings, a dessert, maybe another pizza oh, and those garlic knots - yum. . . Now we order 1 medium pizza with our favorite toppings (pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms... and extra cheese). Pizza is great and is usually eaten right out of the box with a good movie on TV. It seems like we eat it mindlessly, and I'm not sure I really enjoyed it that much. Before you know it, three pieces are gone in the blink of an eye. . . and was it really THAT good??
Pizza leftovers
I'm a real pizza lover, and everyone knows it's better the next day. Grabbing a cold piece for breakfast is good, but it just doesn't seem to taste as good as it did in college. One day, I noticed Mom was heating her pizza in the oven it smelled really good. I have learned to follow her lead when it comes to food. She always sneaks the good stuff!!!!
Heating up the leftovers
We heat it in the oven for a few minutes. It's always my favorite this way: the crust gets a little crispy, the cheese melts and gets those strings, and it's hotter than when it's delivered. It becomes an "event". It's something I look forward to the next day. It is so good for breakfast, lunch or dinner. We usually add a few extra toppings if there is something good in the fridge. It is almost mandatory to add banana peppers (we really like spicy food), red pepper flakes, extra oregano, and maybe a little more cheese. Heat it up in the oven for 18 minutes or so. This takes delivery pizza to the next level.
Favorite way to have pizza - worth the wait!
So, I started to ask Mom if our favorite way to have pizza is heated the next day with additional toppings. Why do we dig in the second the pizza arrives? We've started paying closer attention to what we eat because we're trying to limit our calories. Whenever we eat something, we ask ourselves if it's worth it. But sometimes, you just need a slice of pizza!!
The last time we ordered delivery pizza, we decided to try to replicate that "next day" pizza that we liked so much. And add some additional toppings to the delivery pizza. Heat it in the oven for 10 minutes or so. The Pizza will be super hot, and you have time to find that movie to watch.
Delivery Pizza - On its way
Now, when ordering pizza for delivery, we heat the oven to 375 degrees and gather our desired toppings, such as banana peppers, red pepper flakes, and oregano. We avoid adding extra cheese to save calories. Once the pizza arrives, we remove the slices of pizza we are going to eat from the box and add our toppings. We then place them on a cookie sheet and bake them in the oven for roughly 15 minutes, rather than immediately indulging. Plus, we decided we only have 1 or 2 slices each. We don't go in for that third piece.
Pizza perfection!
After 15 minutes of baking, what came out of the oven was true PERFECTION! Fresh, hot, delivery pizza, with a crispy crust, AND melty cheese! And oh, those extra toppings that we really love. It is so good, and we actually eat a little slower. Yes, I enjoyed what we had (also, it was a lot hotter than usual and if you eat too fast you'll burn your mouth). That never happens when you dive right into the box!
I've noticed that delivery pizza has become a special experience that tastes much better than before. When trying to limit calorie intake, it's crucial to make each calorie count. If I choose to indulge in pizza, I want it to be absolutely delicious with every bite. The new method of heating the pizza is definitely worth it!
Some of our favorite homemade pizzas are Artichoke Dip Pizza, Chicken Cordon Bleu, Mushroom four chees, Shrimp scampi, Spicy Pesto chicken, Tomato pesto ricotta cheese pizza, Cheese, Sausage, Cherry Pepper, Five cheese pizza, Grilled Shrimp Pizza, Grilled Portobello Mushroom Pizza, and Grilled chicken Caesar salad. Just search for Pizza to get a complete list of all our homemade pizzas.
Please let us know what you think