A little pizza my heart…..

I know what you’re thinking, the name’s a little cheesey… but we’re talking about pizza!

Pizza. Who doesn’t love pizza?!  What’s not to like, it’s the perfect combination of cheese, tomato sauce, cheese, carbs, cheese, veggies, meat….  did I mention cheese? It’s pretty much my go to cheat meal for the week (ya right, like I only have ONE cheat meal per week- get real Gigi).  It also pairs perfectly with wine, of course. Seriously, if you’re like the one person on the planet who doesn’t like pizza, I’m not sure we can be friends….just kidding (sort of).

To prove to you that my pizza obsession runs deep, I’ll tell you about the pizza oven the hubs and I decided to build. See, I told you, pizza obsessed! The build was relatively easy (compared to the million other projects Greg drags me into) and it came together in about two full weekends.

Now you’re probably saying to yourself, “I don’t have a pizza oven, how this post even worth looking at?”, but don’t fret, this pizza can be cooked in an indoor oven and taste like you baked it outside. The secret to bring your indoor pizza game to the next level is using a baking stone, it gives you that perfect high temperature heat without the added expense or build time of an outdoor oven. Pizza stones are so common these days and you can find them priced very reasonably. William Sonoma has several options, and I love all things William Sonoma, but Amazon has many pizza stones that work just as well and are more affordable. You’ll also need a thin metal pizza pan with holes or grates in it; again Amazon has multiple options for pizza pans.

Usually everyone’s first question when they come over for pizza is,” How do you make your dough?” To which I currently reply, “I don’t.” I know, I know, the dough is such an integral part of the pizza and I promise I’m working on getting my dough recipe on point, but I’m not willing to experiment on friends/family when they come over, at least not yet. Also, it’s kind of daunting to have enough dough when say, 10 or 30 people come over. I use all fresh toppings and need to prepare those as well so I give myself a break and buy prepared dough. There are so many places to get excellent prepared pizza dough…..Vons, Trader Joe’s, and even local pizza shops (for all my fellow San Dieagons) like Bongiorno’s New York Pizzeria out of Solana Beach, which sells their fresh dough to customers. Keep your eyes open for the dough post, it is coming just you wait!

I tend to keep my pizza toppings simple, but I always provide a wide range of options so everyone can really personalize their pies. Plus even though the pizzas are “personal” sized they are pretty large so I always end up stealing a slice from the hubs since he goes wild with meat, cheese, and a cracked open faced egg. Yes, I said egg….and yes, it’s amazing. If you like eggs and you like pizza, then how can you not like eggs with your pizza? It’s like worlds colliding, but in a good way, trust me grab that egg! Now without further ado onto the base and topping selections!

Dough – Of all the doughs I listed I think the Vons’ pizza dough works the best. The dough is 16 ounces (1 lb.) and I divide it in half. Each half makes the perfect personal sized pizza. The dough is thin enough to get baked through, but thick enough to handle all the toppings your heart desires. Make sure you allow the dough to come to room temperature before rolling it out. I usually leave it the dough on the counter about 20-30 minutes before we begin cooking the pizza.

Sauce – I purchase San Marzano Italian Peeled Tomatoes in a 28 ounce can, place it in a large mason jar, and use an immersion blender to make it into a sauce. I usually add some olive oil, dried oregano, fresh basil, salt, and pepper. I start with about 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil, 2 tablespoons of dried oregano, 2 tablespoons of fresh basil, and S&P to taste. I always go light with all my add-ins and taste along the way to decide if I need more of anything. I usually end up adding more fresh basil just because I love it so much, but it’s totally up to you. Don’t skimp out on the sauce, these Italian tomatoes are so worth it even though they’re more costly than their American cousins.

Meats – Salami, prosciutto, and sausage are my go to meats. I usually buy one pound of mild sausage and one pound of spicy sausage since not everyone wants their mouth on fire. I sauté the sausage up and drain it so it doesn’t get the dough too greasy.

Vegetables – Black and green sliced olives, canned quartered artichokes, roasted red bell pepper, chopped red onions, chopped green and yellow peppers, sliced tomatoes, mushrooms (sautéed in a pan with olive oil, salt and pepper to draw out the juices), fresh garlic, and fresh basil.

Cheeses – fresh mozzarella, Parmigiano-Reggiano blend, Ricotta, and the star of all cheeses…fresh burrata (my mouth salivates just mentioning this cheese!)

For the adventurous eater – Anchovies…yes they’re strong, but honestly when they heat up they become this savory, salty, umami topping that is just delicious. Now I don’t always add anchovies because I have to be in the mood, but if you’ve never tried anchovies give them a whirl, even just on one slice of your pie, they may surprise you. I also love a little truffle oil drizzled over the pizza after it’s cooked, but while it’s still hot. Go easy on the oil though, you don’t want the truffle to overtake the flavors of the pie, especially one that is simple in style.

Cooking method in the oven:

Place a pizza stone in the lower rack of the oven before turning it on. The stone needs to heat up as the oven heats up. Set the oven to 450°-500° degrees, once it reaches temperature let the pizza stone sit for another 10 minutes to really heat through. Take a metal pizza pan and spray it with non-stick cooking spray – I use the olive oil based one from Trader Joe’s.

Take your dough, cut it in half, and roll it into a circle. Place the rolled out dough on the sprayed pizza pan. Place your sauce on the dough and start adding your toppings. I like to put the toppings on first and then cover them with cheese, it’s just a personal preference so if that’s not your thing you just do you. I also top the pizza with a swirl of olive oil, some dried oregano, and some salt and pepper if you don’t have too many salty toppings.

Place the pizza pan on the stone and set a timer for 8-10 minutes. After 8-10 minutes you should be able to grab the pizza pan (with hot pads…no burning our hands here, we need them to eat the pie!) and slide the pizza directly onto the stone. Allow the pizza to cook another 10-15 minutes, but check after 10 minutes so not to burn the pie. Once the pizza is cooked, slide the pizza (carefully, watch those hands!) from the pizza stone to a cutting board. Now I know you want to dive right into this pizza, but patience is really a virtue here. Give the pie a few minutes to rest so the lava molten cheese doesn’t burn the roof of your mouth to extinction and the toppings and cheese can stay put when you slice it up.

Cooking method in the pizza oven:

Before I get started, I may have failed to mention this is an all-day event. But it is SOOOOOOO fun and, let’s be honest, anything that gives me an extended period of time to drink wine is number one in my book!

But I digress…

So basically the set-up is the same except we don’t use a pizza pan or stone since the outdoor oven is the stone. The hubs fires up the oven about 2 hours before we’re ready to cook since it takes some time to build up the heat and get it to the 850-900 degree range.  Once the pie is prepared the hubs grabs it with a pizza peel, this is the part that amazes everyone, and slides it off the kitchen counter and it into the oven. We got our peels from https://superpeel.com/; it’s such a cool contraption for handling the pizzas. I’ll post a vlog soon that shows this whole process in action! Once in the oven the pizza takes about 4-6 minutes to cook. The high heat allows the crust to rise and all the cheese to melt perfectly. Again, once the pie comes out of the oven resist the temptation to dive right in; it’s beyond hot at this point. Once it’s rested it’s time to slice, serve, and enjoy!

Wine to pair? So wine pairing is somewhat dependent on the toppings, but because of pizza’s base of tomato sauce and cheese a nice Italian Barbera works really well. It’s similar in style to my beloved Pinot Noir since it’s got good acidity, is medium bodied with low tannins, and has a fruit forward palate. Now of course you can go with a Chianti…I mean who doesn’t love a nice Chianti with their pizza (but feel free to leave out the fava beans and liver ). So pour a glass and Cin cin!

So there you have it… a perfect pie in the comfort of your own home oven!

I hope this post will inspire you to consider building a pizza oven of your own, it’s relatively easy and not too costly if you DIY it. But if that’s not in your future, just drop on by over the weekend. More likely than not, the pizza oven will be blazing and pies will be cooking; I’ll even pour you a glass of wine or three. Buon Apetito friends!