We get this question with some regularity, and there seems to be some conflicting information.

We inquired with Molino Caputo, in Naples, and they told us that the Chef’s flour in the red 1 kilo (2.2 lb) bags is the same flour as the Rinforzato (translated: “Reinforced”), which comes in the red 55 lb bags.

That is our current answer, since it’s what the person at the mill in Naples is telling us.

Some additional history

When we initially inquired with a distributor in the U.S., he told us that the Chef’s was the same as the Pizzeria flour. We talked to the importer, and he insisted that the distributor was incorrect, and that it was actually the Rinforzato. So we decided to contact Molino Caputo ourselves because we saw others making the claim that the Chef’s used to be the same as the Blue, but some time in 2009, they switched to using Rinforzato as the Chef’s, and the packaging also changed on the Chef’s a bit.

So the distributor may have just been relying on outdated information perhaps? Maybe there was a change at some point? Regardless, since the mill and the importer are in agreement that the Chef’s is Rinforzato, that’s what we are telling you.

To further cloud things, it doesn’t help that the front of the bag for all of the types of flour mentioned above shows an image of a pizza.

But that should bring some comfort that all three of the flours are suitable for making pizza. Ultimately it comes down to your preference as to which flour creates a crust that you prefer.

I would be remiss not to mention that after I talked to another customer about what I’m telling you above, that he contacted Caputo himself, and their answer was that the Chef’s is the same as the Pizzeria. Honestly, I throw my hands up in the air in desperation.

Technical Specs

Caputo did provide us with some technical specifications that you can review if you’re a real food techie. We have specs on the Pizzeria and the Rinforzato. To me, they look pretty much the same.

If you know something different or have any other information to clear things up, leave a comment below.

It’s not too late to get started on your own backyard wood-fired brick oven. By mid-summer, you can be making delicious bread and pizza in it too.

Daniel Wing and Alan Scott are a pair of experts who authored The Bread Builders, filling it with their knowledge on building ovens and baking bread with it.

Have a look at what Gary pulled together a few summers ago after reading The Bread Builders. He took a lot of pictures that you can look at in a gallery that he created.

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave one below, or email gary@BrickOvenBaker.com. He likes to talk about his oven with interested folks.

If you think you’ve been bitten by the bug to build an oven, then get a copy of the book because it answers lots of questions and will pass a lot of expertise on to you.

OK, well… maybe more like $20 plus whatever it costs for a case of beer, which you will need to drink so that you can use the empty beer bottles for the construction of this fascinating oven.

Click the image for more pictures of it, and click here for building instructions.

We are now shipping full, 55lb bags of Caputo 00 Pizzeria flour, often referred to as Caputo Blue.

We’ll box up a bag and ship it to you in the states. It will ship via UPS Ground, so when you add it to your cart, you can get an estimate for shipping to your part of the US by simply entering in you zip.

We still continue to offer the 12lb and 20lb boxes that are repacked from the larger bags.

We carry a number of the types of Caputo Flour if you’re interested in something other than the Pizzeria type.

Do you dislike how the outside of your brownies get overcooked while you wait for the middle to finish cooking? Does everybody want a piece from the middle because the edges are overdone and hard?

You should give the Edge Brownie Pan a try.

How about when you make lasagna, do you get the overly crisply noodles on the sides and underdone middles?

For that we have the Simple Lasagna Pan.

BrickOvenBaker.com has these professional grade pans, which are manufactured in the USA by Baker’s Edge. The interior sidewalls allow the heat to circulate and reach into the middle of the pan. Thick cast aluminum also helps heat the food evenly for a superior baking experience. Non-stick too!

Check them out!

Dessert after Easter Sunday dinner was always special for us because of the Italian specialties that we only had at Easter time. But some traditions fade as the years, and our older relatives that had more knowledge of the old world, pass on. For the younger generations, holidays become more American over time, and sometimes more generic in what we eat and how we celebrate.

Ah, but enough grieving, because Easter is also the time to resurrect traditional recipes to bring new life and hope to your festive Easter dinner table!

This recipe for Neapolitan Easter Pie looks wonderful. If you haven’t enjoyed this in a number of years, you should make it, and get your kids and grandchildren building memories of this and other fantastic traditional holiday foods.

What are your favorite foods that originated in the old world? Do you have a favorite food that you miss?

It’s only the customers who fight over who is the best on Wooster Street in New Haven.

Sally’s and Pepe’s are the main rivals. Abate’s (a relative newcomer) is included in this video, but I’ve never known them to be part of the debate.

Modern Pizza, another New Haven pizzeria that isn’t located on Wooster Street has it’s die-hard fans as well.

What’s your favorite place? Leave a comment below and tell us.

Thank you to my cousin Corinne for telling me about this video!

Despite pizza’s being around for hundreds of years in various forms, and since 1889 in it’s current form (crusts, sauce, and cheese), pizza apparently hadn’t hit in Canada as of 1957:

What is “nippy cheese”?

The header image shows Queen Margherita Maria Teresa Giovanna of Savoy – for which the Margherita Pizza was named after.

…and again, thank you Gary W. for tipping me off to this video.

Working with a wood fired oven, you can easily get it over 900°F. Slide the pizza in, a minute and a half later, you can slide out a perfectly done, thin crust, Neapolitan masterpiece.

If you’re stuck with a conventional oven that tops out at 500-550°F, you might think you can’t come close to a wood fired oven.

The trick to get a surface to be even hotter so you can get closer to the results of a wood-fired oven is to use a cast iron pan, which is preheated on the stove, and using the broiler to hit the top of the pie.

Clever and worth a try.

My friend Gary tipped me off to this technique which he saw in this article at Lifehacker . Thanks Gary!

“I do.”

Couple Marries at Pepe’s Pizza in New Haven.

Awww.

Congratulations to Gus and Pamela DaSilva, who came from Indiana to help his son get ready to deploy to Iraq. While they were here, decided to get married right there in Pepe’s.

I got a kick out of some things said in the comments section for the article, like this one:

“What a cheesy story. I bet they had a saucy affair. But at least they didn’t have to part with a lot of dough on a big reception.”

Well put!

You’ll thank us for this tip the next time you dominate your friends in a game of Scrabble.

So you’re down to your two last letters, and there there just aren’t any options on the board that are going to let you use your last A and your last Z. Grrr! I hate when I’m stuck with a letter with such a high point count and I can’t use it.

Well, apparently “ZA” is now in the official Scrabble word list (via WikiAnswers). What’s it mean? It’s short for pizza of course!

Gimme another slice of that za!

Here is a terrific video showing how A16 in San Francisco makes their Neapolitan pizza:

It’s just after 8am and now I just want to skip breakfast and go get some lunch. The only thing that’s stopping me, the trip from CT to CA. I could go to Pepe’s or Sally’s I guess. That’s only about 20 minutes away.

Came across that video, via this review. Interesting comments from people who still feel that people are overly excited about the A16 Pizza’s saying that it still doesn’t match the best in NYC.

There are so many different kinds of pies out there and it’s very subjective. Once you find the style that you prefer, nothing else compares. Some point out that San Francisco doesn’t have much of a pizza legacy so getting rave reviews in San Francisco isn’t a hard thing to do, even if it doesn’t quite live up to the NY or New Haven styles, which are close, but not exactly the same as true Naples-style pizza.

Still the A16 pies look great, and I would not miss A16 if I get to San Francisco.

Interesting notes:

• Before they take the pizza out, they hold it up near the top of the oven, closer to the flame. Why? To give the topping just a little bit of a push at the end? I little more smoky flavor?
• Three days to get the right flavor in the crust. Interesting.

There are lots of places in the US where the pizza is so bad that giving it to your kids ought to be considered child abuse. But is throwing a slice of pizza at ones daughter after she mouthed off at her father an actual crime? Apparently in Florida, it is!

Dad Accused of Child Abuse for Hitting Girl With Pizza

Saturday , August 15, 2009 AP

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — A Gainesville father has been arrested for hitting his daughter with a pizza slice.

The 38-year-old man was arrested early Friday on a charge of child abuse without great harm, a third-degree felony. The man’s name was being withheld to protect the identity of the victim.

Deputy Nick Vickers says the man used racist and sexist terms when he asked his daughter to turn off her computer, and she fired back with some crude language of her own.

Vickers says the father “intentionally threw a slice of pizza at the victim, striking her in the back of the neck, against her will.”

The girl, whose age was not available, called 911 and her father was arrested.

Anyway, I would not condone the use of pizza as a weapon, especially if it’s a well made pie made with quality ingredients. But if you must, at least be a good shot like this father was.

Exhibit A: We went to the Fancy Food Show last weekend, and came across Pizza in a Cone. You might think that at a fancy food show that this might be some kind of treat masterfully put together by a chef from fresh ingredients just presented in a unique way. You’d be wrong.

We chuckled at their own admission that the product has “Pleasant and Acceptable Taste. I’ll take their word for it. I think they were offering samples, but took a pass.

These frozen, microwavable pizzas are made by Coneinn, a Spanish company. Stick to your delicious paella guys!

Exhibit B: At the Dolada restaurant in London, a special dinner where each course was prepared by a different Italian chef was held. You’d think that this would an event where tradition might be coupled with some modern twist by a skillful chef. You’d be wrong.

A deconstructed pizza in a bulbous test tube featured this week at a dinner in London where each course was prepared by a different Italian chef. The event took place on Monday at Dolada restaurant, whose chef Riccardo de Pra created the liquid pizza with mozzarella, tomato, basil and olive-oil components to be guzzled in one go, accompanied by chunks of crust for texture. (Source: Slice Pizza Blog)

That’s right. A Pizza Smoothy… With Chunks. The first commenter over there hits the nail on the head:

Enough with the molecular gastronomy already. What started out as a new, novel, and interesting approach to food has made some food items sound like what they would resemble coming back up after a night of heavy drinking. I prefer my pizza constructed to perfection, thank you!

Whatever these people are selling, I’m not buying. What’s your opinion?

Go Shopping in our new store!

Having just spent a few weeks configuring the ecommerce software for our store, I am excited to announce that it’s officially up and running.

New products will soon populate the categories and we’re hope to expand to bring you great products for your pizza, bread, and pasta needs, and maybe a few more fun products.

Please don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions that you may have.