In this episode, we take a deep dive into pizza, discussing Neapolitan, New York, and Chicago style. Since great pizza is all about the dough, we tie together everything learned in our bread series, and discuss why we apply certain formulations to achieve specific results.
To get the most out of this episode, you will need a basic understanding of the baker's percentage.
These sourdough English muffins are great simply toasted with butter or used in a sandwich. The Parmesan and herbs were added for a bit more complexity since this recipe was developed specifically for a breakfast sandwich application. However, the herbs and Parmesan can be left out, or swapped for any other flavors you want.
A great recipe for loose Italian sausage, used in my Chicago style deep dish pizza. This Italian sausage also makes a great pizza topping for other styles of pizza as well including New York, Sicilian, and Neapolitan. If using for pizzas other than Chicago, crumble and cook in a pan first, draining any liquid and fat before using.
In this episode we answer questions from the Stella Culinary Community, including issues with candied nuts, how to make basil jelly, dry brining, and other ramblings.
This "reconstructed" berry pie is a simple play on a traditional favorite. I love macerated berries in the summer time, and who doesn't like a good berry pie? This dessert takes half the work and a third of the time as a normal berry pie, and by rethinking its structure, it allows you to keep your berries moist and macerated in a delicious simple syrup while keeping your crust crisp and flaky.
Tomato Vierge is a simple yet flavorful emulsion of tomatoes, aromatics and oil. It is most notably missing egg, which makes this preparation much lighter then it's sister sauce, aioli.
An aromatic and refreshing vinaigrette that works great on a hot summer day. The pungent punch of the Thai Basil paired with the sour of rice wine vinegar and sweetness of honey yields a full flavored salad dressing
A sweet summer emulsion that we used for a grilled quail and peach salad dish.
Here's a quick video that demonstrates how to fry herb leafs in the microwave. When done with a tender leaf like basil, it will become flat and translucent which gives the leaf a cool effect.
Heirloom tomatoes are a special crop that I look forward to every year. Unlike other common supermarket tomatoes that have had their flavor bred out of them (not to mention they're usually picked green and forced ripened using ethylene gas), heirlooms are true, unique strains of tomatoes that haven't been messed with. Each variety of heirloom tomato has it's own unique color, flavor and shape, just like nature intended. And did I mention that they're absolutely delicious and about to hit their peak?
Sauce vierge is one of my all time favorite sauces. The word "vierge" is French for "virgin," meaning that the ingredients in a vierge are not cooked. This is the sauce that we use for our heirloom tomato caprese, which I will demonstrate in an upcoming video.
In a previous video, we went over how to make a basic version of creamy polenta. In this video, we take the leftover creamy polenta, let it set in a mold overnight, slice and pan fry. The fried polenta cake is then topped with a simple caprese that makes a great summer dish that's perfect for a quick lunch on a sunny patio.
Flavor infused oils are a great way to add colorful contrasts and interesting tastes to a dish, especially as a last minute garnish. When making your own oils infused with the essence of a fresh green herb, you'll be walking a fine line between extracting the most flavor and color, and completely breaking down the chlorophyll molecules which will give an off taste and appearance.
I'm really proud to present this video because it's a long time in the making; not necessarily the completed dish itself, but all the fundamental cooking techniques required to actually execute this dish properly. When the thought struck to start a cooking "blog" (back before I even created FCS), I originally intended to chronicle advanced cooking techniques from a working chef's perspective.
The Chiffonade is a knife technique used to cut herb leafs and other leafy greens into very thin hair-like strips. These fine strips are then usually used as a garnish.
