here the pizzas are lined up awaiting the wood fired oven...the pies can't be too close to the intense heat as they cook, or it will burn before the dough cooks....and to make the bottoms crusty, keep the floor of the oven clean and do not touch the pies often, let them sit, spin only when it's time.



pizza dough

(I used only 00 flour, but use AP , whole wheat, spelt, in combo for a really good crust)
the wood fired oven makes everything tastes fantastic!

1 cup plus 1tbl   00 flour  + 1 cup AP
1 tsp honey or sugar
3/4 tsp active dry yeast
1 tsp olive oil
1 cup water = 105 - 115 F
salt to taste

combine water yeast and sugar until foams
use kitchen aid
combine flour , salt , olive oil with yeast mixture and with dough hook, mix, until pulls away
coat with olive oil
let almost double in size
punch down and shape

portable wood fired pizza ovens are popping up all over the place!

Pizza Technique

Italian Farmhouse Recipes: pasta frolla and pizza dough

Pasta Frolla

1.5 cup plus 1 tbl AP flour

7 tbl unsalted butter room temp

2 large egg yolks

.5 cups sugar

pinch fine sea salt

zest of 1 lemon, minced

ideal temp 65-68 degrees F

Pizza Dough

1. 1/3 cups luke warm water

2 teaspoons dry yeast

.5 cup olive oil

4*4.5 AP flour

1 tsp fine sea salt

Locally Grown: Farmhouse Pizza

The reason I am posting about homemade ricotta has mainly to do with our goats and uses of their goats milk.  Early on in my farming life, I read about Coach Farms also in NYS, and how successful they have been with goat's cheese - chevre - the fresh kind.  Twenty years later, we have goats, and our herd is growing.  Now I have to decide what is the best use of the goat's milk!  Since our farm is specializing in all things Neopolitan pizza - I thought it may be good to see how homemade ricotta comes out with some goats milk and some heavy cream from cows milk.  We have a really great dairy - Evans Farmhouse - that makes a decadent heavy cream - so yellow/cream colored and rich.

Nearby to the farm, we already have 2 cheesemakers - one that makes raw milk aged cheeses of different varieties.  And another that makes the chevre.  So I thought instead of duplicating their work - (I use their cheese on our pies too) - and I'll try a different cheese and see how it comes.   I know a dairy nearby that produces curds and I'll work with them on fresh mozzarella.

Ultimately, the pizzas will be entirely fresh picked and locally grown and baked all right here in the Unadilla Valley and expanding to other areas of the Northeast.  I've had the idea to freeze prepared veggies and meals since 2005 and things are only finally coming to fruition.  We already grow the tomatoes, basil, garlic and the cheeses, mushrooms, other herbs can be purchased from others.   To be continued...

Farmhouse Brickoven Pizza

Our pizza dough comes from our Italian Farmhouse Cookbook, and I am very proud that we make our own dough for the brickoven pizzettes. They contain all the ingredients of Italy grown right here on our farm, including the wheat in the very near future! The mozzarella is the fresh one - not Bufala - cow from the Northeast markets. Less is more for toppings when you are making a brickoven pizza because all of the flavor of heirloom tomatoes, basil, mozzarella, and the crust - are so pleasing that you will ruin it if it is smothered with anything else! Or you can make variations as pictured her - but minimal ingredients - like greens, and a different kind of cheese instead of red sauce - or meats salumi or pepperoni - but not too much. Don't try for one of those "everything on it" American pies!

Making the dough is done the day before we are to use it - proofing the dough to rise to twice it's original volume. For each dough ball - spring water is warmed - that is a key here - warm - not hot- 1 1/4 cup with 1 pkg. of yeast whisked with 1 tablespoon of unbleached sugar or honey. This activates the yeast. Use this once the mixture foams and looks active! Until we get a mixer I use the food processor.
Put in one cup of flour, than the yeast mixture and begin the blending process. As it is blending add another cup of flour (that is 2 so far) than add 1 tbsp. olive oil - than 1 tablsp. sea salt. Than add another cup of flour (that is 3 total) Than with the 4th cup add alittle at a time until a ball is formed. Stop the blender and turn out onto a floured surface. Form a ball that feels as soft as a baby's bottom. Too much flour and it is hardened. Too little and it is sticky. Very little flour is needed at this point.

Set in warm oven to rise or room temperature. Once it has doubled - punch down and form two balls with each dough recipe. Set aside to rise again.