The Elements of Pizza: Unlocking the Secrets to World-Class Pies at Home (EPUB)

The Elements of Pizza: Unlocking the Secrets to World-Class Pies at Home

The James Beard and IACP Award-winning author of Flour Water Salt Yeast and one among the foremost trusted baking authorities within the country proves that tremendous pizza is accessible of any home cook.

“If there have been ever to be a bible for all things pizza—and I mean all things—Ken Forkish has just written it.”—Marc Vetri, author of Mastering Pasta and owner of Vetri
The Elements of Pizza breaks down each step of the pizza-making process, from choosing a dough to shaping your pie to selecting cheeses and toppings which will work for your home kitchen setup. Forkish offers quite a dozen different dough recipes—same-day “Saturday doughs” that you simply can make within the morning to bake pizza that night, levain doughs made up of a naturally fermented yeast starter, and even gluten-free dough—each of which ends up within the best, most texturally sublime crust you’ve ever made reception .

His clear, expert instructions will have you ever shaping pies and loading a pizza peel with the arrogance of knowledgeable pizzaiolo. And his innovative, seasonal topping ideas will surprise and delight any pizza lover—and inspire you to make your own signature pies, just the way you wish them.

About the Author

Ken Forkish is the author of the James Beard and IACP Award–winning book Flour Water Salt Yeast, and the owner of the popular Portland, Oregon, restaurants Ken’s Artisan Bakery, Ken’s Artisan Pizza, Trifecta Tavern & Bakery, and Checkerboard Pizza.

The first thing that stands out about this book is the helpful way in which the sections have been arranged. There is an absolutely gorgeous introduction chapter called appropriately The Soul of Pizza, and for the first time when reading a cookbook I found myself immersed in a wonderful story of pizza and the regions of Italy that take pizza to levels of yummy perfection. It is a carefully researched and beautifully written story and I actually read it all the way through (something I never do with cookbooks). I guess that is because The Elements of Pizza is actually much more than a cookbook. It embraces all things pizza, not least of all pizza's Italian origins and the wonderful culture it arose from. Ken Forkish does an amazing job of capturing the beauty of the Italian country (amazing amazing photography wow), and the skill and dedication of pizza artisans there who have been perfecting their skill for generations with loving dedication. His descriptions of the consistency of crusts and the various regional tastes is nothing short of miraculous. I mean I could really imagine the taste and texture of the pizza. It is a mouth-watering and very inspiring journey into the world of pizza.-whiterabbit

I make a lot of pizza at home and have been scooping up every new pizza book available. Every pizza book offers something different whether it’s a philosophy on dough, creative toppings or just a good ol’ history lesson. This book, “The Elements of Pizza” by Ken Forkish does a bit of each and is very successful. Ken Forkish is the owner of Ken’s Artisan Bakery, Ken’s Artisan Pizza and Trifecta Tavern, all located in Portland, OR. For this book, he tried to leave his knowledge behind and traveled to Italy to meet with true pizza masters. In the end I feel like he developed his own philosophy on pizza which mixes his knowledge of baking with their knowledge of pizza. The heart of this book is the dough, as it should be in a pizza book, and it offers 12 different recipes for dough. What I really enjoy is that many of the dough recipes are for similar “New York” or “Neapolitan” style but they vary in the amount of time needed to make them. There are doughs that range from a few hours “I Slept In But I want Pizza Tonight” to a few days “Overnight Levain Pizza”. There are also recipes for pan pizza, bar pizza, Al Taglio and Gluten Free dough. The dough recipes are simple and use only water, salt, dried yeast and flour. Some recipes require a starter which is made with the same ingredients. -D-form

Wow this book is amazing. I recently did an artisan bread course and the artisan baker himself recommended this book, he stated that since having this book it completely changed how he made pizza! I totally agree, I used to make my bases in the breadmaker which did come out pretty good but now there is no need and to be honest I wouldn’t want to - there is no contest! The 24 to 48 hour pizza dough is the recommended dough by the artisan baker and I have to agree with him. It is so easy and quick to make (with hardly any needing (about 30 seconds in total and only has 4 ingredients including active dried yeast) and it comes out fantastic, you can even stretch it out just like in the restaurants - it tastes so fresh. I have also made the Saturday night pizza dough which is also excellent. There are loads of other pizza doughs in the book too, but I haven’t had chance to make them yet. The tomato sauces are brilliant, so quick, easy and delicious with no cooking, I would never buy shop bought sauces again. The book is a must for anyone that loves to make pizza, I’ve recommended it to others too and they are of the same opinion. -Kat D.