Pizza is one of my favorite ways to eat veggies that are difficult for me to eat by themselves. I love adding mushrooms (one food I am still learning to like), black olives (that I love but often forget about), and red bell pepper. All three of these foods are power houses of nutrients, and what better way to introduce them than to put them on a cheesy, gooey pizza?

Our Quick Pizza Dough has a rise time of only 10 minutes (compared to an hour or two from normal dough), but be sure to grab Instant Yeast to get this quick of a rise. Mushrooms and bell peppers are great veggies for kids to chop up. If your children are less than eight, I recommend cutting the bell peppers into strips first. Then let them chop them as small as they want.

If your kids are feeling hesitant about all of those veggies going on, try making sections of the sheet pan one topping. You can do three strips where one has olives, one mushrooms, and one bell peppers. Be sure to model adventurous eating yourself, even if one topping you don’t like. Try saying, “mushrooms aren’t usually my favorite pizza topping, but tonight I’m going to be brave and try something new, just like you!” You can also ask your kids if they would prefer the veggies chopped up really small and stuck under the cheese. This is often more visually appealing for kiddos, but I don’t recommend hiding vegetables, because they will always find them and lose trust in you as a food provider. Having a discussion about it is helpful. “Would your rather the toppings be on top of the cheese (so that you can pick them off if you want) or under the cheese (so they are less noticeable)?” Sometimes, leaving the toppings large is reassuring to kids (and my husband) that are planning on picking them off. Even just having the topping on their pizza and them picking it off is positive exposure. They are having to touch it and interact with the vegetable, which will make it more familiar to them in the long run. The goal is to get them eating veggies on their pizza (or other foods) for the next 80 years, not just the next 10 while you can still force them to. Play the long game! Create a positive atmosphere for them to feel confident that those vegetables will be there when they’re feeling brave and ready to try them. Try not to make a huge deal out of it, even when they do try it. You want them to feel free to try what they want and have the autonomy to make those choices on their own from the healthy options you have provided.

Veggie Pizza

Ingredients

1 recipe worth Quick Pizza Dough (or store bought crust)

2 cups pizza sauce

2-3 cups mozzarella cheese (or a pizza style blend)

4 ounces fresh mushrooms

2 Tablespoons sliced, black olives

1 red bell pepper

Instructions

1. Prepare your pizza dough. Let it rise next to your oven while it preheats to 400*F.
2. Wash and chop your mushrooms.
3. Have a grown up help open your can of olives and drain out the juice.
4. Wash and slice your bell pepper.
5. Line a rimmed quarter sheet pan with parchment paper.
6. Roll out your pizza dough on a floured cutting board to make it about the same size as your quarter sheet pan.
7. Gently transfer dough to your sheet pan. Stretch it out to the sides if it snuck back together a little bit.
8. Spread a light layer of pizza sauce. Too much sauce will keep your dough from cooking.
9. Sprinkle your cheese on top of your sauce.
10. Sprinkle your mushrooms, black olives, and bell peppers on top of the cheese.
11. Bake 10-12 minutes, or until cheese is starting to brown and bottom is cooked through.