Building a wood fired pizza oven

[pz]

Thanks gents; my only problem is that the outside temperature and humidity make it a bit unpleasant to fire the oven these days 

[pz]

One unplanned fortuitous consequence of placing the pizza oven in the back yard near my wife's planned flower garden is growing edibles.  I managed to convince her that it ould be a good idea to plant herbs in some of her flower spots, and to plant tomatoes near the oven - although I can't believe it, she agreed!
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We've planted four herbs so far, from left to right they are sage, thyme, chives, and parsley

A cherry tomato is on the right side of the oven - we started it in an Aerogarden during winter, and had tomatoes early.  We also grow 7 varieties of basil in the Aerogarden year round

Larger tomatoes are on the left side of the oven.  It doesn't get better than having vine ripe tomatoes available for your pizzas - really gets the guests involved as well.

This is an image from a prior pizza bake, but you can see how the fire is built

... a closeup of the pizza

The finished pizza - we're getting better at properly controlling our temperature and cooking time

Here's an interesting variation - basil pesto base, feta cheese, pizza blend cheese, black olives, and grilled Brussels sprouts drizzled with balsamic vinegar

Doesn't look too bad when baked

[Sandman]

That is just plain awesome.

[drholly]

That is just plain awesome.

X2 - words escape me.

[Pappymn]

Boy you getting that thing dialed in. Looks awesome. Somebody played a trick on you and put Brussel sprouts on your pie

[veryolddog]

Who makes the dough for those pizzas?

Ed

[pz]

Thanks for the comments, guys!

... Somebody played a trick on you and put Brussel sprouts on your pie

Yeah, you're correct!  My oldest son actually recommended Brussels sprouts with balsamic vinegar and bacon, so we just had to try it out.  Although definitely not my favorite, it was interesting.  Next spring we're planning to do some raised bed gardening in which we grow vegetables like zucchini, tomatoes, more herbs, etc.  We need to use a raised bed idea because the gopher/mole problem here is something awful.  You can't see it, but every plant in that garden is encased in a pot of wire to protect it from those pesky rodents.  Before we added the wire mesh, one year I was actually watching our plants shaking, Bugs Bunny style.

Who makes the dough for those pizzas?

Ed

My wife does her own dough a few hours in advance - I think it is a simple flour and water mixture (plus yeast), but she has triec adding fresh thyme out of the garden into the dough, and it is very tasty.  She's quite good at dough making, and we found an internet site that offers various yeasts and starters - we're going to try a few.

[Dakota Don]

2 words come to mind; WAY GOOD   great herb garden too, but pz, where's the rosemary?

[pz]

Funny you should ask, Don; it died last year, but we have a spot reserved for it right next to the sage 

[drholly]

Boy you getting that thing dialed in. Looks awesome. Somebody played a trick on you and put Brussel sprouts on your pie

I'm thinking I need to make a pizza with peas - just for you, Pappy! 

I think that pizza sounds great, pz! I love grilled sprouts.

[pz]

I think that pizza sounds great, pz! I love grilled sprouts.

Thanks, David; I must admit that it is a different taste sensation with the balsamic vinegar, but the texture is a bit off.  I think I might need to grill the sprouts before adding them to the pizza to intensify their flavor, and perhaps give them a bit of umami.

[drholly]

I think that pizza sounds great, pz! I love grilled sprouts.

Thanks, David; I must admit that it is a different taste sensation with the balsamic vinegar, but the texture is a bit off.  I think I might need to grill the sprouts before adding them to the pizza to intensify their flavor, and perhaps give them a bit of umami.

I've not tried sprouts on a pizza, but will based on your post. I would definitely grill them first. Especially with your oven and the short cook times. I think the sprouts need some time on their own (or with some flavor enticements) before being added to the pizza. I'd slice them thin or even might just use the leaves... Then, I'd add them at the "last minute" already cooked and tasty.

We do have some folks on this forum that were never properly brought up to enjoy things like peas and Brussels sprouts... but heck they may come around.. 

[pz]

Yes, I agree completely about having the sprouts finished before adding them to the pizza.  Interestingly the balsamic goes very well with the sprouts, much like it does with strawberries.

[pz]

These pics are older, but are kind of fun - me and my sweetie are enjoying firing the pizza oven in the rain on a cold and gloomy day.  The fire made for a real cozy experience. 
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The fire is started nicely and we can warm out hands while huddling around the piza oven

We tried pre-baking a crust to make it more crisp, and it kind of worked.  However, I think the heat was too hot because the crust bubbled up within a few seconds

Check out that thermometer - pegged to the high level.  In fact, even our laser thermometers which peg at 900F would read only "Hi" on the LED screen

The pizza was very good - we grew the cherry tomatoes in an Aerogarden

We had some leftover dough so we made kind of a calzone using the dough and a filling of the same pizza toppings.  It was a novel way to eat a pizza!

[drholly]

I like that! The calzone looks interesting as well.