Saturday, October 12, 2002


pizza again & zoka!

yes, today was as gray and drizzly as expected. naturally, pizza was the only thing keeping us from despair. fortunately, i had received an emergency friday shipment of more first clear flour from king arthur.

now first clear flour is supposedly not as good for baking and eating as the "patent" flour we are all more used to. what's the difference? well, you might say it's like olive oil -- the patent flour we see most often is like extra-virgin olive oil, from the first pressing. the merely virgin oil is from the second pressing, just as first clear flour is from the second grinding of the wheat.

first clear flour's generally considered to be good only for adding to jewish-style rye bread, to give it that chewy, springy texture we all love. it's a little grayish-beige in color and has a high mineral or "ash" content. but i have to say, i think it makes tremendous pizza dough, and i toss a good amount in with my usual sir lancelot pizza flour.

actually, i would love to use actual new york flour, for the ultimate in "eating locally," but i can't find any. i don't think new york grows wheat -- any more. . .

i also splurged on some prosciutto and a juicy galia melon. i was desperate for something that tasted of sun. then, i ran across yet another brownie recipe. long-time readers know of my tortured quest for the perfect, killer brownie. will this recipe raise my hopes only to dash them cruelly, as have so many other highly touted formulae?

you dear readers, will know tomorrow. . .and as for yesterday's pear, fig and cranberry compote in marsala, i ended up with about 3 quarts of it! um, guess i should downsize that recipe, hmm? but spooned over some fresh ricotta, it made a great breakfast. . .

and then in the late afternoon the day got really better, as the coffee from zoka came. yes, i have espresso paladino in the house. review tomorrow!

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