Pizza at home: Baking Steel

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baking steel, basil, bread, fior di latte, margherita, mozzarella, pizza, pizza stone, romana, the potted kitchen garden, thyme

Disclaimer: To bake great pizza in a home oven requires a bit of experimentation for best results for your oven. Every home oven is different. This is what I have worked out for my home oven and my style of pizza. Your oven will be different. What works best for my oven may not work best for your oven or for your style of pizza.

In the last pizza post, I documented baking pizzas in a home oven using the Lodge Cast Iron Pizza Stone.  In my home oven, even the relatively thin cast iron pizza stone created greater oven spring and better leopard spotting on my pizzas.  This time I take it a step further and begin experimenting with A36 steel.  Steel has a slightly higher heat transfer rate than cast iron and a 1/2 inch thick piece of steel will hold considerably more heat than the relatively thin cast iron of the Lodge Cast Iron Pizza Stone.

I placed a 1/2 inch Baking Steel approximately 8 centimeters from the top broiler of my oven, on top of a terra cotta paving tile.

Oven setup for 1/2 inch Baking Steel, located approximately 8 cm below electric broiler element.

My current go to pizza dough recipe is the Basic Country Bread recipe from Chad Robertson’s Tartine Bread: just flour, water, salt, and leaven (from wild sourdough culture) at around 78% hydration (I suppose that would be about 80% total hydration if you account for the leaven which is at 100% hydration). I typically fold the dough once after 30 minutes, then divide the dough into 280g portions and place each portion in a separate container and place in the fridge to ferment. I typically bake with the dough anywhere from a 1-4 day fermentation.

Tartine Bread: simplified recipe notes (I add an additional 80g of water with the salt.)

I decided I to bake two pizzas and set up my mise en place.

The oven was set to high and preheated for at least one hour. Just before baking a pizza, I set the oven to broil and let the upper element heat to glowing before stretching the dough.

After shaping, I waited 30 minutes before stretching the first dough ball.  I have consistently found the dough to be more relaxed after about 45 minutes after shaping and much easier to stretch.  I need to remember to time the shaping to a minimum of 45 minutes prior to stretching and baking the first pizza.

One day sourdough ferment.

After stretching the dough, I made the first pizza and launched it onto the Baking Steel.

Pizza Romana: Tomato sauce, fior di latte, red onion, capers, anchovie, Kalamata olive, fresh thyme.

I removed the pizza when the first spots on the cornicione were just turned black: 3 minutes, 26 seconds. The pizza was removed to a cooling rack for two minutes to preserve crispness of the crust before plating and slicing.

Pizza Romana upskirt

Even after less than 4 minutes, the crust was browned evenly and the cornicione was beautifully soft and airy.

After letting the oven temperature recover, I once again switched the oven to broil and prepped the next pizza.

Pizza Margherita: Uncooked tomato sauce, fior di latte, fresh basil

I removed the pizza from the oven when the first dark spots on the crust turned dark black: 4 minutes, 42 seconds. The pizza was removed to a wire rack to cool for two minutes to preserve crispness of the crust.

Pizza Margherita upskirt

The cornicione was sufficiently cooked and reasonably light and airy. Bear in mind this was just a one day sourdough ferment. Later pizzas should have better development and leopard spotting, especially after 3-4 days.

Pizza Margherita cornicione

Note:  As with a proper woodfired oven, the pizzas need to be turned at least once during baking for even cooking.  I did not turn these pizzas, hence the uneven cooking.

I still do not have a non-contact infra-red thermometer, so was unable to check the temperature of the stone just prior to launching the pizza. I hope to buy one soon…

I was very happy with how these two pizzas turned out, even after just a one day sourdough ferment. Today’s pizza on the Baking Steel seems to have already outperformed the Lodge Cast Iron pizza stone. I look forward to baking more pizzas over the next several days.

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Key Lime Pie

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dessert, key lime, key lime pie, lime, pie, the potted kitchen garden

It has been quite a few years since I last ate Key lime pie.  A couple years ago I found Key lime trees at a local nursery and took a couple home with me for The Potted Kitchen Garden.  I have tended these lime trees for a while now and finally had a crop large enough to make a pie.  I figured it would be worth the wait…

I am fortunate to have Key limes growing in the garden, as they are not readily available here in NZ.  I love the flavour of Key limes, but if you cannot find Key limes, you can certainly use the more common available limes.  Key lime food purists can go suck a lime!  If you do purchase limes at a supermarket or farmer’s market, please do search for organic limes, as you need to use the zest of the limes in this recipe.

As the limes from my Key lime tree are quite small, I had to pick all 12 limes on the tree, and there still was not enough juice, so I made up the difference with the juice of three Kaffir limes, also from The Potted Kitchen garden.

I substituted McVitie’s Digestives for Graham Crackers in the original recipe.

This recipe is based on the recipe for Key Lime Pie from Joe’s Stone Crab in Miami, Florida.

 

Key Lime Pie

Serves 8

Ingredients

Crust

1 cup plus 2 1/2 tbsp. Digestive crumbs

1/3 cup sugar

70g unsalted butter, melted

Filling

1 1/2 tbsp. lime zest (about 2 limes worth)

3 egg yolks

One 395g can sweetened condensed milk

2/3 cup fresh lime juice, preferably from Key limes

Topping

250 mL heavy cream, chilled

1 tbsp. confectioner’s sugar (icing sugar)

Method

Heat oven to 175 Celsius.

Place digestives in ziplock bag and crush with rolling pin or pulse in food processor.  Combine digestive crumbs, sugar, and melted butter.  Press evenly into bottom and sides of a 22 cm loose bottomed tarte tin.  Bake until lightly browned, about 10 minutes.  Let cool.

In a medium bowl, beat lime zest and egg yolks with a hand mixer until pale and thick, about 5 minutes.  Add milk and beat until thickened, 3-4 minutes more.  Add lime juice, mix until smooth.  Pour filling into pie crust; bake until filling is just set in the middle, 8-10 minutes.  Let pie cool.  Chill pie at least 2-3 hours before serving.

In a medium bowl, whisk cream and confectioner’s sugar into stiff peaks.  Plate slice of pie with a healthy dollup of whipped cream.

Alternatively… Instead of whipped cream, try topping the pie with crème fraîche mixed with 1 tbsp. of confectioner’s sugar – rather like the topping on a New York style cheesecake.

A blast of lime well balanced by crust and cream

Delicious and definitely worth the wait for a good crop of Key limes from The Potted Kitchen Garden.

Braised Beef Cheek Tacos

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beef, beef cheeks, coriander, mexican, pickled red onions, taco, the potted kitchen garden

Tacos with beef cheeks braised in Old Vine Zinfindel, pickled red onions, fresh coriander from The Potted Kitchen Garden, on homemade corn tortillas. Served with a lime cheek and a fire roasted Serrano chile from The Potted Kitchen Garden.

Dill Pickles

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cucumber, dill pickle, homemade dill pickles, pickle, refrigerator dill pickles, the potted kitchen garden

I have a craving for a good dill pickle. Not a gherkin nor a cornichon, just a simple dill pickle. Something I can put in a sandwich or on a hamburger.

A friend recently tried a recipe for homemade dill pickles and it inspired me, as I have dill growing in The Potted Kitchen Garden…

I decided there is no better time then the present to start making pickles for the larder.

The recipe my friend used seems simple enough for a start, so I went with that. I followed the recipe for Homemade Refrigerator Dill Pickles from Once Upon A Chef.

Homemade Refrigerator Dill Pickles

Servings: About 24 spears, or two 1-quart jars
Ingredients

1-1/4 cups distilled white vinegar (5% acidity)
3 tablespoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons sugar
2 cups cold water
1-3/4 to 2 pounds Kirby cucumbers (about 6), cut into halves or spears
2 tablespoons coriander seeds
6 large garlic cloves, peeled and halved
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
16 dill sprigs
Instructions

1. Combine the vinegar, salt and sugar in a small non-reactive saucepan (such as stainless steel, glass, ceramic or teflon) over high heat. Whisk until the salt and sugar are dissolved. Transfer the liquid into a bowl and whisk in the cold water. Refrigerate brine until ready to use.
2. Stuff the cucumbers into two clean 1-quart jars. Add the coriander seeds, garlic cloves, mustard seeds, red pepper flakes, dill sprigs, and chilled brine into jars, dividing evenly. If necessary, add a bit of cold water to the jars until the brine covers the cucumbers. Cover and refrigerate about 24 hours, then serve. Cucumbers will keep in the refrigerator for up to one month.

I will have to wait a couple days to see how this lot turned out. Proof of the pickling is in the eating, or something like that…

The Potted Kitchen Garden: Turmeric

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the potted kitchen garden, turmeric

The Potted Kitchen Garden: Chiles Tabasco

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chiles, chiles tabasco, the potted kitchen garden

Anaheim Chile, Potato, and Corn Tacos

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chiles anaheim, chipotle crema, corn, corn tortilla, feta, mexican, potato, roasted chiles, taco, the potted kitchen garden

I picked a few Anaheim chiles from The Potted Kitchen Garden. I was thinking tacos…

I roasted the chiles over a flame until charred, then skinned, deseeded, and diced the chiles.

I cut the kernels off a fresh ear of sweet corn and roasted them in a pan.

I cubed two potatoes and boiled them until al dente in salted water with 2 fresh bay leaves, 2 whole garlic cloves, and 6 whole black peppercorns, then drained them and removed the peppercorns and bay leaves.

I made 8 small corn tortillas.

I heated a large cast iron pan over medium heat, added a good knob of butter, and softened a diced onion. I then added the potatoes to the pan and let them cook with the onions for a few minutes.

The diced chiles and roasted corn were added and I let them get happy with the potatoes and onions before I tasted for salt and pepper, then removed from the heat and mixed through a healthy tablespoon of crème fraîche.

The tacos were served with a chipotle crema and crumbled feta.

Risotto with Wild Boar Sausage, Fire Roasted Anaheim Chiles, & Sautéed Mushrooms

Tags

chiles anaheim, italian, mushroom, rice, risotto, sausage, the potted kitchen garden, wild boar sausage

The Fire Roasted Anaheim chiles are from The Potted Kitchen Garden. Pork and chiles are a natural match.

To make a riff off Chile Verde, try adding Chile Verde sauce to the risotto after the first addition of stock.

The Potted Kitchen Garden: Anaheim Chiles

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chiles anaheim, the potted kitchen garden

Just one of the six Anaheim plants in The Potted Kitchen Garden…

Mezzi Rigatoni With Wild Boar & Serrano Chile Tomato Sauce

Tags

chiles serrano, italian, mezzi rigatoni, pasta, sausage, the potted kitchen garden, tomato sauce, wild boar sausage

I picked up some wild boar sausage at the market. I diced a small onion and softened it in extra virgin olive oil over a gentle heat until translucent, then added a diced Serrano chile from The Potted Kitchen Garden and cooked them together until they got happy in the pan.

I removed two Wild Boar Sausages from their natural casings and crumbled them into the pan and gently sautéed until lightly browned, breaking up any larger bits of sausage as it cooked.

In a separate bowl, I hand crushed two 400g tins of tomatoes and added that to the pan with a healthy pinch of sea salt. I brought the sauce to the boil, then reduced to a gentle simmer until thickened and adjusted for salt. The tomatoes are only lightly cooked, as I wanted a light fresh tomato sauce to go with the boar.

Whilst the sauce was reducing, I cooked the Mezzi Rigatoni in salted, boiling water until al dente.

I drained the pasta and put it back in the pan with a bit of reserved pasta water and added the Wild Boar Tomato Sauce, stirring over a low heat until the pasta was well coated, and served in warm bowls with a side of garlic bread.