I ate a cow today, or at least the caloric equivalent of one. It’s not like I can justify it from a long run either. I had breakfast, then second breakfasts then 11sies then brunch then lunch….ok, I’m a hobbit. And dinner was ok, Ravioli with cream sauce http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1915,149166-244200,00.html (I give it a C+, maybe because I made it with tortellini instead of ravioli. The carrots with nutmeg, honey and cinnamon were better but I lost one of my frozen ice pack doing so) but one sip of grappa incinerated dinner and I had to move on to supper. Did you know they make fried mozzarella? Similar to cheese curds I guess. I’d weigh 300 lbs. if I lived in Wisconsin too. But, I got an 8-mile run in, 3 more packages mailed from Alba, ingredients for 3 dinners at the store and laundry done. All in all, a productive sabbatical day.
Next dinners: Gnocchi (I’ll stop by the truffle store this weekend before I make that) and manicotti/cannelloni. I was eying the wood fired oven outside my kitchen door too and thinking I should probably make the obvious wood fired pizza sometime soon too, seeing as how my forecast is 50 and sunny this week (I’m not really being a snot, I actually do miss the snow). AB, what kind of wood do I need?
Oh, and I finally killed the little pest of a spider that set up shop in my bathroom. I chased it out of the shower into a different corner where he sat for days only to have him to return as the peeping tom that he was. I decided to escalate the situation by knocking him down only to find the spider stuck to one spot on the ceiling flying around in a circle like a fan on his sticky long legs. WT…. As I stood there with my head cocked to one side, I blasted the persistent little snot with the detachable showerhead.
Be good everyone and do something memorable this weekend!
Ciao!
You have a wood-fired oven?! That is fantastic!! Between notions of drinking grappa, Barolos (Baroli? ;-) ) and cooking with the wood oven this is hard for me to not flip out excited for you at the idea of it all.
ReplyDeletePerhaps we should Skype or Google Video chat for the full story of using a wood oven. Basically, get about 50 to 100 lbs of any non-chemical treated wood. Anything scrap wood is just fine, it doesn't need to be fancy as long as it burns and isn't chemically treated (i.e. pressure treated, varnished, etc). Split wood is always good. Also make sure you clear out any debris and old ashes from the oven and check that the flue is clear of obstructions (bird nests, leaves, etc). You'll light a relatively small fire towards the front of the oven to start and then push it back as the oven heats up. You can use a garden rake or shovel to move the fire around. Newspaper and smaller wood to start it should suffice, once it starts drawing it will basically fan itself and get cranking. When you first light it, given the cold and humidity, it will probably chug along for the first 30 minutes (+/-). . . so don't be discouraged just keep the fire going. Once it gets a little heat in it you'll be in business. Now is the hard part . . . pour your first glass of wine and just keep the glass full and a good-sized fire going for about four hours. It shouldn't smoke much if everything is going well. The bigger the oven the longer you'll have to heat it. As you fire it, black soot will form all over the inside. Don't worry, you will know you are at cooking temperature when the black soot (magically) burns off and you see the raw brick again. Pretty much anytime after that you are ready to cook. Push the fire all the way to side or back and just keep it going. Use a cheap natural fiber broom to clear the oven deck of ash . . . or blowing hard enough works too. The food cooks right on the oven deck, or "hearth", but you'll need a peel to move the pizza around. I bet you can find a peel in town for less than 20 EUR, or just use a cookie sheet maybe. Rotate the pizza every 30 seconds or so to keep the crust from burning on the side towards the fire. Contact me with any technical support questions. Good luck and cheers! /ab
Looking forward to coming out and seeing all the countryside and food!!! Love DAD
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