Imagine my delight. Not only was it one of those evenings when preparing a family meal would be a time pressured challenge, it was also the evening that the wood fired pizza van was stationed outside our local shop. We'd had several days of snow and ice so just getting around was becoming a bit of a struggle. I was actually going to the shop to buy some ingredients for a simple and quick pasta dish, but the lure of the woodsmoke and glimpse of the flames was just a bit much to resist. And, I knew the kids would be delighted.
Unlike pizza chain food (the one named after the game with pieces with dots on them springs to mind, and there was one barely a hundred yards away), these pizzas are thin crust and cooked carefully and quickly in the mobile woodfired oven.
I ordered a chicken pesto, pepperoni with jalepeno and a ham and cheese calzone then hung around to chat with the friendly guys in the van about pizza and fire. You know me.... where does the dough come from?... what wood do you burn in the fire?... how much do you go through?...when do you light the fire?... at what temperature?... how many pizzas will you do tonight? etc. They burn ash. the king of all fire wood. I was impressed.
We chatted while I hung around outside the van in subzero temperatures, thoroughly enjoying myself. If you look at the photo of the oven, the three bottles of olive oil have solidified on the side facing the outside. I snapped a few ropey pics with my Blackberry, mentioned my blog to the guys and said I hoped to write something.
