Woodfiredpizza.org news

New Year's Challenge

bill@funkhouser.com — 2012-01-02T16:06:03-08:00

I’m considering a Julie and Julia type challenge for myself this year: bake all 55 recipes in Peter Reinhart’s Whole Grain Bread cookbook by the end of the year. That’s about one recipe per week. Here are the first 29 breads. Am I up for the challenge? Are you?

Rocket Oven

bill@funkhouser.com — 2011-11-26T08:35:34-08:00

A while back I read about the Green Rocket Pizza Oven, the most innovative pizza oven I've ever seen. It uses some of the wood combustion efficiency concepts developed over the past 35 years by people like Dr. Larry Winiarski. Unfortunately, it looks like the Green Rocket Pizza oven may only be available to people in the Dallas, TX area.

As I read more about rocket stoves, I came to realize how important they could be to the people in developing countries. As you may know women and children are spending many hours daily as they travel long dangerous distances trying to collect firewood. Also, millions die from the smoke pollution in their homes. The folks at Aprovecho are working hard to improve this situation around the world. While there are few stoves for sale online and even on amazon, this seems like an area for a lot of home inventors.

I've been thinking, these rocket stoves are cooking for hours using the amount of wood I might use as kindling just to start my oven. Could we redesign bread/ pizza ovens for greater efficiency? I might take this on as a project, possibly using castable refractory. Anyone have any experience with castable or rocket stoves? I'd appreciate any advice you might have.

Update 11/30/11 Thank you to those with information about rocket style ovens and stoves. One of the best was a lead I got from Kiko to Jon and his Haiti Rocket Stove Project. Great introductory video and useful photos.

Bread blog worth reading

bill@funkhouser.com — 2011-11-19T17:10:55-08:00

My friend Frank wrote to me a while ago that he found a blogger who made bread like Frank would like to make. I couldn't agree more. This blogger is Phil from Brisbane, Australia and his devotion to bread is phenomenal. He writes well and provides a nice backstory to each recipe. The photographs are spectacular. His recent olive loaf had my mouth watering at the first photo and the resulting loaf blew me away.

Unfortunately for my pocketbook, Phil has introduced me to the KoMo line of grain mills which might be the most elegant and expensive grain mills Ive ever seen. Quiet strong motors are housed in beechwood cabinetry in a way only German artisans could envision. Oh, Santa? How's your cash flow this year?

All About Roasting: a new book from Molly Stevens

bill@funkhouser.com — 2011-10-21T06:34:57-07:00

To cook food, uncovered, by exposure to dry heat is known as ‘roasting’. In Molly Steven’s newest book, “All About Roasting: A new approach to a classic art”. Stevens offers a comprehensive expiration of this technique and shares over 150 recipes of mostly meat dishes with a few vegetarian options as well.

The book is organized around chapters on beef, lamb, pork, chicken, fish and shellfish, vegetables and fruits. . The recipes include classics like Beef Tenderloin, Rack of Lamb, and Roast Chicken as well as more adventurous dishes like Prosciutto Wrapped Pork Loin with Rhubarb and Sage. Some of my favorites included Roasted Mushrooms with Pine Nuts, Mustard Crusted Potatoes and Orange and Honey Roasted Figs with Black Pepper. The chapters go far beyond these recipes as they also include choosing the best cuts of meat, roasting temperatures and methods and when to use them as well as how to carve meat properly. She unpacks the history, science and art of roasting with the same meticulous care she gave braising in her previous James Beard award winning book.

The mouthwatering photos are usually of finished dishes but the number of step by step photos is somewhat limited. Instructions are very clear and well numbered.

Five years in the making, this cookbook fully satisfies. Whether you are a beginning cook or a more experienced chef, this book has much to offer and is ideal for those of us looking to get the most from our wood fired ovens.
Molly Stevens Roasted Brussel Sprouts

Great pizza peel

bill@funkhouser.com — 2011-07-19T06:22:30-07:00

Pizza peels are tricky. There are so many options for handle length, peel shape, size and materials.

A long handled peel works fine in a wood fired oven but not in a home oven. Metal peels are durable but you wouldn’t want to cut on them. Some people cut on lightweight wood peels but they can warp and crack. Small peels like a banjo peel are maneuverable but you can’t build a pizza on them.

I was recently shown a pizza peel that offers the best of many worlds.

It made from a composite material that is thin and very durable. At a full 14 inches wide is it large enough to build a mammoth sized pie, slide it into the oven, scoop it out and cut right on the peel: it is very tough. The eco-friendly material will not dull knives nor absorb flavors.

The handle length is short which makes it perfect for the home oven or close to the doorway of a wood fired oven. If I could only have one peel, it would be this one.

Road trip

bill@funkhouser.com — 2011-07-19T08:45:13-07:00

I just got back from a two week vacation traveling by car down the entire length of California. Along the way I had some terrific pizzas.

While I was really looking forward to eating at Nancy Silverton and Mario Batali’s new restaurant Mozza, it seems calling for reservations 3 weeks in advance isn’t enough to see this L.A. hot spot. Even settling for take out requires 24 hours notice.

So, does the pizza justify this kind of hype? Well, it is good; very good pizza. The most obvious thing is bread expert Nancy Silverton’s dedication to the crust which had a thin onion skin type crackle exterior that gave way to a creamy, chewy interior.

We especially enjoyed the artichoke, lemon, stracchino, olive pizza as well as the squash blossom and burrata pizza.

At various other restaurants, I had some delicious pies as well. For example, the pizza al taglio or Roman style pizza that I had at the Uva Bar near Disneyland was delightful.

This surprising pie was nearly 2 feet long with a crisp cracker crust, heirloom tomatoes, balsamic dressing and fresh arugula. Superb.

While not the best pizza, the restaurant Kin in Windsor has fun with their kids pizzas. They bring bring out the dough (pre-stretched), a container of sauce and cheese for the child to prepare at the table. When the masterpiece is constructed, the waiter takes the pie away to be baked in the woodstone oven. My son enjoyed this process but didn’t love the resulting pizza.

After two weeks on the road tasting some delicious and sometimes slightly pretentious pizzas, nothing satisfied my family more than the home cooking of my friend Frank Giovanni of fgpizza.com. I have recommended Frank’s products for the home cook for years but this was the first time he and his family shared their home and oven with me directly.

You know Frank likes you when he feeds you. We enjoyed pizzas, salads, fried squash blossoms and superb drinks. One recipe I don’t think he would mind if I shared is for a dessert pizza that far exceeded my expectations: Limone Dolci.

Prepare a thin crust pizza, top with thin slices of uncooked lemons (remove all seeds) and bake. Remove from the oven, top with dabs of butter and return to the oven so the butter bakes in. Remove from the oven again and top with copious powdered sugar. I would guess Frank used 1/2 cup or more of powdered sugar here. You really can’t overdo the sugar. Unlike some chocolate pizzas, this dessert is a light and refreshing end of the meal treat.

News from Redwood Curtain Brewing Company

bill@funkhouser.com — 2011-02-27T14:47:37-08:00

I spent some time with Drake, one of the owners of Redwood Curtain Brewing Company, and learned about some additions that have happened since I wrote about this brewery five months ago.

First, their beers have become very popular at local restaurants. So popular, in fact, that they have brought in several new conical fermenters to keep up with demand.

Next, their year-round beers (Belgian Pale Ale, Belgian Porter, and Imperial Golden Ale) have a new beverage joining their ranks: India Pale Ale. While this popular beer is not in the completely European style of the other Redwood Curtain beer, it is a great hybrid style of British malt and yeast along with a generous dose of American hops.

While this delicious beer has been keeping hop heads happy, it is also the first beer they are releasing in their new “Dry Hop” series debuting this Wednesday, March 2. Usually hops are added to the boiling beer (or “wort” as it is known in beer parlance) but some brewers add more hops after fermentation has begun. This technique is known as “dry hopping” and while this rarely changes the bitterness of a beer, it does add even more hop aroma and character to ales. Hop fans rejoice! Look for a new “dry hop” beer every few weeks in the tasting room.

The brewery continues to roll out special new beers regularly. My favorite is the “Black Forest Imperial Stout” which came out during the holidays. Just a few days ago, they released their “Belgian Red Ale”, a tasty, easy-drinking copper colored ale. More artisan beers are due to debut over the coming months. Several beers are aging in oak casks that used to contain either Chardonnay or Cabernet wines.

This “aging on oak” will bring unique character to some special beers such as a Berliner Weisse style beer which is typically a low alcohol slightly sour beer that is sometimes flavored with fruit or herbs.

While no release date was mentioned, Redwood Curtain Brewing may also be working on some special non-alcoholic beverages such as a craftsman style root beer. My conclusion? There are a lot of great reasons to drop by Redwood Curtain Brewing on a regular basis to see their latest developments.

Zero Zero

bill@funkhouser.com — 2010-12-22T06:06:05-08:00

You’re in San Francisco, perhaps on a Monday or Tuesday when Tony’s is closed and you want some great woodfired pizza. There is a restaurant just two blocks from the Yerba Buena Center and MOMA near 4th and Folsom that may have what you are looking for called Zero Zero. Named of course for the famous Italian flour that can make the best pizza crust, this restaurant has a lot to offer. The ambiance is cozy industrial with exposed girders and dark hip spaces. Upstairs, the impressive bar has a mural which at first seems warm, amber and vaguely food related. Upon closer inspection we see Pinocchio the puppet seems to have been nightmarishly stuck into a pizza. If someone can explain this mural to me, I would appreciate it.

Downstairs the enormous Mugnaini oven churns out pizza at a staggering pace. You are welcome to watch the pizzaiolos at work, but don’t expect them to slow down to chat. They have a job to do and they’re doing it well. Be sure to notice the notch cut into the marble work slab and how they use it to steady the wooden peel when they load the pizza to chute it to the oven.

The warm olives at Zero Zero make a humble yet sublime antipasti. Do you warm your olives prior to serving? It makes all the difference in how the flavor opens up. I don’t think I’m going back to cold olives ever again. Frankie G recommends putting a ramekin with olive oil, garlic and citrus peel in the oven for a couple minutes to heat the oil, then toss the olives in the oil before warming them for a short time in the oven. You don’t want to cook the olives, just warm them up.

The salad of “Arugula, beets, Cara Cara orange, avocado, radish and citrus vinaigrette” was one of the best salads I’ve ever had. The baby arugula made a perfect counterpoint to the sweetness of the orange and beets. The rich avocado melted with the citrus vinaigrette and the whole plate was a feast for the eyes as well.

Pizzas were good to very good. One of the best was the Valencia made with Broccoli di Ciccio, green olives, and creamy Crescenza cheese. A subtle kick from some Calabrian red chiles balanced that pizza perfectly. The Fillmore was also good with ‘Hen of the Woods mushrooms’ (AKA Mitake mushrooms), leeks, thyme and four cheeses. This pizza was a perfect fall or winter warmer with all its earthly richness. Less satisfying was the Margherita Extra. Perhaps I’m spoiled as I do expect a lot from this kind of pizza, but this version seemed lacking. A Margherita is an exercise in both restraint and excess. It contains only four toppings which should be pronounced yet in balance. This version used an acceptable tomato sauce and buffalo mozzarella, yet I counted four puny leaves of basil and no taste of the De Padova olive oil. When I eat Margherita, I want to be bathed in the tastes of basil, olive oil, tomato and fresh mozzarella but this was more of a moist towelette than a bath.

Perhaps the most genius part of the menu at Zero Zero is the ice cream dessert offerings which are presented on small menus that you circle your choices using Lilliputlian pencils. No matter how full you are, I will be surprised if you do not leap forward and start marking the menu with childlike giddiness. The Strauss family dairy soft serve ice cream is a firm, grown up version of the stuff reminiscent of summer afternoons at the Dairy Queen without any of the artificial nastiness while the toppings remind you that you are still firmly planted in a fine SF restaurant; pomegranate seeds with saffron, citrus compote with Sicilian Orange Oil. Most surprising of all the ice cream toppings is the Da Vero olive oil and sea salt. This combination did not taste as one may expect but rather beautifully fruity with sparks of crunchy salt amid the sweet cream. Delightful.

Zero Zero: Lunch, brunch, dinner. 826 Folsom, SF, CA. 415 348 8800

"Tools are Made..." book by Jim Wills

bill@funkhouser.com — 2010-12-12T11:37:50-08:00

Mary G’s Artisan Bread’s master baker Jim Wills offers 2 day workshops to home bakers interested in perfecting their bread and baking skills. For those of us who cannot attend his workshop in Canada, his book “Tools are made born are Hands” is almost like being there with him. In it, he walks us through the two day workshop from morning to night. The experience is like having a master baker standing over your shoulder offering advice, theory and observations on every aspect of baking.

There are plenty of bread books with dozens of recipes on the market, but as most experienced bakers know, bread is more technique and skill than a list of ingredients. Mr. Wills manages to offer up these techniques and skills from basic to advanced without either talking down to the reader or being confusing. Perhaps this ability comes from his background as an English teacher. His writing is clear and interesting while his manner patient yet passionate. He has chosen well only 7 recipes, but the explanation behind the mixing, forming and baking of each one offers a lifetime of wisdom. For example, if a baker can recreate the 'Ciabatta' or the 'Pain al'ancienne' they have mastered the art of wet doughs while the techniques for the 'Massa Sovada" are important for understanding enriched sweeter breads.

Jim is a wood fired baker so much of the baking advice centers on these large ovens that more and more home bakers are using. If you are not among these bakers yet, fear not as he gives detailed instructions on how to replicate the breads in a home oven. There is little to criticize in this book if you know what to expect. The intriguing title “Tools are made born are Hands” offers little in terms of knowing what in contained within. This is not a coffee table book like Reinharts excellent offering, nor a mammoth collection of recipes. Instead, it takes us into the workshop and mind of a master baker who is an excellent teacher of his craft. If you are ready to improve your skills and understanding of the art of bread, then let this teacher be your guide.

How to fire a woodfired oven for bread baking

bill@funkhouser.com — 2010-12-05T11:53:35-08:00

I just helped my friend Frankie G edit his video “How to fire a woodfired oven for bread baking”. I think the video is pretty informative and well produced.

Paulie Gee's

bill@funkhouser.com — 2010-11-06T13:38:08-07:00

Isn’t it amazing the things you learn about on Facebook? One of my friends on FB shared a nice article about a pizzeria owned by a man named Paullie Gee, AKA Paul Giannone.

Although I haven’t been there, (it is in Brooklyn, NY and I’m in Arcata, CA) this appears to be a near perfect pizzeria. Why perfect? Well, it comes down to ambiance, ingredients, menu, and proprietor.

Explore the photos of the interior of this Greenpoint eatery and you’ll see what I mean about the ambiance. Rustic walls, great displays of glassware, wooden tables and an enormous Stefano Ferrara pizza oven all tell you this will be a warm, cozy place to hang out.

The ingredients Paulie uses stick to my favorite approach: keep it simple with the best quality ingredients you can. His top secret tomato sauce is simply the best tomatoes he could find after a 2 year search combined with Sicilian sea salt. His dough is well aged tipo 00 flour fermented dough similar to Peter Reinharts. (and perhaps mine) These ingredients, along with fresh local veggies, meat and fruit, remind us all that the best food is often the simplest, made with top quality ingredients.

Paulie’s menu is a joy to see. Old favorites like the margherita pizza are given great titles like “Regina”. Interesting combinations such as the pizza made from Fior di Latte, Baby Arugula, Olive Oil, Fresh Lemon Juice and Shaved Parmigiano Reggiano is called the “Greenpointer”. Seasonal specials like Anise and Anephew are made from Fior di Latte, Braised Fennel, Anisette Crème Drizzle, Berkshire Guanciale and Fennel Fronds. Vegetarians, vegans and carnivores alike can delight in his menu. His constant experimentation and love of food create constant unexpected combinations.

Finally, the proprietor, Paulie Gee is an inspiration. Obviously driven by his love of food to leave the world of technology for a humbler, more analog experience, he took a chance with this restaurant and hit a home run. His enthusiasm and love for making the best possible pizza come through immediately without pretense. He did not set out to make ‘pizza napoletana’ or any other gentrified adjective. He wanted to make great food in the form of bread with toppings that we call pizza. In my book, Paulie deserves to get his wish to be considered with heavyweights like Chris Bianco, Tony Gemignani and Anthony Mangieri. Perhaps most inspiring, he started as a blogger and technology guy like myself. When I told him I dreamed of quitting my day job and doing what he did, he asked, “What are you waiting for?” Indeed. Carpe diem, everyone.

It's Never Too Late to Make Pizza: Paulie Gee's from SkeeterNYC on Vimeo.

Humboldt wineries discovered

bill@funkhouser.com — 2010-09-24T18:41:55-07:00

It appears that Sunset magazine has discovered that there are wineries north of Napa! The magazine writes that our area has many great wineries including Old Growth Cellars, whose logo was designed by yours truly.

New California Brewery

bill@funkhouser.com — 2010-09-23T19:57:44-07:00

Tonight I had the pleasure of tasting some of the beers of one of California’s newest and best breweries: Redwood Curtain Brewing Company. The beers of Redwood Curtain are far more elegant than their logo suggests. These beers are sophisticated, European style beers unlike anything I have tasted brewed in California. I tried their delicious Belgian and English style ales and was surprised at not only at how authentic but also drinkable they were. If you have said “I don’t like Belgian beers”, it it time to give Redwood Curtain beers a try. Try their Belgian Pale Ale for one of the easiest drinking Belgian ales this side of Antwerp. My favorite was the Imperial Golden Ale with its classic malt forward English ale approach and mild but delicious East Kent Goldings hops. These beers are not the standard California yeast strain with Cascade hops that we have grown so used to. These are balanced, complex and assertive beers that may take a little getting used to, but oh, the training will be so pleasurable. They are serving seven beers at their tasting room in Arcata and you can find their beers on tap in many restaurants. Drake can give you more information.

Pizza recipe advice from Varasano's

bill@funkhouser.com — 2010-09-15T05:29:51-07:00

I came across this pizza site and was impressed with the thought and effort the owner had put into understanding crust. His explanation of the procedure and ingredients should be read by anyone dedicated to creating the perfect pizza. I wish I could try his pizza as they look excellent- perfect Napolitana crust every time.

Two new workshops announced

bill@funkhouser.com — 2010-09-14T06:19:01-07:00

“The Fire Within” just sent me information about two new workshops they are hosting. The first one I really wish I could attend features Peter Reinhart:

Join Peter Reinhart and 8 other top wood fired oven chefs for an unforgettable hands on weekend workshop! Learn and enjoy wood fired cooking at its best: many new pizza doughs, bread baking, international cuisine, and incredible deserts - all made in a wood fired oven! Taste samples of cheeses and tomatoes used throughout the pizza industry and learn where you can purchase them.

Even those who are new to using a wood fired oven will have ample opportunities for hand-on experience throughout the weekend! If you're an old pro, you'll learn new and exciting recipes and have a chance to try them first hand! Bring your current expertise to a whole new level!

Limited space for this 2 day event!
Location: Boulder, CO
Dates: October 16th and 17th.
Schedule: 9-5 on Saturday Workshop, followed by an afternoon party 9-4 on Sunday.
$549 Single $999 Couple
More info here.

The second workshop is one they run several times each year.

The workshop, designed and taught by “Fire Within’s” founder, Joseph Pergolizzi, will include guest instructors. Participants in the two-day workshop will learn and practice insider secrets to making real pizza dough, and will have the opportunity to work with an authentic, Italian-made wood-fired pizza oven. The course also includes essential marketing, food-safety and business techniques specific to the mobile wood-fired pizza oven concept. Registration, including all manuals and materials is $899. More info here.

Portable pizza oven workshop

bill@funkhouser.com — 2009-08-19T06:20:03-07:00

Interested in starting your own portable wood fired pizza oven catering business? The folks over at portablebrickpizzaoven.com remind me they are having a workshop in Boulder, CO on doing just that. The workshop is coming up October 3-4 and the instructors include Antonio Laudisio from Laudisio Italian Restaurant and Billy Manzo from the World Pizza Champions Team. The workshop costs $799 and includes 20 hours of instruction, the business plan manual Rolling in the Dough, breakfast and lunch both days and a $200 credit towards the order of a portable wood fired oven from portablebrickpizzaoven.com . They will be using their 43” hearth Concessionaire ovens and actually catering an event for 30 guests. If you are considering or already running a wood fired pizza catering business, this looks like a great educational opportunity.

International School of Pizza Part 2

bill@funkhouser.com — 2009-08-20T16:09:26-07:00

Have you ever wanted to learn about making better pizza but weren't sure where to find a "Pizza School"? You're in luck. One of the best pizza makers in the world, Tony Gemignani, just opened a pizza school in the United States.
If you are not familiar with Tony, I will attempt to summarize his extensive qualifications. He and his brother Frank opened their first pizzeria in 1991 when Tony was just eighteen. He taught himself some pizza tricks to entertain customers and unwittingly invented many of the tricks which are now the standard repertoire of modern pizza competitors. Just four years later he started competing on the international level and was crowned the World Champion Pizza Acrobat eight times from 1995-2007. In 2007, he also rocked the pizza world in Naples when he won the title of World Champion Pizza Maker with his Neapolitan pizza. This was the first time an American was chosen for the baking competition over the Italians. I can't help but think of the 1973 Judgement of Paris wine competition when the California wines were chosen over the French ones. Since then, Gemignani has become the coach of the World Pizza Champions, written a cookbook and appeared countless times on television. No one in the pizza world has been more featured or won more titles than Tony Gemignani.
Recently, he opened an amazing pizza restaurant in San Francisco which is also the location of his International School of Pizza. This school offers everything from Home Chef instruction to official certification from the oldest pizza school in Italy, Scuola Itala ina Pizzaioli. This was the kind of education I had been looking for.
I spent two mornings with Tony at his school in his restaurant Tony's Pizza Napoletana in San Francisco. This was one of the shortest course offered, but he customizes each class to the needs of the students and every minute of instruction was at my level.
The first day started over espresso with Tony. This was a great way to start. Very welcoming and charming. He talked with each student and got to know what our abilities and needs were. Since he tries to keep the class to six students or less, he has the time to get to know each person and what they expect to gain from the class. We spent the first hour or so learning about ingredients such as the four types of flour Tony uses for his pizzas. We learned how important dough temperature is and how important it is to keep the dough temperature consistent between batches despite the temperature of your kitchen. This master instructor shared his thoughts about climates, water, salt, yeast, and other ingredients. Are you using the right wood in your wood oven? Did you know there is a secret to adding wood to your fire so that is catches fire immediately and does not lower the temperature of your oven? Did you know that you can control the direction of the flame in your oven through wood placement? Do you know how the mineral content of water affects dough? Do you know why some pizzas are more digestible than others?
Each day also offered plenty of hands-on instruction. We mixed and balled and worked with different types of dough. We stretched the dough and improved our handling skills side-by-side with Tony. We used two of the four different ovens in the restaurant to bake our pizzas and we ate. A lot. My advice? If you take his courses, go hungry.
The final exam, although Tony would not call it this, was when he said, "OK, make a pizza." It is hard to describe how intimidating yet thrilling it is to have the World Champion Pizza Maker tell you that you have full access to his ovens and ingredients. I felt like I did OK when he took a bite of my pizza and said, "That's pretty good."
Speaking of access to his ingredients, one of the benefits of the class is the "Pizza Pro Card" that you get at the end. This card lets students return to buy flour, cheese, dough, yeast, or whatever else they might want. Since few of these imported items can be found in stores, this card is a treasure if you live near San Francisco. Tony also sends his students home with ample samples of all kinds of things like bags of flour and yeast. He has a generous heart.
There are many videos available of Tony doing acrobatics or joking around. He has a great sense of humor but one thing that impressed me was how seriously he takes the art of pizza creation. One of the slogans for Tony's Pizza Napoletana is "Respect the craft." This is evident every time Tony picks up a ball of dough and coaxes all the divine flavor and texture that he can from each and every pizza. I asked him if, after almost 20 years and possibly a million pizzas, he ever gets tired of pizza. He took a bite of a roman style, arugula, goat cheese, cherry tomato and prosciutto pizza he had made for breakfast and said simply, "Not at all".
He has dedicated his life to pizza making and is now sharing his incredible knowledge with a few students. If you take pizza making seriously and want to learn from a master, consider taking a course from Tony Gemignani at the International School of Pizza.

Julie/ Julia

bill@funkhouser.com — 2009-08-09T18:17:53-07:00

I just got back from the new Julie/ Julia movie and really enjoyed it. Delightful, really. The movie has special significance to me as my grandfather lived next door to Julia Child in Montecito, CA. He would tell me how Julia and Paul Child were obviously so in love and how Paul would often be seen carrying Julia’s enormous handbag while standing a full foot shorter than she. If you haven’t seen the movie, you really should.

3-D Sketch-Up images of ovens

bill@funkhouser.com — 2009-07-18T06:26:33-07:00

Oven builders are learning the free program Sketch-Up from Google and using it to visualize virtual ovens. The first one I received from Jeff Boggess a long time ago and this one from David Stovall looks great too.

Congratulations Deschutes Brewery!

bill@funkhouser.com — 2009-07-15T10:46:16-07:00

Deschutes Brewery in Oregon was announced as the Top US Brewery in the US Open Beer Championship. I have always loved their beers and I’m glad to see they did so well.

International School of Pizza

bill@funkhouser.com — 2009-07-14T18:51:05-07:00

The world famous Tony Gemignani now has the International School of Pizza in San Francisco. He offers pizza classes for everyone from professionals to kids. You could become certified in three different styles of pizza, acrobatics or as a home chef. I’m going to the August home chef class. Come join me! If you don’t want to take a class, at least have a pizza at his new restaurant. Want a freebie? Here is his pizza sauce recipe from his new kids book.

3-D computer images

bill@funkhouser.com — 2009-07-08T06:57:13-07:00

3-D computer images of the oven made by Jeff Boggess available here.

Cob Oven book

bill@funkhouser.com — 2009-07-08T06:52:55-07:00

Interesting bread oven book: For those who are not ready or can not afford to build the a brick oven as described here on this site and in this book, you might try a mud or cob oven similar to the type described in this book:

Pizza supply store

bill@funkhouser.com — 2009-07-08T06:48:43-07:00

My friend Frankie is a fellow woodfired oven user and he has created one of the best stores for bread/ pizza hobbists. He brings lots of tools and supplies to amateurs that are usually only available to professionals. I recommend a visit.

Wicked Plants

bill@funkhouser.com — 2009-07-08T06:39:02-07:00

Just finished Amy Stewart’s book “Wicked Plants”. Loved it. I’ll never look at the garden the same again.

My homebrew site

bill@funkhouser.com — 2009-07-08T06:32:42-07:00

Like beer? My newest site: www.SimpleHomeBrew.com My goal is to help people overcome any fear of making beer with grains. I try to doing using simple explanations and not a new language.

Una Pizza Napolitana

bill@funkhouser.com — 2009-07-08T06:29:58-07:00

One of the people I have been following who is mentioned in the NY times article is Anthony Mangieri. You can see a video about him here. He takes neopolitan pizza very seriously.

Pizza Article on NY Times

bill@funkhouser.com — 2009-07-08T06:26:33-07:00

Interesting review of the new wave of artisan pizza places in NY City here. The interactive photo series gives a nice voiceover to several of the restaurants reviewed.

Scottish Cob Oven

bill@funkhouser.com — 2009-07-03T06:25:18-07:00

I just heard from Gordon in Scotland about his cob oven. Nicely done, Gordon! Check out his photos.