Oh the weather outside is frightful
But the fire is so delightful
And since we’ve no place to go
Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!
I was a weather-related call-out to work, this morning. Yesterday, I was saying we weren’t going to get anything from the storm. The way they were hyping it just made me think it would blow on by.
It appears that I was not correct. We currently have 2 weather advisories and a special weather statement for our zip code.
The wind is blowing like a banshee and snow is flying all over creation. It’s absolutely beautiful in a weird sort of way. And as long as the power stays on, it will continue to be beautiful. And cold. Really cold. Wind chills are going to be in the -20°F neighborhood for the remainder of the week. That’s pretty cold.
Time to hunker down and hit the kitchen!
Dinner, tonight, is going to be a double-crust chicken pot pie. Lunch was pizza.
Pizza is extremely easy to make. The dough is merely flour, water, salt, and yeast. One rise, form, top, and bake! Easy.
I have a 2-day dough that is excellent and great if you’re planning pizza. I also have a quickie dough for days like today. I ended up splitting the dough into two pieces – one for today and another into the freezer.
Pizza Dough
- 1 pkt yeast
- 3/4 cup lukewarm water
- 2 cups flour
- 1 scant tsp salt
Proof yeast in the water. Add flour and salt and mix about 8 minutes with a mixer or knead by hand.
Place in an oiled bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled.
Form into a pizza round and top with your favorite toppings.
Start with your round of pizza dough.
Spin it into a round and place on the pizza peel. You need flour or corn meal on the peel to get the pizza to slide off the peel. I switch back and forth. Today I used corn meal.
Top with your favorite sauce. I made a quick one with tomato paste, red wine, water, garlic, oregano, and S&P.
And then the cheese. Less really is more.
I topped this with a 3-pepper salami and freshly-grated parmesan.
And then into the oven on the brand-new – preheated – baking stones.
It helps to have a dog standing by…
Bake at 450°F until done.
We do not own a pizza pan, so onto the cutting board.
And mangia!
It’s ridiculously no-fail.
And speaking of no-fail…
We have had a round 14″ pizza stone for more years than I can count. I honestly don’t know how long we have had it but I do know it replaced the quarry tiles I had used for years before that. I loved the tiles but hated constantly putting them in-and-out of the oven, trying to find a place to conveniently store them when I wasn’t baking… The problem with the pizza stone is that it’s round – and I don’t always bake round things. The other day clinched it when I wanted to bake 2 baguettes and a small round loaf. I had to curve the baguettes to get them all to fit – and then they all grew together in the oven.
Off to Chef Google for a solution.
My original plan was to find a single stone that fit the entire oven rack. I looked at a few – and looked at the shipping charges – and then started reading up a little more. The general consensus for a home oven seemed to be smaller blocks rather than a single large block because of the way they heat. Not to mention easier to handle.
I went with the Dough-Joe from Falls Culinary, a small company in Sioux Falls, SD. I think for the most part that we will be able to just keep them in the bottom oven and I’ll do my bread-baking there instead of the upper oven.
We really only use both ovens a couple of times a year, so they really can just stay put most of the time.
The pizza came out fantastic. I foresee some fun baking!