Pizza, Part 2 and Other Stuff

You may recall, I recently made pizza for the first time using a recipe by Peter Reinhart. I just joined The Daring Bakers and so I won't complete my first challenge until November. I was thrilled when I saw all the posts popping up about this months challenge! I used essentially the same recipe, although mine looks a little different because I halved it and used a little less oil than originally called for. The scaled down version of this recipe made enough dough for 2 10-inch thin crusts. I made the first one last Thursday, and last night I made the second one, as you see here. It is definitely better after the dough has been allowed to ferment overnight. I froze the second half of the dough, and transferred it to the refrigerator the night before I wanted to bake it. I then took it out of the fridge about 2 hours before I wanted to bake it. I made a few changes from the first time - I baked it at 500 degrees for about 8-10 minutes. I also used less sauce - the first one was a little too saucy! I got the desired results, my crust was crispier and the whole thing was just better overall. I topped this one with some green olives and freshly minced garlic. I really enjoyed seeing all the various toppings the Daring Bakers used on their pizzas, especially the dessert ones. I can't wait to play around with this more!

On a different note, I went to the library yesterday looking for some new cookbook inspiration. It seems I have been living under a rock because I have just discovered Dorie Greenspan and her book Baking: From My Home To Yours. I have been reading all the Tuesdays with Dorie posts and drooling over the delicious goods. So I decided to see if my local library had the book and check it out. Sure enough, they did, and I have to say I can see now what all the fuss is about. Everything in the book looks wonderful! I think I will be making some of those Chocolate Chunkers pretty soon....

I love books, and more recently cookbooks in particular. My bookshelves are full and overflowing. Because of that, and because we are trying to stick to a budget, I have stopped buying many books. When I do buy them, I try to be very selective and buy only what I really, really like. You'd be surprised how many things you may read once, or make one or two recipes out of, and then never use/pick up again. I rarely buy books just to read anymore, instead I check them out of the library. When it comes to cookbooks, I check those out of the library too. If I find myself checking out the same cookbook repeatedly, and making a variety of recipes from it, then I will buy it. First I look for it at a local used book store (an excellent way to save money on books, and trade in/sell those you already have and are not using) and then I check amazon for a cheaper new or used copy in good condition. This is a great way to get new books that look like new without paying the full price. Occasionally, I still find a book that just looks so good I know I want it on the spot, so I get it. One such book is Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian. I can't wait to try these tasty recipes! I'll let you know how they turn out...