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Baking a pizza at home with the family is a fun way to spend an evening, and it can be healthy, too, when prepared the right way.

Use whole grain crusts
Make your own dough or buy whole wheat or whole grain pizza dough. Personal-size pizzas can also be made with tortillas, English muffins or pita bread.

Sauces
Go light on the sauce because too much makes a soggy pizza.

• Tomato sauce
• Pesto
• Salsa
• Hummus
• Refried beans
• BBQ Sauce
• Alfredo sauce
• Ranch dressing
• Hoisin sauce
• Thai peanut sauce

Choose lean proteins
Proteins should be pre-cooked, drained and cooled before adding to pizza. Try:

• Grilled chicken
• Lean ground beef or Italian sausage(cooked)
• Ham
• White or black beans
• Turkey pepperoni, bacon or sausage
• Baby shrimp (cooked)
• Canned tuna or salmon
• Firm tofu cubes

Fruits and vegetables
Drain well and pat dry before adding to pizza. 

Add these before pizza is cooked:  

• Artichoke hearts
• Banana peppers
• Diced or cherry tomatoes
• Grilled eggplant
• Olives
• Onions (red, white or green)
• Red and green bell peppers
• Shredded carrots
• Spinach
• Sun-dried tomatoes (diced)
• Apples
• Pears
• Pineapple

Add these after pizza is cooked:

• Arugula
• Avocado
• Chopped cilantro or basil
• Cucumbers
• Shredded lettuce

Low-fat dairy
Use cold cheese to prevent cheese from over cooking and possibly burning.

• Mozzarella
• Cheddar jack
• Feta Cheese
• Swiss
• Gouda

Try these awesome pizzas (These meet the US Department of Agriculture MyPlate guidelines)

• Tomato sauce, turkey pepperoni, peppers and mozzarella
• Shredded chicken, Hoisin sauce, cucumbers and green onions
• Tofu, shredded carrots, mushrooms, bean sprouts and Thai peanut sauce.
• Sliced apples, cherry tomatoes and cheddar jack cheese.
• Spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, baby shrimp and Feta cheese.
• Grilled chicken, pineapple, mozzarella and BBQ saucePesto sauce, olives, diced tomato, Feta cheese and arugula

Cooking tips

• Keep the oven HOT. Preheat and cook pizza at 450-500 degrees for about 15 minutes.
• Don't overload on the toppings. It can make the pizza slice too heavy to pickup or soggy.

Cheryl Tallman is the co-founder of Fresh Baby. creators of the award-winning So Easy Baby Food Kit, and author of So Easy Baby Food and the new book So Easy Toddler Food: Survival Tips and Simple Recipes for the Toddler Years. Visit Cheryl online at www.FreshBaby.com for more delicious tips. Permission granted for use on DrLaura.com.