Pizza
- May 9, 2024
- 3 min read
Join Ben and Stacey Bowen, owners of a portable brick oven capable of cooking a pizza in a minute, as they share their expertise of pizza creation on a large scale. From unique pizza toppings to top secret recipes, you'll hear all about making pizza for dinner and dessert! Discover their tips on sourcing ingredients, the essential equipment needed, and much more. Plus, stay tuned for their invaluable hospitality advice, including how to keep it easy on yourself, take the party outdoors, involve little ones in greeting guests, and create an atmosphere that welcomes both parents and kids alike. Whether you're a seasoned pizza enthusiast or a novice looking to elevate your pizza game, this episode is sure to leave you inspired and ready to go cook some pizza! We're so glad you're here!
Pizza Crust
(By Ben Bowen)
Makes 4-16” crusts
Ingredients:
1000g bread flour (high gluten, King Arthur, Shepherd’s Grain, etc.)
700g water
20g salt
4g yeast
Directions:
The trick to this is time. Don’t rush the courtship of the gluten. Your job is to introduce the parties, time perfects the relationship. So, mix for a couple minutes. The dough will look shaggy and impossible to form a pizza out of. In 30 minutes, turn it out on a countertop and form into a ball (lots of YouTube videos on this, and it should only take 30 seconds). Oil your dough bowl and cover with a towel. Give it a few hours then divide the dough into 450g balls (use the same techniques you learned on YouTube) and cover for final proof. In an hour or two it will be ready for pizza… and get creative. Butter, cinnamon and sugar, or s’mores toppings, pretty much anything is game on a good dough!
Thai Pizza Toppings:
Mea Ploy Sweet Chili Sauce
Cilantro
Pickled ginger
Red onions
Green onions
Zucchini
BBQ chicken
Mozzarella cheese
Idaho Buns
(By Ben Bowen)
These use potatoes, hence the name, but I first had them in Alaska and perfected them in California.
Ingredients:
1 medium potato, peeled chopped and boiled
1 cup of the potato water
1 package yeast
Pinch of sugar plus ½ cup
½ cup oil
2 eggs
1 tablespoon salt
1 cup bread flour
~5-6 cups all-purpose flour
Butter
Favorite bun fillings (cinnamon/sugar, nuts, etc.)
Favorite frosting (cream cheese, powdered sugar, etc.)
Directions:
1. Peel, chop, and boil one medium potato. Save 1 cup of the potato water.
2. When it is soft, use an immersion blender or a potato masher and make two cups of the wettest mashed potatoes ever. It should look like a thick soup. Let this mixture cool down to not kill the yeast (~110°).
3. Mix ½ cup warm water with yeast and a pinch of sugar and set aside. In your mixer place ½ cup sugar, ½ cup oil, 2 eggs, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 cup bread flour. Mix cooled potato mix and frothy yeast mix and then finish with all-purpose flour (usually 5-6 cups). You want the dough dry enough to roll without sticking.
4. Let it proof for a couple hours, then roll out with butter and your favorite bun filling (The divide on walnuts or pecans runs deep, so in the spirit of Romans 14 we keep it simple.). Divide the roll and let rise.
5. Bake at 325° for 25-40 minutes. (I know broad range, but ovens vary, so keep the light on, peek at them and pull them when they are done.) Should they bake a little dark, remember that cream cheese frosting is like love; it covers a multitude of sins!
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