Flaxseed Pizza with Zucchini, Red Onion, and Kalamata Olives
Blog Post and Recipe Contributed By Kristy Del Coro, MS, RDN

Pizza is the perfect end of summer or back to school family meal. We love making summer pizzas on the grill (just oil the dough first!) or keeping dough on hand for quick and easy weeknight meals.

The article and recipe shared below was created by trained chef and registered dietitian, Kristy Del Coro. Learn more about Kristy below. Thanks for sharing this with us Kristy!

The pizza dough recipe below makes 2, 10-inch pizzas. Enjoy!

Pizza is one of the most popular foods enjoyed by people all over the world. But depending on how it’s made, pizza isn’t usually a dish that people think of as healthy.

But, pizza really can be a healthy meal the whole family will enjoy. This recipe incorporates Manitoba Milling Smooth Whole Milled Flaxseed into the dough, uses a lower sodium tomato sauce, and seasonal veggies as toppings, making it a feel-good recipe you can serve year-round.

This pizza dough recipe below calls for a combination of bread flour, all-purpose flour, and milled flaxseed. It is similar to a Neapolitan style pizza dough.

Manitoba Milling Co. Smooth Whole Milled Flaxseed can be incorporated into nearly any pizza dough recipe. It’s a great way to add fiber and omega-3 fatty acids.

If you’re experimenting with adding flaxseed to other pizza dough recipes, aim to incorporate an additional one-third flaxseed to the total amount of flour. For example, if the recipe calls for 1 cup of flour, add ⅓ cup milled flaxseed.  Depending on the volume, you may need to slightly increase the amount of water originally called for but the flax blends in so naturally, this won’t be much if any. 

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Flaxseed Pizza Dough

Ingredients

• 1 ¼ Cup Bread Flour
• 1 Cup All Purpose Flour or white whole wheat flour
• ⅔ Cup Manitoba Milling Co. Smooth Whole Milled Flaxseed
• 1 Tsp Kosher Salt
• 1 Tsp Dry Active Yeast dissolved in 1 Tbsp Warm Water
• ¾ Cup Warm Water
• 1 1/2 Tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Instructions

• In a medium bowl, add the bread flour, all purpose flour, flaxseed, salt, and dissolved yeast and briefly stir to combine, with a wooden spoon. Pour in the warm water and continue to stir. (Alternatively, you could make in an electric mixer and use a dough hook, on low speed).
• When a soft sticky dough begins to form, transfer to a clean work surface. There will be some excess flour and dry dough crumbles – you will be able to blend this in as you knead.
• Knead well with the heel of your palm for about 8-10 minutes or until it can be formed into a smooth ball. The dough should be elastic and stretch as you pull it apart but not easily break.
• When you can shape the dough into a ball, transfer it to a clean bowl and coat with a thin layer of extra virgin olive oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place a dishtowel on top. Find a warm, dark place to let it rise and leave ir for 8 hours until the dough doubles in size.
• Once the dough rises and doubles in size (about 8 hours), remove the dough from the bowl. Punch it down to its original size and divide it in half.  Use immediately or store in the refrigerator or freezer for later use.

Notes

• If you are making the dough in advance, wrap each ball tightly in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for a few days or freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost in the refrigerator overnight and let the cold dough sit out at room temperature for a couple of hours before stretching or rolling.
• The ideal rising temperature for dough is around 80-90F. A great spot for leaving the dough to rise is actually in the oven – preheat at a low temp for a couple of minutes and then turn it off; make sure it is isn’t too hot inside and place your bowl of covered dough in the slightly warmed oven for the rise.

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Summer Pizza with Zucchini, Red Onion, and Kalamata Olives

Equipment

• Pizza Stone
• Pizza Peel

Ingredients

• 1 Ball of Flaxseed Pizza Dough ½ recipe from above
• ⅓ Cup Tomato Sauce no-salt added is preferred and this can be canned or homemade – just pick your favorite!
• ¼ Tsp Dried Mint
• ½ Tsp Dried Oregano
• ⅔ Cup Shredded Mozzarella
• ¼ Cup Thinly Sliced Red Onion
• ½ Cup Thinly Shaved Raw Zucchini shaved lengthwise with a vegetable peeler into ribbons
• ½ Tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil1 Tbsp Quartered Kalamata Olives about 5-6 olives
• 1 Tbsp Torn Fresh Basil
• Pinch of Flaky Sea Salt
• Cornmeal or semolina flour for dusting pizza stone

Instructions

• If using a pizza stone, place the cold pizza stone in cold oven and heat to 500F or as high as your oven will get. (If convection setting is an option, use this). Warm stone for about 30-40 minutes.
• Meanwhile, start to prepare your dough and toppings. To stretch out your dough, place on a lightly floured clean work surface and gently flatten with the palm of your hands. Using your fingertips, push the edges of dough out, while rotating, until you form an even circle, leaving the outer edge slightly thicker for the crust.

  Now, take a lightly floured palm of one hand, and place it in the center of the disc of dough; use the other hand to guide the disc completely onto the palm of your first hand and flip flop back and forth between the palms of both hands, while continuing to rotate the dough until it measures about 10 inches in diameter.  Alternatively, a rolling pin can also be used but pizza makers will warn that this can lead to pizza that is too flat and more importantly gets rid of the natural gas bubbles in the dough that creates soft fluffy dough.
• Once the dough is stretched, make sure there is enough flour on your work surface or dough so that it easily moves around when you place it back down. Now it is ready for toppings. Gently spread tomato sauce with the back of a spoon in a circular motion, leaving about ¾-inch around the perimeter for the crust. Sprinkle dried mint and dried oregano all over the sauce. (Optional: if using unsalted tomato sauce, you can sprinkle a little sea salt over the sauce for extra seasoning but keep in mind that the cheese and olives will add natural saltiness as well).  Add shredded cheese in an even layer followed by red onion. Gently toss zucchini ribbons with the olive oil and place around the pizza on top of the cheese and red onion.
• Lightly dust pizza stone with cornmeal or semolina flour so that pizza doesn’t stick and transfer the dough onto the preheated stone using a pizza peel.
• Bake in hot oven for 8-10 minutes (check after 8 minutes is using convection setting).
• When pizza is done and still hot, top with sliced olives. Let cool slightly and at the last minute before serving, add the fresh basil and a pinch of flaky sea salt on top of the zucchini ribbons. Another drizzle of olive oil also doesn’t hurt! Cut into wedges or rustic rectangles and enjoy.

Meet Kristy:

Kristy Del Coro, MS, RDN is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and trained chef with over 10 years of culinary nutrition experience, including work as the in-house Culinary Nutritionist at a Michelin-starred restaurant in NYC. Kristy is the co-founder of the annual Culinary Nutrition Conference, which unites healthcare professionals and chefs in hands-on workshops that combine nutrition science with culinary arts. Kristy is a freelance writer, recipe developer, and culinary nutrition consultant. She lives in the Portland, ME area with her family. Learn more about Kristy and connect with her through her website or on social media.