Pizza Blog from pizzatherapy.com

True story: When I was a kid, I would watch my Italian grandmother's cook. They were wizards in the kitchen. The never measured anything. They never used a recipe. But everything they made came out perfect. I asked them a number of times to tell me their secrets... sadly I only learned one recipe, spaghetti sauce. (gravy). They both laughed when I asked them food related questions. They could easily tell me what went into each dish. But, they explained, they could not tell me the exact amounts They were not sure. They did not know themselves. They had never written anything down. It was all permanently etched in their soul. And that's how they cooked, from their soul. My grandmothers created soul food. Italian soul food. They both gave me the following cooking advice: "Put in a little bit of this and a little bit of that". I told them I had no idea what they meant. "Put in enough spice until it tastes right," they explained. I...

During one of my conversations with Ed Ladou   (creator of Wolfgang Puck's Pizza as well as California Pizza Kitchen pizza ), he remarked: "Pizza is sexy". Ed went on to explain  how the popularity of pizza has really exploded. And how the image of pizza has changed dramatically over the years.  When Ed first started making pizza, everything was different. Ed knew pizza. He was a true pizza philosopher and master pizzaiolo. I wonder what Ed would have thought about the following video. I'm sure he would have said: "See I told you so..." And Ed, I miss you. You were a true original. I have to give this video an "R" rating. It's not for everyone. So be forewarned... But if you like pizza, then you will like this video. Yeah, I guess Ed was right all along..."Pizza is sexy..." You can watch a huge collection of pizza videos at Pizza Therapy. pizza on earth, Albert Grande The Pizza Promoter -->

Mike asks: Albert - Thanks for all the help. I am on the quest for the perfect white dough ! I am actually trying it out tonight. If you have time I do have a couple of questions. Have you ever cooked one in a cast iron skillet? How comparable would this be to a pizza stone since you can technically let it heat up with the oven as well? What temperature would you recommend? Pizza is my life and I just started getting excited about it again after eating at a Mellow Mushroom just down the road from us.  I used to work in the pizza business for about 7 years, at McSalty's Pizza Cafe   in Springfield MO . A local owned very good pizza. Probably one of the top two or three I have ever had. It is a wheat crust rolled real thin and baked at 550 degrees. It tastes like a pepper cracker.  If you are ever near that area I would highly suggest you check it out. Dough and Sauce are made from scratch daily, and we chopped our own onions and green peppers as well. Thank...

Bourbon Distillery and Local Pizza Chain Join Forces for Bourbon Heritage Month LOUISVILLE, Ky. (September 7, 2010) – Four Roses Bourbon and Impellizzeri’s Pizza have teamed up in celebration of Bourbon Heritage Month to create a unique pizza recipe combining two of Kentucky’s finest offerings – Bourbon and the classic Louisville dish, the Hot Brown . “This pizza pairs two Kentucky classics, with the Hot Brown originating in Kentucky and 95 percent of the world’s bourbon being made in Kentucky as well,” said Four Roses Master Distiller Jim Rutledge . “This is one of the more creative uses of bourbon in cooking that I’ve come across and one I’d recommend Louisvillians try at least once while it’s available.” The recipe for the Kentucky Bourbon Hot Brown Pizza calls for tweaking a house-made alfredo sauce with dry herbs, spices and cheese to emulate the traditional Mornay sauce used in a Hot Brown, yet giving it an Italian twist. Fresh-diced chicken in a Four Roses Dijon Mari...

A member of The Pizza Therapy Community, our man Coda , shares his insights on The Best Pizza in the World: For the past fifteen years or so, there was a place out in Riverside (It's gone now) that was probably entitled to claim that they made my "Favorite" pizza. I wouldn't go so far as to claim that they were the "World's Best" but it was darn good. Driving on the 91 fwy during rush hour made it difficult to visit them very often and now the restaurant is gone. (sigh) Oh well. Anyway, I'd never found a pizza I would call "World's Best Pizza" before I tasted the pizza from Marechiaros . They say it sort of like "Mary Key Ahrrows" but with an Italian accent. I've tried both their red and white sauce pizzas. Unbelievable. The red sauce is mild and slightly tangy but has a definite "Oomph" too it. Hard to describe. I call it "mmmMMMmmm" sauce. It's just plain good and it always seems to m...

Growing up in Italian household was an experience. We ate good food...and plenty of it. Whenever friends would come to visit, they would always be fed. A lot... And if you didn't eat, you insulted the family. Everyone ate. The first words out of my friend's mouths were always: "That was good" Then, they would always ask: "Why is everyone yelling at each other?" I tried to explain, we weren't yelling....that was the way we talked. I'm a pretty loud person to this very day... One of the signature dishes was spaghtti sauce...I mean gravy. There is a lot of debate about what to call it. You'll have to decide yourself. Here is the recipe: Red Sauce / Gravy from Pasta Therapy Ingredients 1-28oz. can of crushed tomato, stewed tomato or puree 1-6oz. can of tomato paste 2-3 cloves of garlic (or more) Olive oil Basil, parsley, oregano, salt, pepper to taste 1/4 cup of red table wine (more or less) Directions 1. Crush garlic with ...

I asked Dan about how his pizza turned out. He had gotten a free copy of The Mini Pizza Therapy Pizza Book   He responded: Thank you for your inquiry. I did order your Legends of Pizza story and haven’t gotten the chance to read it yet, but I did try the dough recipe and it was fantastic. I bought a pizza stone and the crust was perfect . Unfortunately I had a problem getting the dough off the peel and it ended up spilling the toppings on the stone. Is there some trick to getting the dough off the peel? I’ve read about using parchment paper, but that seems to defeat the purpose of the stone, so any suggestions you have would be appreciated. Thanks Yours in pizza Dan G My response: Hi Dan. I have made every mistake possible when making pizza. Believe me! Every miststake possible. And even some mistakes that were not possible! So please do not feel bad. You will get it down. It just takes a bit of practice. Here is my advice on how to use a pizza peel: 1...