How often have you craved for your favourite junk food and grudgingly curbed that persistent voice calling out from inside of you merely because it doesn’t fit into your diet plan? How often have you wondered why we cannot create something that not only agrees with our health goals but is also pleasing to our palate? Is sacrificing our food choices necessary?

If you are like me, I’m guessing these questions have hounded you more than you’ll be willing to accept. You’ll be my hero if you can pass by a Pav Bhaji stall and the aroma doesn’t beckon you to grab a bite or the sight of just-out-of-the-kadhai jalebis doesn’t tempt you. I’m allowed my indulgences sometimes. Are you?

While I like how everyone is high on working out, eating right and generally keeping their fitness levels up nowadays, I do wonder if complete depravation of so-called unhealthy foods can last a lifetime. As someone who has tried all kinds of diets till date, I can confess that we can eat right and yet keep our taste buds happy.

I love pizzas and although I like cheese, a thick layer of cheese on my pizza puts me off. I’m also annoyingly choosy when it comes to the thickness of the crust or the choice of toppings. This is why I prefer making pizza base at home. This also gives me a chance to toy around with different grains that don’t feature in our daily food.

Read on to know my recipe for Nachni pizza, a great diet-friendly variation and replacement for the refined flour pizza base. This is good for you as well as your kids and can be made into a full meal.

Colourful Nachni Pizza

Ingredients:

For base:

Nachni flour – 1 cup

Wheat flour – Half cup

Paneer (crushed) – Half cup

Onions (finely chopped) – Half cup

Coriander leaves (finely chopped) – Half cup

Ginger-garlic paste – 1 teaspoon

Green chillies (finely chopped) – 3-4 no

Black pepper – 1 teaspoon

Lemon juice – 1 teaspoon

Salt to taste

For toppings:

Onions (roughly chopped) – 1 no

Tomato (roughly chopped) – 1 no

Red/green bell peppers (roughly chopped) – 1 or 2 no

(You can add any other vegetables of your choice)

Arrabbiata sauce – 1 tablespoon

Black pepper – 1 teaspoon

Cheese – 2-3 cubes (as required)

Butter – 1 tablespoon

Salt to taste

Oregano, mixed herbs and chilly flakes for seasoning

Procedure:

1. Take a bowl and add all the base ingredients to it.

2. Knead it into tight dough adding as little water as possible. Use the moisture in onions and paneer instead.

3. Let the dough rest for 15 minutes.

4. Divide the dough in equal-sized parts big enough to roll into a thick chapatti. Handle the dough carefully.

5. Make chapattis and bake them halfway on a heated pan.

6. On the other side, heat another pan and add oil to it.

7. Sauté the onions, tomatoes and bell peppers on a low flame. We have to retain their crunch.*

8. Add Arrabbiata sauce, salt and black pepper. Mix well.

9. Take the nachni base, grease it with butter and spread the toppings and grated cheese over it. Bake in an oven, microwave or a pan till the cheese melts.**

10. Serve hot.

11. Season it with oregano, mixed herbs and chilly flakes as per your choice.

* You cannot spread sauce on this base. Better to cook the toppings and season them beforehand.

** This crust won’t get too crispy. Baking till it turns brown and the cheese melts is enough.

I loved the colours of this dish so much that I didn’t want to disturb them and eat it at all. 😛 What do you think? Does it look appealing enough to you to try out yourself?

Alexa Rank on Sep 11, 2017

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