Sometimes it’s hard to get our kids to eat all those healthy vegetables. A few months ago I came across a recipe for pizza in a vegetarian cookbook. Whether you’re a meat eater or not, vegetarian cookbooks are a great resource for finding new ways to eat vegetables. I decided to use up some of the veggies in my fridge and make a pizza.

I ended up making two pizzas: one with cheese, pepperoni, and olives, and one with the vegetables. I knew from past experience that if I presented my kids with just the “weird” pizza, they all might suddenly come down with some stomach illness, which would prevent them from eating any strange healthy-looking food. My children are more adventurous in trying new foods, if they also have something familiar to eat.

After some strange looks from my kids, a couple of comments about how broccoli and pizza really don’t go together–and after the pepperoni pizza was gone, my kids tried the veggie pizza. They actually liked it!

Since then, we have made many different variations of the veggie pizza. I make a whole-wheat pizza crust and brush it with olive oil. Some members of my family like the pizza with pizza sauce, but I kind of like it with just olive oil. I usually add some spices on top of the crust, such as garlic and oregano. Then we top it with a variety of vegetables. Here are some of our favorites:

A veggie pizza is a great way to use up all those leftover vegetables in your fridge. It is also a yummy way to eat them!