Pizzas and Plans

We had a really fun night recently having some friends over for pizza, drinks, laughs, and conversation. I had revisited a dough recipe that I had success with in the past, and it worked out great this time around. I feel very confident about building pizzas from the raw ingredients now, but dough is always tricky. I need to take better notes on what I try. The conversations that arose about pizza, and other topics was just as enjoyable.

I went with a poolish recipe for my pizza dough this time around. I like that you can start from scratch ingredients and have a mature flavored dough after a short time. I started the poolish on a Wednesday night, assembled the dough Thursday morning, and let it proof in the refrigerator overnight. I got good rise and crest on the dough, and the pizzas cooked great. I made 7 pizzas and a simple focaccia style bread to serve with salads. Lots of prep for toppings, but the mix of pizzas made everyone happy.

Here was our menu:

• Salads, two of them!
• Focaccia with rosemary, garlic, and olive oil
• Margherita with pepperoni
• Prosciutto, mushroom, garlic and oregano
• Marinara with parmesan, garlic, pepperoni
• Bianca with prosciutto, arugula, parmesan, and garlic
• Sausage, garlic, oregano, mushrooms, fontina, and mozzarella
• Four cheese with mozzarella, fontina, parmesan, and gorgonzola
• Pepperoni, sausage, basil, oregano, and garlic
• Sea salt chocolate chip cookies with walnuts

There were many pizzas, beer, wine, and laughs. Our conversations turned to future plans for everyone as the night went on. I don’t usually share what’s going on in my head, but that night I did. It feels like a time of great change and that is no exception for me. I have plans for the future. Things I want to do. Ways in which I want to grow. Big and new things are on the way. I am going to keep working on my craft though, making pizzas that we can gather around and enjoy. And perhaps learn more about eachother along the way.