From: alisg@Msu.oscs.montana.edu
Subject: Re: Fresh new Pizza Stone: Where to begin?
Reply-To: alisg@Msu.oscs.montana.edu
Organization: Montana State University
Date: Sat, 7 Nov 1992 17:11:58 GMT

In article <Bx8401.EHp@usenet.ucs.indiana.edu>, mfleig@silver.ucs.indiana.edu (Mark W. Fleig) writes:
>
I am using a friend's computer with Windows on it (AAAARGH! I'm a MAC person),
so this may not be very presentable. 

I have both a pizza stone and several thick unglazed quarry tiles. They are
 used to even out the heat in a baking oven, and to make the bread/pizza dough
crustier. They work. Worth trying.

The stone is somewhat more convenient, in that you can lift the whole thing out
of the oven and cut the pizza on it; what's left stays warm while you are
eating. Unfortunately, over time the pizza oils soak into the stone and turn it
black. I don't know that it affects the performance, but it might. The idea is
for the porous stone to absorb some of the steam/moisture from the dough, and
when the stone is gradually filled with old oils it might not work as well. I
have not found a way to remove this; maybe it doesn't need to be. The effect is
rather like that of a well-seasoned cast-iron pan. The booklet I got with mine
said not to wash with soap and water more than necessary, though every now and
then I do.

The pizza stone is relatively indestructable. Don't put a hot stone on a cold
surface; probably wouldn't be good for either. Don't drive nails with it. :)
If you sprinkle the stone with cornmeal before baking on it, you will be able
to avoid some (though not all) of the oil-staining problems. Make sure the
stone is in the oven when it preheats -- the idea is to have it as hot as the
oven when the bread is placed on it.

I have always had trouble sliding pizza/bread dough off whatever it's on onto
the hot stone. I don't have one of the wooden peels, so maybe you will have
better luck. Make sure the peel is well floured. I have real trouble with soft
pizza doughs that have lots of toppings. This may be more a problem with my
dough making skills -- the dough is never very stiff. The solution I finally
used was to start the pizza/bread out on a metal pan with no rims. After a few
moments of cooking, it firms up enough to slide off onto the stone. The crust
you get with either a stone or quarry tiles is to die for.

Unglazed quarry tiles do work well, but since they are usually about six inches
square, you have to make sure they stay together, and you can't lift them out
easily with pizza/bread on them (not that you have to, but as I said, it helps
keep things warm while you eat).

I don't have any special recipes for dough or sauce; I've tried and modified
various published recipes, and all work pretty well. I do have trouble with my
doughs being rather soft, and if anyone knows why, I'd appreciate hearing from
 you. Am I not working in enough flour? Too little oil? Does the altitude here
(5000 feet or so) make the dough rise too much? 

I have tried baking cookies on the stone, but didn't find the results enough of
an improvement to warrant the trouble. 

Have fun! I've certainly enjoyed mine.

george
alisg@trex.oscs.montana.edu


 >Well, I finally received the pizza stone and peel I've been waiting
>for as a gift, and I'm rare'n to try some recipes. So here's what I'm
>looking for: (for the kind folks willing to contribute  :)
>
>1) Your favorite pizza-esque experiences, recipe-wise.
>
>2) Other non-pizza uses. Any good recipes for bread, etc...
>
>Also, anything I should absolutely avoid even considering doing to the
>stone. Baking chocolate-chip tate-r-tots on the surface... using it to
>pound nails in the wall...bad?
>
>-mark fleig
>-- 
>,----------------------------. "Therefore, make peace with your god, whatever
>: Mark Fleig                  \  you conceive him to be. Hairy thunderer, or
>: mfleig@silver.ucs.indiana.edu\  cosmic muffin. With all its hope and renewal,
>`-------------------------------' the world continues to deteriorate. Give up."