The Great Pizza Re-Heat Debate!

Over the years a great debate has raged within the vast community of pizza lovers: how to re-heat pizza, and should pizza be re-heated?

I'm here today ladies and gentlemen to talk about both sides of the issue. I'm here today to say, "Pizza should only be reheated, if it is reheated correctly."

Also, if we have time I'd like to talk about pizza places, and their "re-heat-ability".

Lets begin shall we?

RE-HEATING (should it be hyphenated?)
You have many methods of reheating:
- microwave
- toaster oven/conventional oven
- leave it out of the fridge until it reaches room temperature
- fry it in a pan
- combo reheats (microwave/oven)
- big pizza oven (okay essentially using a pizza stone in an oven will do here)

Microwave:
This is possibly the worst way to reheat pizza; it leaves the reconstituted pizza in a soggy state, nothing like its original representation - also not fair to the original pizza chef! Yet, when used sparingly you can use this modern-day device to attain a "combo reheat".

Toaster Oven:
Sometimes this works great, sometimes not so much. The problem here is that it will chiefly reheat the surface of the pizza; leaving the bottom portion/middle a little on the not so hot as the top (another pizza travesty).

Leave it out of the fridge until it reaches room temperature:
This is how they do it in College. Students everywhere will attest to their love for room-temperature/cold pizza. But hey, we were all lazy at one point or another in our lives weren't we? It should be mentioned that the local health department would frown upon this practice as you are allowing a dairy product to be in what they call "the danger zone".

Big Pizza Oven:
Okay, whom here has one of these? Right, pretty much no one. But this will remain the best way to reheat your pizza. It will thoroughly cook your pizza on all sides, and give you that original crispiness that the crust once held so deliciously as you gazed upon its beauty in the pan/box upon its arrival. I admit, it's not realistic to show up to a pizzeria with your left-overs and ask for a reheat, but we can dream can't we?

Fry Pan:
I bet you thought I was kidding didn't you? Well I'm not, this is my favorite, most efficient way to reheat leftover pizza. Let me tell you how I do it....
First - I like to give it a quick 10-20 seconds in the microwave (I told you about combo'ing it didn't I!)
Second - I'll heat up a frying pan (while the pizza is in the microwave actually), and put a little olive oil with a splash of garlic salt in the pan, swirl it around the pan so that it doesn't pool up.
Third - add slice of pizza when pan is hot.
Keep an eye and nose open for the pizza. Remember, your nose always knows! When you can smell something cooking, it usually means its about ready (this is because the food reaches its "boiling point" and it releases gaseous vapors which you smell).
Now you'll see that the bottom of the crust should be crispy, and will carry a little extra lovey-flavor thanks to that olive oil/garlic salt addition.

Do you find it delicious?

Now, lets talk turkey here... One whom is a pizza expert should ask, "Do you reheat pizza at all?" To which the answer is actually - no. If you respect the pizza, you'll order the right amount for you to eat when you get it, also, you'll go to a pizzeria rather than have it delivered or picked up, as this gives you the best representation of the pizza's initial quality (plus you can get out of your house). I know it's hard for most Americans to find the time to do anything outside of their homes, but I challenge you to do this! It will open up your pizza-palette, and your pizza-chakra.

That is all for now. As they say in hipster land: ciao.

Little Italy Pizzeria

or - "How I Fell In Love Again" - or - "How I Found a Union Man"

a film noir story...



When I look back on how it all came to pass the memories rush through my eyes, and into my brain like a flash of lightning. I remember seeing the advertisement in the City Weekly, and thinking, "this is it...this is for real."

Sure I had talked to people to see if they had tried it out, but all responses came back to "no", or "what, another pizza joint? you've got problems." But I didn't let that deter me, there was work to be done, some angel had flapped its wings and shown me the light that day. It was time; the veil of darkness was lifted from my face; lifted from your face, and from the face of the Salt Lake Valley. It was time to move.

Unfortunately months passed before I actually had found the time to make it out to this little oasis in Sandy. Location was hurting my ability to just drop in (9284 South 700 East, Sandy, UT).

So, how did we come to finally enjoy this lovely eatery?
Funny you should ask, we were on our way out to visit with a potential caterer for our wedding, and it just happened to be right in the area of this fine, fine establishment.

Lets talk pizza shall we?
Little Italy
9284 South 700 East
Sandy, UT
801.255.0363

The dining area's ambiance was straight out of a movie of some sort; Italian music playing in the background, paintings, high back chairs - all spectacular.
Everything I saw served looked so good! The meatballs were monsters; the Tiramisu looked divine!

Did I mention I found Jimmy Hoffa?

When I was talking to the owner he pointed my attention span to the wall with some pictures on it... Jimmy Hoffa was staring at me! Apparently Jimmy was this mans brother-in-law.

Lets talk prices...
... These prices are straight out of 8-10 years ago! The pizza starts at $9.95 and that will get you a 16" cheese! Also, they have really great lunch specials: 2-slices, and a drink for $4.25. UNHEARD OF, especially for this level of quality.
Also, it should be noted that there are two sizes of pizza: 16", and 18".

Crust of a Champion:
PERFECT! What more could I say? It was thin, crispy, folded perfectly when it needed to be, flavorful, puffy where it needed to be. In performance tests, this crust stood up to the competition!

Sauce- the heart of a champion:
Delicious, and not overpowering; small outposts were holding up in pockets of defiance under the delicious cheese. I love it. I love it. I love it.

Toppings - the armor one wears when battling the dragon:
We had Sausage (great!), and Spinach (good). The topping list looked to be great, not too much, but plenty to choose from - if you're into the gourmet thing, you could do it to it, and not feel lonely about doing it. Although I liked the spinach, it didn't blast my pants off (so to speak), but the sausage was really good.

Cheese - the face of a beauty contestant:
Great cheese makes great pizzas; it can also ruin them. They used great cheese - stringy, flavorful (my mouth is watering talking about it, seriously). I wish I had more to say, but when its this great, you just think about it and can't say much about it (kind of like when you meet the really cute cheerleader and you just stand there and stare, not being able to do much but grunt and smile).

TOTAL SCORE: 4.925/5
CRUST: 5/5
SAUCE: 5/5
CHEESE: 4.95/5 (gotta keep 'em honest)
TOPPINGS: 4.75/5

LITTLE ITALY
9284 SOUTH 700 EAST
801.255.0363

Dominoes BFD

"THE BFD" - (click it for the URL)

This is done by Dominoes. Apparently you can build a pizza and then proceed to order what you just built - visual marketing.

Some dude on the therocksalt.net came up with this - brilliant.

I could sit here and build pizza's all day long...

I built "The Avenger". Check it out on the list.

Battle Royale! - Slice Pizza Battles to the Death - Round 1

Well, well, well... so it has come to this has it? You and me, and those slices we shall step into the ring, or as my good friend Shai used to say, "the octagon".

This first round shall feature two pizzeria's that feature slices for sale; each of them with their own product, style, and service.

Sicilian Pizza - 221 E 300 South, SLC, UT - 801.961.7077
Big Apple Pizza - 2939 East 3300 South, SLC, UT - 801.485.4534

Sicilian Pizza



They offer up some different pizza, and as we all should know by now; different is good. The pizza is almost completely authentic Sicilian style - lacking are a thick crust, and tons of cheese. However, the seasonings, sauce, and sausage they use are right on. In fact I recommend having something with sausage should you go there, its unique, and very delicious.
The slice special will run you about $6.00 for two slices and a drink, or one slice and a salad - I do believe that they offer a single slice but I cannot remember the pricing right now.
Service
You order at the counter here, and the slices are pre-made and hanging out under a heat lamp, so make sure you scope out which ones are the freshest, nothing more disappointing than buying a stale slice of pizza (I've gotten both fresh and not-so-fresh here). If you are in a hurry, the heat lamp style is the way to go; it is ready when you are (though you may not get what you want.
Pizza
If you like different I suggest going here, the crust is seasoned and slightly sweet, the sauce is slightly sweet- which can cause an overload in my book, so to avoid sweetness overload I suggest buying it by the slice (2-slices should over power you, right?). They typically have pepperoni, cheese, a tomato white sauce, and one rotating specialty pizza to choose from for their slice options.
Overall: a 3.5 rating - the freshness/heat lamp thing brings them down.

Big Apple Pizza



I have to admit that I am slightly biased as I worked here for 5-years. But, I worked there that long, and initially for a reason: HIGH QUALITY PIZZA!
If you ask me, this is the place to go for great pizza. New York Style, and its done right; thin, crispy crust, the right kind of cheese, good toppings, delicious sauce, and don't forget a pretty laid back staff.
Service
So far, this is the best slice option I've come across - honestly. I like that you can order your slices how you want them. They aren't pre-fabbed, and they get cooked in the oven - sure this can cause it to take a couple of minutes, but when in pizza country, stop and enjoy yourself. In fact, they offer table service, but it can be hit and miss, so go with patience and realize that you aren't in a 5-star restaurant, feel free to approach the counter for a refill if they don't get to you fast enough - most of the staff is in, or right outta high school. On weekends, and nights, call ahead for fastest service.
Pizza
Like I said before, the style is as good as it gets while here in the lovely locale of the Salt Lake. If you have special requests for your pizza, feel free to ask, some like it crispy, some like it cooked light, some like it almost burnt, they do it all, cooked to your specifications. They hand toss the dough, it can be fun to heckle them as they do so.

And now ... ladies and gentlemen ... I give you the winner in this head to head match up ...
BIG APPLE PIZZA!
- when you can pick and choose your pizza, and its cooked to order, you will always come out a winner; the availability of 100's of options will always prevail over the choice of 4 options.

You, me, and a Microwave Built For Three

It was late last night when our paths crossed, I looked at you, and you returned the gaze. Was it so bad that we met there? Sure there were other people watching me as I opened the glass doors and picked you up off of your feet, and flipped you around to get a good look at you. And to think you were so ... cheap, and supposedly good for me.



Well, that is how it all started; how I ended up purchasing a "South Beach Diet Pepperoni" microwavable pizza. I gotta tell you, it was pretty damn good. Perhaps it was the red peppers, garlic salt, oregano, and black pepper I adorned it with before I microwaved it - who knows. No one ever will know.

I popped it in the microwave for 3-minutes strong and thought about it for a bit, the price was okay. I mean $3.29 on "Fresh Values" isn't bad for what is termed "diet pizza".

Will I buy it again? Sure I will.
Do I recommend it? Well, it depends on what your mission in pizza is. Do you want to eat a frozen pizza that has pretty sauce? - then do it, quit whining about the fact that the cheese will probably suck and that the crust appears to be made with some sort of wheat additive and just do it. Go on already - Rock the Casbah!

END TRANSMISSION: SOUTH BEACH DIET - PEPPERONI PIZZA - OR - HOW I CAME TO EAT PIZZA AT LUNCH TODAY - OR - YOU ME AND A PIZZA BUILT FOR 3 (MINUTES)

Homemade Pizza - Part I: Frozen doughs

Originally I was going to wait until I had tried a few more dough offerings to talk about, but I just cannot wait anymore! Pizza time is here!

Over the course of my days, I've made many-a-pizza at home from so many different recipes, and pre-fabbed doughs. I'll share my favorite home made recipe at the end of this brief but informative article.

Recently I made a quick jaunt over to Tony Caputo's Market and purchased some of their pizza dough. It ends up that their dough is a Sysco-esque frozen dough, you can buy it for $1.99 a dough ball (good size to make a 14" - 16" pizza with). This was pretty good dough for being a frozen warrior; just a lil on the bland side. If I am to retry this option, I will be basting the dough with an olive-oil glaze to try to bring some pizzazz out of it. Bottomline: its pretty good and easy to stretch out (when its fully thawed).

Whilst at Albertsons the other day I became enamoured by the Pillsbury dough in the refrigerated section. I promptly purchased and rushed home to try out this product as it had been years since my last experience. Let me bottomline it for you: this is the worst refrigerated dough you could buy.

I'll leave you with a brief recipe to try out for some good dough, and we'll revisit this topic and discuss: Boboli, Emmigration Market's frozen dough (their pizza will need reviewed too!), and finally we'll jump into a small bout with those "just add water" crust mixes out there.

RECIPE:
1 package dry active yeast (Fleishmans)
1 cup warm water
1 TBSP Olive Oil
1 TBSP Sugar
1 TSP Salt
2 1/2 cups flour (high gluten preferred!)

Start off by mixing the yeast with the Warm water in a nice mixing bowl. Allow to sit for about 5 minutes.

Add salt, sugar, and 1 1/2 cups of flour; then add your oil. Begin mixing, adding flour 1/4 cup at a time until you have reached 2 1/2 cups or desired consistency of dough ball. *(hint)* Dough should be slightly "tacky" to the touch.

Knead dough until smooth, again, adding flour if necessary, forming a dough ball.

Place dough ball in a well oiled mixing bowl, cover and let rise for at least 45 minutes (1 hour and 30 minutes preferred).

Stretch dough out to desired thickness; preheat oven to 425 degrees Farenheit. Add desired toppings and cook on either a greased pizza pan, or on your preheated pizza stone.

I have made this dough recipe since I was about 10 years old, it comes from an old Italian cookbook my mother used to own.

Thanks!
Jared Raymond Conger

Want to send in your recipe?
Feedback: jaredsdesk@hotmail.com

Frozen Pizzas: Part one of an infinate part series.

Frozen Pizzas:Part one of an infinate part series.
So we all see them there in our grocer's freezers sections, some of them are noteworthy for their efforts towards taste, others their affordability, and even some for the levels of sorrow, and disappointment that they can incur on our tastebuds. Everyone has a favorite - whether it be for its flavor, versatility or straight up price, we all have reasons why we like some more than others. I think of the situation as a clique, or even a gang.

I am a former member of the Totino's Party Pizza Crew (east side division), I used to spend my days stocking my freezer when they would go on special for 10 for $10 (during sporting events even cheaper). Then a few things happened:1) The world was made aware of Trans-Fats!!! - Totino's is high in their meat pizzas (90% of their inventory)2) There have a been a couple of Ecoli scares. I've seen signs twice this last year stating that there was a recall on all products produced by Totino's except for the "Cheese", and "Canadian Style Bacon" pizza. Bummer. those are the worst two of all their offerings.

Like Little Orphan Annie once said, it's a hard knock life... so I took my punches and delved into some of the new products offered, both cheap and high end, and let me tell you, I came out on top of the situation.

DiGiorno's has a few new products that are ... well amazing! Their "Ultra" selection is now the King of the frozen isle (and the price will dictate that $6.99+). It boasts a "whole milk" mozzarella, and "top cut" pepperoni toppings (all other offerings in this line being "top cut" on toppings too). The sauce is great for a frozen preservative laden product, as is the crust - they finally got that strange taste out of the "oven rising" series. Try it. If you don't like it... then you're not in my gang.

A good "bottom dweller" these days has got to be either the Label brand "Kroger" or the "Essentia" out of Smiths Foods and Albertsons (respectively). One or the other is typically on special for $3.99 or so, and to me, that is affordable.

We'll talk more about "dressing your frozen pizza for success" in the next segment of FROZEN PIZZA!Until then, lets keep the gang warfare down.