Artisan Baking Center, Petaluma, CA
“If the rectangular shape of Roman pizza doesn’t surprise you, you’re sure to raise an eyebrow when you see how it’s served!. Cut with a pair of scissors, pizza al taglio is a popular street food of the Italian capitol. You use both hands to show the vendor how wide a slice you want. It’s transferred to a scale and priced by weight.
Just about any shape or style of pizza could be cut into slices using scissors, so the term al taglio doesn’t really tell you what to expect in terms of the pizza’s texture, thickness, or baking technique. When speaking of specific styles of Roman pies, the terms Pizza Romana and Pizza alla Pala are more important.”
Join us for hands-on pizza making with Chef Michael Kalanty. Inspired by a recent trip to Rome, Michael is excited to share principals and techniques he has learned firsthand with a style of Pizza making that is truly one of a kind.
What You’ll Practice
Both styles of Roman pies:
Pizza alla Pala–rectangular and thin, slid directly onto the oven deck from a flat board or “pala”.
Pizza Romana-baked in a heavy metal pan for crunchy sides and bottom with a thicker, tender interior.
Plus General Principles to make all your baking better:
Hand-mixing techniques for tender crusts
Focus on dough proofing, handling and shaping
Techniques to get the crust you want
Instructor Bio
Michael Kalanty is a professional bread baking instructor. He’s written baking curriculums for professional schools across the country, in Italy and in Brasil. His textbooks have won awards like “Best Bread Book in the World”® at the Gourmand Cookbook Awards in Paris and have been translated into Portuguese. When he was the Director of Boulangerie for the Le Cordon Bleu schools in North America, he was awarded “Best Instructor of the Year”. You can find him teaching online at The Great Courses and Craftsy.
“You can read all about my Italian baking journey in the article “From Rome with Love” featured in Pizza Magazine Quarterly. Better still, join me in class and explore the flavors and crusty textures of this Roman specialty from an insider’s view.”