Finally a Crust pizza franchise opened up near me. I'd read all about these amazing ‘health-conscious' pizzas that had managed to secure the Heart Foundation red Tick of approval. Yep, you're reading right! Here was a pizza that was guaranteed to be low in saturated fat (read ‘bad', really ‘evil' fat), bounding with veggies and - most amazing of all - low in salt.

As you can imagine, I was hopeful but a tad skeptical when I approached the Crust counter. The sales guy was helpful. He steered me away from the lavish array of choose- your-own pizza toppings to a chart on the wall where the six Tick pizzas were featured and photographed in all their glory.

They looked good! I saw pictures of Roast Chicken Tick Pizza, Brushetta Tick Pizza, Baby Spinach Tick Pizza, as well as Roast Beef, Roast Vegetable and Chicken Avocado. So far, so good. I was after two pizzas. I wanted to get a sample tasting of what Crust was offering so was sharing with my 21-year old son, a 6'6" strapping male with a hearty appetite and muscles to fuel. A tough chap to feed, let me tell you. And he eats a lot of pizza.

I settled on two - the Chicken and Avocado plus a Roast Beef, which the guy recommended. The Crust team assembled them while I waited. Starting with a thin wholemeal base, I watched while they arranged pre-cooked sliced chicken, mushrooms, Spanish onions, green onions (shallots), avocado and reduced-fat mozzarella on top. No pepperoni, no bacon, pineapple and importantly just a little cheese. Price A$15 each.

Here's what we thought:

The nutritionist:

Looked good - lots of veggies, nothing greasy or dripping with fat. Each pizza was small, only 20cm (8 inches) in diameter which is perfectly adequate for me (I live a sedentary working life in front of the computer). The thing that struck me was the low level of salt. I didn't get that twang of salt you normally get from olives, anchovies, bacon and all that cheese. Really made me realize I need to pay attention to my own salt intake once more. I enjoyed both but would order the Chicken and Avocado again. Loved the thin crisp crust - less stodgy and lower carb, although the whole pizza still gives you 90 to 120g carb (equal to 5-7 slices of bread).

The 21 year old guy:

OK so my Mum made me try these healthy pizzas. My first thought was how small they are and pretty pricey. These are $15 each! You can buy a large Meat-lovers or Super Supreme for under $10 and they throw in a free garlic bread as well.

I thought the Roast Beef was a bit plain, bordering on a little boring. Liked the Chicken Avocado but it wasn't big enough for me. Looked like take-away for seniors, not for young people. It was OK but wouldn't suit me or my friends. Sorry.

The bottom line:

Crust pizzas resemble the ‘ideal pizza' that nutritionists tell you to make at home. It's got a thin wholegrain base, more vegetables for fibre and filling value, less fatty topping and only a little cheese. A decent alternative to regular take-away pizzas with their meat-overkill and cheesy thick crusts. Thank goodness, someone out there is making an effort to cater for a healthier take-away. About time.

♥ See the nutrition counts for Crust Pizza on their website.

♥ Or they have it all together on one page as a download

♥ Read how much Crust paid in fees and what they had to change in order to get approved

♥ Heart Foundation criteria are:
vegies or equivalent in fibre
small serve size
less saturated fat
less salt
virtually trans-fat free
nutrition information panel (NIP) available upon request

♥ Read up on the FAQs about the Tick at the Heart Foundation's website.