Pizza Is Life

[Muse]

Pinsa No. Two:

After what I consider a success on my seat of the pants attempt at pinsa (see post #567 above), I went shopping for the proper ingredients for the high water content dough required. Bought spelt and rice flour, both organic. So, today, after arming myself with internet recipes, I loaded my bread machine and used the dough cycle to make enough for 4 pinsa. Just finished eating what I dub Pinsa No. Two. It requires a 1st bake of the dough of 5-10 minutes, remove and apply toppings and a 2nd bake of 3-5 minutes (I did 6).

I have a steel, which is considered thin, being about 1/12 inch. But it's large, almost fills a shelf, so has a lot of heat retention. I haven't used it in over a decade but did today. Pinsa really needs a steel or a stone. I also used parchment paper, which is very helpful for pinsa. It came out with crust light and airy, soft on the inside and crispy crust, which is ideal. Could have used a bit more time in oven, still was excellent. Toppings included cremini mushrooms, mozzarella, Gruyere cheeses, tomato, oregano.

 

[cavemanmoron]

I have neither the patience nor skills required to make a home made pizza, maybe a frozen pizza once in awhile.

If I really want a reasonable pizza I can go to Little Caesar's or Domino's about 15-18 minutes away.

I am not a food snob, I go to the Golden Corral and Cracker Barrel as well as some local family run restaurants;
but 90% of my food is eaten at home. Nothing fancy.

 

[bigboxes]

I'm doing ok today. If you're on Reddit, leave a comment in my post!

https://www.reddit.com/r/Pizza/comments/1qphdqj/whats_your_favorite_part_making_or_eating_pizza

 

[WelshBloke]

I have neither the patience nor skills required to make a home made pizza, maybe a frozen pizza once in awhile.

If I really want a reasonable pizza I can go to Little Caesar's or Domino's about 15-18 minutes away.

I am not a food snob, I go to the Golden Corral and Cracker Barrel as well as some local family run restaurants;
but 90% of my food is eaten at home. Nothing fancy.

It's not hard to make pizza (I mean it is to the level of the ones in this thread) that's better than Dominoes.

*Whispers* You can make the dough in a bread machine and the sauce isn't difficult, then it's whatever toppings you want, a stone and a hot oven!

 

[Muse]

I'm doing ok today. If you're on Reddit, leave a comment in my post!

https://www.reddit.com/r/Pizza/comments/1qphdqj/whats_your_favorite_part_making_or_eating_pizza

Your slicing technique is OMG perfect. I pay attention to mine but that's just amazing.

 

[bigboxes]

Your slicing technique is OMG perfect. I pay attention to mine but that's just amazing.

I keep hearing that today on my submission to Reddit. What is it that is different about my technique than what you normally see?

 

[Muse]

I keep hearing that today on my submission to Reddit. What is it that is different about my technique than what you normally see?

I've seen restaurants/shops' pizza cutting and it always looks like they jammed through the process in less than 10 seconds. I have no idea how you do that, but it looks perfect to me. I try to make my slices be the same size and all. They're close, but not like the one you show here. It's really not a big thing, I'm eating 100% of my pizzas, so why the bother? I try anyway.

 

[Muse]

Pinsa No. Five (this morning's breakfast!). Came out terrific. First bake 9 minutes, second bake (with the toppings) 7 minutes. Pictures: Proofing, baked, sliced. Toppings: Mozzarella, gruyere cheese, potato, walnut basil pesto, parmigiano reggiano, lemon zest. I had pre-cooked the diced potato some in microwave. Baked on parchment paper on my 1/12" thick steel in ~450F oven. Extra virgin olive oil spread on dough before first bake.

 

[bigboxes]

I've seen restaurants/shops' pizza cutting and it always looks like they jammed through the process in less than 10 seconds. I have no idea how you do that, but it looks perfect to me. I try to make my slices be the same size and all. They're close, but not like the one you show here. It's really not a big thing, I'm eating 100% of my pizzas, so why the bother? I try anyway.

Okay. I do try to cut my slices cleanly. That means I have to take a little time to do them without crushing the pie. Plus, I try to cut them evenly by not rushing. Taking more than one pass and following the same path. I'm looking to have a clean cut. And my crust is crispy on the bottom. That semolina really gives it some crunch.

Thanks for replying. Someone else said close to the exact same thing on Reddit in the comments on this week's submission. I was like, "What are they talking about?" and then you said the same thing. Wild.

 

[Kaido]

Okay. I do try to cut my slices cleanly. That means I have to take a little time to do them without crushing the pie. Plus, I try to cut them evenly by not rushing. Taking more than one pass and following the same path. I'm looking to have a clean cut. And my crust is crispy on the bottom. That semolina really gives it some crunch.

Thanks for replying. Someone else said close to the exact same thing on Reddit in the comments on this week's submission. I was like, "What are they talking about?" and then you said the same thing. Wild.

We are all OCD on the Internet...give us The Aesthetic™ & you're in business lol

 

[AMCRambler]

Muse whatever that is you're making it looks like crap. Roll the dough out flat otherwise you're eating a loaf of bread with some cheese and BS on top.

 

[WelshBloke]

Muse whatever that is you're making it looks like crap. Roll the dough out flat otherwise you're eating a loaf of bread with some cheese and BS on top.

Looks like what pinsa is supposed to look like to me!

Pinsa at DuckDuckGo

DuckDuckGo. Privacy, Simplified.

duckduckgo.com

 

[DigDog]

i find the ongoing use of the term "pinsa" really disturbing.
you guys know that is not a thing, right? just because *a guy* says "it's not pizza, IT'S PINSA" doesn't make it "a thing".

 

[Muse]

Muse whatever that is you're making it looks like crap. Roll the dough out flat otherwise you're eating a loaf of bread with some cheese and BS on top.

Mon, do a little internet research on pinsa and you'll see you're flat out wrong. The oblong shape and formed by hand is the tradition and it goes back to Roman times. I've made triple digits pizzas of the type you describe. They're good, for sure.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do for the weekend. May make 4 dough balls for pizza like usual or may make 4 dough balls for pinsa, either way I'll use my bread machine. Very different dough and properties. The baked pinsa comes out light and airy with a crunchy bottom crust. There's tons of different topping types and combinations that are used on pinsa. I got started by going to a pinsa specialty restaurant: Montescaro SoMa a couple weeks ago.

 

[Muse]

i find the ongoing use of the term "pinsa" really disturbing.
you guys know that is not a thing, right? just because *a guy* says "it's not pizza, IT'S PINSA" doesn't make it "a thing".

Eh? Pinsa predates pizza

Pinsa predates modern pizza, with its origins tracing back over 2,000 years to Ancient Rome, where it was created by peasants using, spelt, millet, and barley.

Often considered the ancestor of modern pizza, pinsa is defined by its oval shape, high-hydration dough (80%), and long fermentation (24–72 hours), which makes it lighter and more digestible.

Key differences from modern pizza include:

• Dough Composition: Uses a mix of wheat, rice, and soy flour, rather than just wheat.
• Preparation: The dough is hand-pressed (derived from the Latin pinsere, meaning "to stretch") rather than tossed.
• Health Profile: It is considered lighter, lower in fat, and easier to digest due to the long fermentation.

While modern pizza developed in Naples during the 16th to 18th centuries, the Roman pinsa existed much earlier as a rustic, stone-baked flatbread.

Pinsa Is Life

 

[Kaido]

Similar to the Waffle House Index:

Waffle House Index - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

How to Measure a Storm's Fury One Breakfast at a Time - Waffle House

Waffle House - How to Measure a Storm's Fury One Breakfast at a Time

www.wafflehouse.com

https://www.accuweather.com/en/accuweather-ready/what-is-the-waffle-house-index/667995

There is also the Pentagon Pizza Index:

Pentagon Pizza Index - Real-Time OSINT Dashboard

Track pizza popularity around the Pentagon as a geopolitical indicator. The conspiracy theory that's taking OSINT by storm.

www.pizzint.watch

Watch out, we are at DOUGHCON 4 today!!

 

[Kaido]

i find the ongoing use of the term "pinsa" really disturbing.
you guys know that is not a thing, right? just because *a guy* says "it's not pizza, IT'S PINSA" doesn't make it "a thing".

Eh? Pinsa predates pizza

Pinsa predates modern pizza, with its origins tracing back over 2,000 years to Ancient Rome, where it was created by peasants using, spelt, millet, and barley.

Often considered the ancestor of modern pizza, pinsa is defined by its oval shape, high-hydration dough (80%), and long fermentation (24–72 hours), which makes it lighter and more digestible.

Key differences from modern pizza include:

• Dough Composition: Uses a mix of wheat, rice, and soy flour, rather than just wheat.
• Preparation: The dough is hand-pressed (derived from the Latin pinsere, meaning "to stretch") rather than tossed.
• Health Profile: It is considered lighter, lower in fat, and easier to digest due to the long fermentation.

While modern pizza developed in Naples during the 16th to 18th centuries, the Roman pinsa existed much earlier as a rustic, stone-baked flatbread.

Pinsa Is Life

Snopes-style etymology time! So there's actually some clever marketing here:

1. "Pinsa" was an oval flatbread made of millet or barley eaten by the Romans 2,000 years ago
2. Separately, the pizza we eat today (leavened dough & toppings) was found as far back as the 18th century in Naples
3. The modern version as we know it today is called Pinsa Romana, which was created in 1981 & trademarked in 2001 by Corrado Di Marco

Pinsa capitalizes on the "ancient pizza" idea, but Pinsa as "pizza" didn't actually exist until 25 years ago. Corrado later admitted he made it all up as part of his marketing strategy: (use Chrome's translate feature)

"There is no historical trace of Pinsa; I invented it all"

The dude went viral right at the dot-com boom & became the Walter White of fake pizza news, haha:

Since 2001 Pinsa romana has been a registered trademark

Di Marco's revolution was accomplished in 2001, when he registered the Pinsa romana trademark and clearly defined the product's ingredients and preparation, based on a dough made particularly digestible thanks to a special blend of flours. In 2007, Pinsa experienced a veritable boom, with thousands upon thousands of "pinserias" opening in Italy and abroad. Di Marco's invented origin story is so believable, with a name derived from a Latin verb, that the word "pinsa" became vulgarized and almost became the equivalent of pizza, a common noun, when in reality it was a registered trademark (which it no longer is today).

“I made it all up”

And so, after nearly two decades and global success, Di Marco can now confidently reveal that the ancient origins of Pinsa were merely a brilliant marketing ploy : "I made it all up; there's no historical trace of Pinsa. It doesn't exist; it's just a story I invented to make the new product appealing." In short, we're faced with an incredible feat of communication. A completely invented story—"fake news," as we would say today—made real thanks to the thousands of pieces of information, articles, and explanations that have accumulated on the internet over the years. Hundreds and hundreds of websites have fueled a hoax to the point of obtaining an "official" entry on Wikipedia and other portals deemed more reliable. No mythical origins, then, but credit to pizza chef Di Marco, who built an empire thanks to a great product and a great story.

This interview with the creator has an English dub available:

The hallmarks are:

1. High-hydration dough (80%+) that results in a crispy exterior & soft interior (as opposed to a heavy, dense all-wheat flatbread)
2. A mix of flours (wheat, rice, soy); the ancient Romans didn't have access to rice or soy flour
3. Fermentation (48 to 72 hours or more)
4. Oval (or rectangular) shape

44 years after inception & 24 years after tradmarking & going public with it, the Italian Ministry of Agriculture officially recognized it last year as a PAT (Traditional Agri-food Product) of the Lazio region:

The Roman pinsa, invented by Corrado Di Marco, is included among the traditional agri-food products of Lazio (PAT)* - Di Marco

With the Ministerial Decree of March 11, 2025, Pinsa Romana was officially included in the list of Traditional Agri-food Products (PAT) of Lazio. A milestone that, for the company Di Marco, represents much more than a certification: it is the attestation of an identity, cultural and...

www.dimarco.it

Walkthrough:

Delicious Pinsa Recipe

Pinsa is gaining popularity, and rightly so, because it’s delicious! Similar to pizza, pinsa has a much fluffier and crispier crust. How to achieve this, I explain in thi...

rutgerbakt.nl

Check it out here!

https://www.tiktok.com/video/7531382724553231671

 

[DigDog]

Eh? Pinsa predates pizza

• • Origins: While inspired by ancient Roman recipes, the modern commercial concept was trademarked by Corrado Di Marco in 2001.

 

[DigDog]

Sorry. In my all-consuming keyboard rage, i had not noticed Kaido got there before me.

 

[Kaido]

• • Origins: While inspired by ancient Roman recipes, the modern commercial concept was trademarked by Corrado Di Marco in 2001.

Still super good tho!!

 

[bigboxes]

I made another garlic white sauce pizza yesterday. Sooooo good!

https://www.reddit.com/r/Pizza/comments/1qvppyh/here_i_go_again_on_my_own

 

[bbhaag]

Anyone else making pizza tonight for the SB? We are having a small get together with just some close family and friends.

Prep started a few days ago with the dough but we are now in full swing. Homemade sauce from the garden, shredded cheese from the block, and some dried herbs from the garden that we harvested in the fall.

Mmmmmm!!! Can't wait to eat it!

 

[DigDog]

Anyone else making pizza tonight for the SB?

S ... B ?
Do you mean, SO ?

 

[bbhaag]

Finished the pizzas and put them in the fridge until everyone comes over. I also tracked down a six of Birra Moretti when I was in Cleveland over the holidays and have been saving it. This was one of my favorite Italian beers when I visited Italy in October of 2025.

 

[Muse]

Anyone else making pizza tonight for the SB? We are having a small get together with just some close family and friends.

Prep started a few days ago with the dough but we are now in full swing. Homemade sauce from the garden, shredded cheese from the block, and some dried herbs from the garden that we harvested in the fall.

Mmmmmm!!! Can't wait to eat it!
View attachment 138063

Yup, Pizza for me for Super Bowl. My dough ball cold-proofed 2 days in fridge, and been warm proofing a couple hours now... Service will be around game time.