Making Pizza!

[cyberobb99]

Friday night....got Lt. Dan and Magnum on CBS tonight and we're making pizza for dinner. One is a Hawaiian... ham, pineapple, cheese. The other is classic Eye-Talian with thick-sliced pepperoni, onions, black olives, Italian meatballs and cheese. I made the Italian Meatballs myself out of beef, veal and pork with spices in the classic style. Oh yeah...and homemade pizza dough. Pics to follow.

I'm not a huge pizza fan, but I like 'em now and then. You guys have any pizza favorites?

[Walter]

Dec 7, 2012 16:27:31 GMT -5 cyberobb99 said:

Friday night....got Lt. Dan and Magnum on CBS tonight and we're making pizza for dinner. One is a Hawaiian... ham, pineapple, cheese. The other is classic Eye-Talian with thick-sliced pepperoni, onions, black olives, Italian meatballs and cheese. I made the Italian Meatballs myself out of beef, veal and pork with spices in the classic style. Oh yeah...and homemade pizza dough. Pics to follow.

I'm not a huge pizza fan, but I like 'em now and then. You guys have any pizza favorites?

I like mine very simple.

Sauce:
Fresh tomatoes, say 2 lbs, blanched for about a minute and skinned and then crushed with your hands in the saucepan. (watch out for shooting seeds...and btw, the classic recipe calls to seed the tomatoes, but I don't bother)
Fresh cut basil, maybe 12 leaves or more if you like it.
Fresh oregano chopped three or 4 springs
garlic I use about 5 cloves, you can use more or less
Olive Oil, tablespoon
pinch of cayenne pepper

Throw all that stuff in a saucepan, heat it to just barely bubbling, maybe 3 minutes just to get the juice moving,
Then drain off juice through a strainer. The idea is that the tomatoes are still mostly raw
Then drink the juice. My favorite part of the process....

Anchovies
Mozzarella.

Make dough

Roll out dough the thinnest you can make it.
lay out anchovies first...NOT TOO MANY, DAMMIT...just enough to give it some flavor, maybe 5 pieces broken into little bits and spread around...for a good sized pizza
Then add the grated cheese,
THEN add the sauce, which isn't really very saucy, just big chunks of tomato and stuff.

Bake in the hottest freaking oven you can find.

[cyberobb99]

Dec 7, 2012 16:40:56 GMT -5 Walter said:

Dec 7, 2012 16:27:31 GMT -5 cyberobb99 said:

Friday night....got Lt. Dan and Magnum on CBS tonight and we're making pizza for dinner. One is a Hawaiian... ham, pineapple, cheese. The other is classic Eye-Talian with thick-sliced pepperoni, onions, black olives, Italian meatballs and cheese. I made the Italian Meatballs myself out of beef, veal and pork with spices in the classic style. Oh yeah...and homemade pizza dough. Pics to follow.

I'm not a huge pizza fan, but I like 'em now and then. You guys have any pizza favorites?

I like mine very simple.

Sauce:
Fresh tomatoes, say 2 lbs, blanched for about a minute and skinned and then crushed with your hands in the saucepan. (watch out for shooting seeds...and btw, the classic recipe calls to seed the tomatoes, but I don't bother)
Fresh cut basil, maybe 12 leaves or more if you like it.
Fresh oregano chopped three or 4 springs
garlic I use about 5 cloves, you can use more or less
Olive Oil, tablespoon
pinch of cayenne pepper

Throw all that stuff in a saucepan, heat it to just barely bubbling, maybe 3 minutes just to get the juice moving,
Then drain off juice through a strainer. The idea is that the tomatoes are still mostly raw
Then drink the juice. My favorite part of the process....

Anchovies
Mozzarella.

Make dough

Roll out dough the thinnest you can make it.
lay out anchovies first...NOT TOO MANY, DAMMIT...just enough to give it some flavor, maybe 5 pieces for a good sized pizza
Then add the grated cheese,
THEN add the sauce, which isn't really very saucy, just big chunks of tomato and stuff.

Bake in the hottest freaking oven you can find.

I hear ya on that oven. Mine only gets up to about 500, but if I do it on my grill I can get it up to about 800. I use a pizza stone too....it makes a difference.

[cyberobb99]

OK....my pizzas aren't really round. I don't care that much about whether their shape is perfect...they tasted great!

[Walter]

I don't even try for round.
BTW, do you roll out the pizza? I usually roll it flat with a rolling pin almost as flat as it will be and then toss it and stretch it to a final shape. I like the dough really thin, and that's the only way I've been able to get it.

Nice looking stuff, BTW, although if that's pinapple I'm seein...Oh, the blasphemy!!.

[Deleted]

Dec 10, 2012 18:11:02 GMT -5 Walter said:

I don't even try for round.
BTW, do you roll out the pizza? I usually roll it flat with a rolling pin almost as flat as it will be and then toss it and stretch it to a final shape. I like the dough really thin, and that's the only way I've been able to get it.

Nice looking stuff, BTW, although if that's pinapple I'm seein...Oh, the blasphemy!!.

LOL ....Them some FINE lookin pizzas !!!!

[cyberobb99]

Dec 10, 2012 18:11:02 GMT -5 Walter said:

I don't even try for round.
BTW, do you roll out the pizza? I usually roll it flat with a rolling pin almost as flat as it will be and then toss it and stretch it to a final shape. I like the dough really thin, and that's the only way I've been able to get it.

Nice looking stuff, BTW, although if that's pinapple I'm seein...Oh, the blasphemy!!.

I know, I know...my wife loves Hawaiian pizzas....ham, pineapple, cheese.

I roll out my dough, but do not toss it, as much as I'd love to. Too much of a mess.

What do you cook yours on? I have a stone and a perforated sheet.....Debbie prefers the latter.

[gatr55555]

Told ya the food pics would make ya drool. My fav pizza my wife makes the sauce , whats in it besides tomatoes and spices i havent a clue. Monzzarella , provolone and parma cheese blend. sliced baby portabellas , and black olives. We get our dough from the local publix grocery store. My wife likes it thin , but i like my crust a little thicker. Somewhere between pan and traditional. Bake it on a pizza screen. We have a stone but the screen makes the bottom a little crispier.

[daleko]

Dec 7, 2012 16:40:56 GMT -5 Walter said:

Bake in the hottest freaking oven you can find.

[/color][/quote]

My neighbor built a brick dome oven in his back yard. Claims that's the difference. Hot, hot, hot. I bring the beer and he makes the pizza. He has an ir thermo, special wood.

[cyberobb99]

Dec 10, 2012 21:08:16 GMT -5 daleko said:

Dec 7, 2012 16:40:56 GMT -5 Walter said:

Bake in the hottest freaking oven you can find.

[/color][/quote]

My neighbor built a brick dome oven in his back yard. Claims that's the difference. Hot, hot, hot. I bring the beer and he makes the pizza. He has an ir thermo, special wood.[/quote]

Those brick ovens are fantastic for just about any kind of bread. Try this for a nice meal with your bud;

1) Ice down some beer. No, don't refrigerate it. Ice it down.
2) Make a stiff bread dough using an "Italian" bread recipe, bake it in that oven.
3) Chop up a bunch of green onions, a bunch of parsley. Melt 1/4 Lb of butter (1 stick) and warm up a teaspoon of chopped garlic in it. Make it 2 teaspoons if you're Italian. get out some dried red pepper flakes.
4) While he's at it, pour 2 cups of cheap white wine into a large covered pot and start to heat it to a boil. When it's just starting to bubble throw 4 Lbs of cleaned mussels into the pot and cover them. Stir them once or twice...when they pretty much all have opened up take them off the heat.....but leave them covered.
5) Scatter the onions and parsley over the mussels, sprinkle a shake or two of red pepper flakes on top, pour the garlic butter over everything and close it for 5 minutes. Then open it up and stir it all around.

Dump a bunch of mussels in a bowl and ladle some of the liquor from the pot on top of them. Open a cold, cold beer, take a swig, then dig in. After you've eaten a few mussels and made a pathway to the soup in the bowl rip off a big ol' chunk of that bread (hopefully still warm) and sop it up....don't waste ANY of it. Drink more beer. Repeat.



OK. Now you can die and go to heaven.

[Deleted]

Dec 10, 2012 21:24:19 GMT -5 cyberobb99 said:

Dec 10, 2012 21:08:16 GMT -5 daleko said:

My neighbor built a brick dome oven in his back yard. Claims that's the difference. Hot, hot, hot. I bring the beer and he makes the pizza. He has an ir thermo, special wood.

Those brick ovens are fantastic for just about any kind of bread. Try this for a nice meal with your bud;

1) Ice down some beer. No, don't refrigerate it. Ice it down.
2) Make a stiff bread dough using an "Italian" bread recipe, bake it in that oven.
3) Chop up a bunch of green onions, a bunch of parsley. Melt 1/4 Lb of butter (1 stick) and warm up a teaspoon of chopped garlic in it. Make it 2 teaspoons if you're Italian. get out some dried red pepper flakes.
4) While he's at it, pour 2 cups of cheap white wine into a large covered pot and start to heat it to a boil. When it's just starting to bubble throw 4 Lbs of cleaned mussels into the pot and cover them. Stir them once or twice...when they pretty much all have opened up take them off the heat.....but leave them covered.
5) Scatter the onions and parsley over the mussels, sprinkle a shake or two of red pepper flakes on top, pour the garlic butter over everything and close it for 5 minutes. Then open it up and stir it all around.

Dump a bunch of mussels in a bowl and ladle some of the liquor from the pot on top of them. Open a cold, cold beer, take a swig, then dig in. After you've eaten a few mussels and made a pathway to the soup in the bowl rip off a big ol' chunk of that bread (hopefully still warm) and sop it up....don't waste ANY of it. Drink more beer. Repeat.



OK. Now you can die and go to heaven.

Ye shall be exalted.

[daleko]

Dec 10, 2012 21:24:19 GMT -5 cyberobb99 said:

1) Ice down some beer. No, don't refrigerate it. Ice it down.

Is there in other way? Ice, a little water and salt.

[Walter]

Dec 10, 2012 20:35:33 GMT -5 cyberobb99 said:

Dec 10, 2012 18:11:02 GMT -5 Walter said:

I don't even try for round.
BTW, do you roll out the pizza? I usually roll it flat with a rolling pin almost as flat as it will be and then toss it and stretch it to a final shape. I like the dough really thin, and that's the only way I've been able to get it.

Nice looking stuff, BTW, although if that's pinapple I'm seein...Oh, the blasphemy!!.

I know, I know...my wife loves Hawaiian pizzas....ham, pineapple, cheese.

I roll out my dough, but do not toss it, as much as I'd love to. Too much of a mess.

What do you cook yours on? I have a stone and a perforated sheet.....Debbie prefers the latter.

I always use a stone. The thinner crust seems to do better with that contact with the heat, and since I can't do better in the oven than about 550dF, its sort of the limit of what I can do. I've gotten the time down to about 8-9 minutes, but no better.