A beautiful Saturday morning... lotsa pics

caliking · March 3

Today was pizza day. Woke up early. Fired up the eggs and some tunes, made a cup of coffee and got to work.

Made the dough for pizzas last night. I used the Vera Pizza Napoletana dough recipe from Forno Bravo since I was using tipo 00 flour for the first time.

This morning, I fired up both the large and small eggs.

Started off grilling the tandoori turkey.

Put the pizza stone in the large and let it come up to temp. Meanwhile, grilled some veggies for some of the pies.

SWMBO was out running errands so I didn't want to get started on the pies just yet. Rummaged through the freezer and fridge, and decided to make glazed beets and threw on some boudin balls for good measure. I dusted the boudin balls with DP Jamaican Firewalk and some turbinado sugar for a little more sweet in the heat. Figured they would be a nice snack. Turns out that boudin balls don't work so well at 400ish direct. They get really soft, while the bottom is done, and then are a b!tch to get off the grid. But they tasted great! :)

When the beets were done and the glaze was ready, I pulled them off and shut the small down. SWMBO was back, so I set about making the pies.Dough had been punched down earlier and allowed to rise again. It felt like silk.

Rolled out the crusts before assembly, and set about putting them together.

I used about half of the recipe, and made four 10-11" pies.

Time to hydrate the cook. This is the latest (most essential) mod to the small.

Still a beautiful Saturday...

Pizzas were on for 5mins, spun around 180°, parchment paper removed, then another 5mins. I noticed that the tipo 00 doesn't brown like AP flour does. The crusts did get cracker-crispy though.

First up - Pizza Margherita - Tomatao sauce, mozz pearls, tomato, basil, garlic, dressed with EVOO.

Second - grilled veggie medley - grilled veggies (poblano, yellow peppers, red peppers, green peppers, jalapenos, onions) and mushrooms.Dressed with pecorino romano cheese.Finished with ghost pepper salt which totally made this pie spectacular.

Third - turkey pepperoni and grilled veggies, with red onions. Also dressed with pecorino romano and jalapeno slices. Hmmmmm... I forgot to take a pic of this one. See below for a glimpse of a slice.

Fourth (and last) - tandoori turkey! Also with grilled onions, peppers, and some left over ikra in the sauce from a while ago.

One shot of all the pies together.

Forgot to take pics of the glazed beets! A tight shot, so you can't see what a mess I made of my plate.Tossed with toasted pecans ( I burned 3 batches first) and chives form the garden.

This beautiful morning was fueled by a couple of beers, B B King and this awesome bluetooth speaker I picked up from Amazon. They have another one for $20 which also has good reviews. I might pick that one up for the garage. The sound form the little blue one was really quite impressive and I like that volume can be controlled from your phone.

So that was my beautiful Saturday morning. The weather was great, the pool is looking great since the filter got fixed, and basically there wasn't much wrong with the world for a few hours. It was terrific therapy! I hope everyone else is having a great weekend as well.

Tjcoley · March 3

Beautiful cook. Very well done.

Dyal_SC · March 3

Gorgeous! Well done, sir!

Skiddymarker · March 3

You have been a busy, busy, busy boy - having fun it would appear, but busy just the same. Nice cook.

td66snrf · March 3

what part of Cali are you in?

Solson005 · March 3

Everything looks and sounds like a great day! 00 is awesome now that I have found a local place I use it for pizza and pasta all the time. I like to throw in 1/3 part semolina flour to my mixture to give it a little bit of a chew.

Nice mod on the small, I would definitely steal that, but the eggcarten has one laser cut in it already, Did you get a cast iron grate for it or already have that one?

hapster · March 3

Nicely executed cook!

caliking · March 3

Thanks everyone!

@td66snrf: its a different Cali :)

@Solson005: those are Craycort grates for the Weber Smokey Joe. Got them on Craigslist last year for $25. The BGE ones are kinda pricey.

My first time using the tipo00, and I'm sure I need to learn how to use it optimally. Thought it to be somewhat bland. I'll try your tip of adding some semolina.

Solson005 · March 3

I've been happy with Jamie Oliver's pizza dough and usually make a half batch of it unless we are doing a big pizza party. The 00 likes heat and if you do pizzas as thin as todays you can crank the heat up and it just makes the crust even better. Every cook except for my last one Two-Tier Pizza Party! I've done pizzas 500-550° pizza stone temp the last one we cranked it up and did really thin pizzas and really enjoyed it. There is a million different ways to make pizza and I would be happy with any of the ones I have made, but if you compare them together the last ones were the best. I just bought a Peter Reinhart book called American Pie: My Search for the Perfect Pizza so I will probably tweak my recipe once I get done with it and share my findings.

I've been looking at the craycort and would get the skillet piece too for fajitas. But I will more than likely just hold out for the CGW Swing Rack and just use the carbon steel for searing. and maybe ask for the lodge pieces you posted in your breakfast cook for a gift when my birthday rolls around..

R2Egg2Q · March 3

Nice pics & great looking pies! I think you have a TD contender there brother! =D> Good Luck!

JohnInCarolina · March 3

This was a really fun post to read. Nice work! I am particularly impressed by your hydration choice. I've not tried that Porter from Sam Adams. Good stuff?

Alton · March 3

BIG fan of the Balvenie Scotch. Also a very well executed Cook :-bd

Bham_egger · March 3

Very nice! I must admit I'm a little envious. Can you explain a little about the tandoori? I love Indian Tandoori meat, but not all that familiar with how it's done. I figured the egg would be perfect for it.

Central_Bama_Egger · March 3

You show me that. And I'm stuck with this.

Bham_egger · March 3

Wop Biscuits!!!

paqman · March 3

Dude... =D>

caliking · March 3

Man, you guys are great for a chap's self esteem. Thanks for all the nice comments.

To answer some of the questions (may take a few posts):

@Solson005: I wasn't too impressed with the tipo 00, but I can't blame the flour since I don't really know how to cook with it. It tasted like it had dried out while cooking, and lacked flavor, but your tip about cooking at higher heat makes sense - VPN is done at nuclear temps after all. I'll play around with it. I bought American Pie a little while back and have been trying to get through it, but have not been diligent about it. Its a great read though, with lots of good info.

I too am holding out for the small swing rack, so no more buying eggcessories until then (BTW the best advice I've been given on this forum has been to not waste my time or money on BGE eggcessories and to look at things like the AR and CGW swing rack instead). I can get by with bricks and a clay saucer on the large, but real estate is low on the small. I will likely end up getting a swing rack for the large as well. I can only take so many pics of all the awesome grub you throw down with yours before I have to give in! :)

@R2Egg2Q: that's exactly where I'm going with this. Why do you think yesterday was pizza day? :) Will be out of town next week and weekend, so I had to get things done yesterday. It was absolutely horrible - bright sunny spring day, birds chirping, the smell of charcoal and barbecue in the air... sheer torture I tell ya.

@JohnInCarolina: The Maple Pecan Porter is wonderful. I prefer higher spec grav brews anyways, and this one has a nice hint of maple to it to smoothen it out. It is part of the Spring Thaw Variety Pack, so get it while you can. The others in that sampler are Double Agent IPA, Alpine Spring Ale and Boston Lager. The IPA was alright, as was the Spring Ale. The Boston Lager is like kissing your sister after you've had the others.

@Alton: The Doublewood is very nice. Beautiful hue and deeper color than the 15yo I have open now as well, I think it beats the 15yo IMO. The flavor is richer and more complex. Poetry in a bottle.

@Central_Bama_Egger: Biscuits on a weekend morning are one of my favs. I'll trade you a pie for some biscuits any time.

caliking · March 3

@Bham_egger: Tandoori is a style of Southwest (maybe even Central) Asian cooking... similar to how one says dutch oven cooking - it refers to the cooker being used, but doesn't really dictate what spices or recipe you need to use. A tandoor in India or Pakistan is a cylindrical, somewhat bell shaped clay cooker with an intake at the bottom and a wide open mouth at the top for the exhaust. Meats are skewered and lowered into the cooker to sear and cook vertically. This style of cooking is pretty quick (tandoors can get mucho hot - 800F+). The first time I saw an Egg, I immediately thought of how it would work great as a tandoor,because many of the design principles are shared.

I built a tandoor a few years ago, and while the Egg works well for tandoori style cooking, it doesn't beat my tandoor. It is however easier and more convenient to cook tandoori food in the egg. Have yet to figure out how to do naans in the Egg, and I think Chubbs has already dialed that in. Also, Rich_FL (I think that is his handle) and Canugghead have some great tandoori posts on this forum as well. When I'm in the mood for something different, I will grind my own spice mix, but if I'm trying to put something together quickly I'll use Shan Masala mix with added yogurt, ginger and garlic paste, and a little mayonnaise for self-basting.Shan Masala mixes are available in most Indian/Pakistani grocers, and even at my local Kroger.

RAC · March 3

Wow! Nice cook. Next time you decide to cook like this just let me know and I'll be right over

:))

SmokinDAWG82 · March 3

Wow, way to raise the stakes on a day of cooking, love the opener on the small.
You are an inspiration! Looking forward to warmer weather and a day of cooking like this
GREAT JOB!

Alton · March 3

@caliking I just finished a bottle of their 14yr Caribbean cask. It was incredible

fasst1 · March 3

Double wood is one of my favorites.

henapple · March 3

love the beer opener....great cook

caliking · March 4

@RAC: bring the scotch and your invitation practically writes itself :)

@SmokinDAWG82: Thanks! Nothing beats cooking outside on a nice day in my books.

@Alton: I have not had a chance to sample that one yet, but its on the list. I really like the concept and flavor of finishing in a different cask.

@fasst1: yep the Double wood is one of mine too. I keep coming back to it after trying others. Although the Lagavulin Distiller's Edition I had recently was beautiful.

@henapple: Thanks!

r270ba · March 4

Holy smokes! Do those two eggs turn on multi colored lights and dance for you when it gets dark? What a setup you have there. Excellent looking cook! Interested in your tandoori setup there. Where did you get those skewers?

caliking · March 4

@r270ba: I got those for a few bucks each at middle eastern grocer locally. Steve Raichlen has some available on Amazon. I like the wider ones because food does not spin on them. I homebrewed some 1/2" ones a while back, but the ones I have now are my favs for the egg since the dome closes without much of a gap on them.

r270ba · March 4

Cool. Do you have the 3/8 inch?

caliking · March 4

The ones I have now are about 1". My homebrewed ones are about 1/2" I think. They work pretty well too. I bought the steel bar at Lowes - comes in 4' lengths, so i bought 2 to make 4 skewers. Cut at angle to make piercing meat easier.

r270ba · March 4

Cool. Might have some steel lying around the shop to make my own too. Will check it out tomorrow.

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A beautiful Saturday morning... lotsa pics

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