The Pizza Locust

University of Maryland chemists have revealed a way to boost the anti-oxident properties of pizza dough.

According to a Science daily article:

In an effort to improve health, many popular foods are undergoing a more nutritious make-over. Now, a team of food chemists at the University of Maryland has discovered how to boost the antioxidant content of pizza dough by optimizing baking and fermentation methods, a finding that could lead to healthier pizza, they say.

A team of food chemists at the University of Maryland has discovered how to boost the antioxidant content of pizza dough by optimizing baking and fermentation methods, a finding that could lead to healthier pizza, they say.

Pizza bakers have known for some time that longer-baking times and higher temperatures can enhance the flavor of pizza. The new study shows that these intense baking conditions also may boost antioxidant levels in dough, especially whole wheat varieties, the researchers say.

Unfortunately, the results would indicate that both an increase in temperature and an increase in baking time are what leads to the increased anti-oxidants. As baking time and temperature are roughly inverse functions of each other an additional factor has to be added in. In this case, crust thickness, ruining the whole concept. The best pizzas are cooked at high temperature, but with thin crusts.

It should be noted that the research evidence that the intake of anti-oxidants as “healthful” is inconclusive at best. Anti-oxidants are important, but the clinical evidence does not clearly demonstrate that eating anti-oxidants imparts the same benefits as those that occur naturally in the body.

(Too many news articles this week, not enough pizza reviews. I’ll have to get out this weekend and have a pizza.)

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