Hearth Bread
Newly Recovered Fresco from Ancient Pompeii Shows an Early Form of Pizza
Jul 31, 2023Back in 1888 and 1891, a team of excavators began to clear ash and debris from a building in the ruins of ancient Pompeii, the Italian town buried, and then preserved, by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE. In January, 2023, another team went back to that same spot and continued the original team’s work. In the large atrium next to a building housing a brick oven (a... Read More
Dutch Oven Bread
Jan 15, 2019Blog by Guest Chef John Livera Baking Bread in a Dutch Oven Fresh bread is one of the most satisfying things to bake in a wood fired oven. However, if you are planning to make several courses, removing the coals is not ideal. An easy and fun solution for creating a perfectly crusted bread is to cook your dough in a Dutch oven – thus, allowing you to continue to... Read More
Maestro Istruttore Chef Leo Spizzirri Shows How It’s Done!
Jun 05, 2018Master Instructor Chef Leo Spizzirri wowed the crowds at the National Restaurant Association Show with his cooking demonstrations again this year. We were pleased to have him back at the Trade Show for a second time to show off our Napoli120 Wood and Gas Fired Pizza Oven, and the general possibilities of wood fired cooking in commercial settings, as well as home kitchens. Menus His menus were diverse, but two... Read More
2018 International Pizza Expo Demo Wrap-up
Mar 28, 2018The Forno Bravo Booth was buzzing at the 2018 International Pizza Expo as Maestro Instruttore and World Pizza Champion, Chef Leo Spizzirri kept us fed, educated, and entertained for 3 days! We created quite the traffic jam in the aisles as 60 – 100 people stopped by to watch each live cooking demonstration. All of the dishes were cooked in a Forno Bravo Napoli120, custom tiled for the show. Thanks to... Read More
Bread Photos. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Feb 24, 2014I’ve been baking bread for years and years. It was my baking and building hobbies that led me to start Forno Bravo in the first place (those many years ago). So I am happy to say that my baking has continued to improve in the past months and that my bread oven is a lot better than it was 10 years ago. Which doesn’t mean that I still don’t make... Read More
A Bit More on Folding, Bread-Baking Technique
Feb 19, 2014Here are some fun resources on bread molding, my newest bread-baking technique. 100% Whole Wheat Bread that Doesn’t Suck I have always really liked this one. There is even a technical thread on Stack Exchange, a user group for computer programmers. Fun stuff. Stretch and Fold vs. Kneading Read More
Back to Bread; Folding-a bread baking technique
Feb 18, 2014My bread baking skills are slowly improving, which is a good thing for all — for me and the family. I have learned a handful of new skills over the past few months, including temperature control, long (24 to 48 hour) fermentation, builds and folding. On folding, I started baking when you were supposed to punch down the dough after the bulk fermentation. The idea was to push out some... Read More
Baking Bread in Someone Else’s Oven
Aug 30, 2013I’ve been baking bread in other people’s ovens for years. It’s a lot of fun. You get to experiment with flour and yeast from other countries, use different ovens, and bake entirely by feel. Forget the digital scale and baking stone, most rental apartments and houses don’t even have measuring cups. And besides, a hand-mixing dough is a lot of fun. It’s therapeutic. A couple of years ago, I even... Read More
The Ever Humbling Art of Bread Baking
Jun 17, 2013Just when you think you have seen a lot, you do something new wrong in this ever humbling art of bread baking. haha. This is a 75% hydration sourdough rye boule (the flavor was really good), where I did not use enough flour to keep the loaf from sticking to the banneton — it’s as though I am trying to find things that could go wrong. From now one I... Read More
