The Art of Neapolitan Pizzaiuolo was honored in December 2017 as one of the newest traditions added to UNESCO’s Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. This award places the Italian wood fired, pizza-making style, and all of its associated traditions, up among the greatest cultural gifts to the world. The list was started in 2003 and serves to raise awareness of 429 elements of intangible heritage that deserve preservation for... Read More
This is a follow-up on my earlier posting on High Hydration Dough, where I ask (and answer) the question—”do I need to proof my yeast”?, with a clear and definitive “no”. As a little background, I mixed my flour, salt and yeast, and then added 80% ice water directly to the flour and mixed it. After a two-hour bulk fermentation, I shaped my baguettes, put then on a homemade couch... Read More
In my previous posting, I made to notes on mixing and kneading high hydration dough (80% in this case), so I wanted to make a couple of notes on working with web dough—and point out a mistake that I made (something I know but need occasional reminding). First, don’t over-flour your work surface, or the dough, when handling wet dough. You can add a little bit of extra virgin olive... Read More
