If eliminating the side effects of dairy in your diet is your end game, it’s about time for you settle for the idea of having pizza without cheese. Gasp!
I know, the concept sounds crazy. What is pizza without cheese? It’s the main ingredient other than the crust, right?
Well, it doesn’t have to be. In other words, let’s state the facts and maybe, you’ll have a change of heart.
Cheese, with such an abundance of saturated fat and salt, outweighs the notion (uhm, excuse) that, “well, at least I’m getting my calcium.” You can actually add plant-based toppings to your cheese-less pizza which are rich in calcium (like spinach, broccoli, and tofu), demolishing that so-called notion (excuse).
If your New Year’s Resolutions include making better food choices, or choosing non-dairy options, check out these unarguable stats:
1/8 slice of 12” Average Veggie Pizza
| With Cheese |
Without Cheese |
|
| Saturated Fat |
4.3 g |
.88g |
| Fat |
10.1 g |
.4g |
| Salt |
462 mg |
201 mg |
| Calories |
237 |
148 |
Still in doubt? Check out this Huffington Post article, The Rise of the Vegan Pizza. It details this growing trend of cheesiness or dairy-free pizza and lists the most popular pizzerias catering to a quickly growing plant-strong culture.
Check out the #1 favorite on the list.
Then check out EP4L’s next Restaurant High-5 inductee and take a break from the cheese and the kitchen…
The Skinny…
Resurrected from the mind of 2 Georgia Tech students during the hippy culture of the 1970’s, Mellow Mushroom was born in Atlanta, Georgia. Catering primarily to the college campus community, this creatively nostalgic establishment, with its hypnotically colorful décor, prides itself on providing scrumptious and savory pizzas and a large selection of craft beers. What started as one vision and one brick and mortar has grown to over 150 franchise restaurants throughout the eastern coast (and still growing).
What I Like…
I like the atmosphere for starters. It’s a very family-friendly, casual restaurant with a young vibe. They’re also environmentally-conscious, boxing their “to go” pizzas in 100% recycled material. As a matter of fact, all of their paper products come from 100% recycled material.
What I Simply Love…
Mellow Mushroom will create a 100% Vegan pizza pie, made to your specifications. Simply ask for the Vegan Mega-Veggie. It’s a smorgasbord of veggies including; banana peppers, mushrooms, black olives, tofu, onions, green peppers, artichoke hearts, broccoli, Roma tomatoes, spinach, and sundried tomatoes. There are so many veggies that you won’t even miss the cheese. If you do require the familiarity of cheese, they even offer a plant-based option that I personally swear by.
The Vegan pizza phenomenon isn’t going anywhere. It’s not the fad of the decade. It’s just the beginning as our society becomes increasingly conscious about what goes into our bodies and how we leave our environment. Kudos to Vegan-friendly restaurants like Mellow Mushroom, for making change and choice accessible to all.
