Slice - slice.seriouseats.com

Pizza, Atkins Style

Posted by Adam Kuban, November 17, 2003 at 12:21 PM

We at Slice could never go on the Atkins diet, specifically because it would preclude the consumption of pizza. But Villages Pizza, a Victoria, British Columbia, pie purveyor, has come up with a low-carb crust that, while not just what Dr. A ordered, is close enough to give his pizza-loving followers some hope.

The inspiration for the "Atkins-friendly" pizza comes partly from Villages' alleged decline in pie sales due to carbophobia and from the co-owner John Papaloukas's own battle with weight.

As the story in Friday's Times Colonist recounts, "The Atkins diet, introduced in 1972 in the book Dr. Atkins' Diet Revolution, tells its followers they can lose weight by eating protein and fat as long as they cut carbohydrates out of their diet. That directive meant no pasta, rice or bread, and definitely no pizza. In fact, in Robert Atkins' accompanying carbohydrate gram counter book, he counsels if pizza is necessary, followers should scrape the cheese and fixings onto a plate, eat that and toss the crust aside. Papaloukas was a scraper."

So when Papaloukas found a restaurant supplier offering soy flour and soy-protein-based dough, the six-store chain took note.

Customers did, too. Papaloukas said the chain received 60 orders the first night and about a hundred calls just to see if the rumor was true.

We'd be curious to see what a low-carb pizza tastes like, but we're in no hurry to do so—though it would give us a good excuse to visit beautiful British Columbia.

If you're looking for Atkins cookbooks, buy them from Amazon.

Post a Comment

Tags: Atkins