Scraps (Pizza No 5)

I’ve settled down to a formula of Flour 100%, Water 78.2%, Starter 25%. Salt 1.5%. So 700g dough = Flour 342g, Water 268g, Starter 86g, Salt 5g. Few short kneads, into oiled box for 2-3 hours with the odd hourly stretch. Then into fridge for at least 24 hours.

In the domestic fridge was arfachickenbreast, the remains of a shoulder of lamb, some aging tomato sauce, arfabag of spinach. A few staples lurking – parmesan, feta, onions, tomatoes, parsley – and remarkably, a ripe avo. Pinenuts in the freezer. Invested in some fromage frais when I went down for the paper.

Made a double pizza in a 35x25cm tray using half the dough pressed out. New photography technique – never get many pizza pix because they get eaten, so – took the photo at half time!

The half on the left (OK, if you want to be pedantic, it’s now a quarter) is very vaguely Middle Eastern – fry an onion, add diced lamb, then tomato sauce, then spinach – topped with feta and pine nuts. On the right, very vaguely Bajo Californian – make a salsa cruda with raw tomato, onion, jalapenos, lime juice, parsley, drain very well if you don’t want to be a Soggy Bottom Boy; reheat the chicken in a skillet, stir in some fromage frais and reduce a little. Layer of salsa, top with chicken, avo, few extra blobs of fromage frais.

Made a hearth with quarry tiles on the floor of the oven, preheated oven c. 240C. Ten minutes in the middle, about eight on the tiles (still in tin). That way you can have quite thick toppings and retain a crisp bum.