Lovin' My Oven Series Thursday May 3rd 2012

This is a series that starts today called Lovin' My Oven. I will attempt to records all the meals I cook in the Forno Bravo Casa 2G  pizza oven kit that we built in the back yard as part of my backyard remodel/outdoor kitchen project, for one year. This will include photos of the meals as well.  Those recipes will form the basis of a book I will publish under the same name. A lofty goal I know. "We shall see," said the blind man.

Up till now our backyard kitchen consisted of an old smoky Joe Webber, and a Little chief electric smoker. The backyard was such a mess. I'm not going to attempt describe it. It has been, and will continue to be used to support my pet sitting business, but it was not people friendly back there to say the least. The dogs liked it, but I came to hate it.  It was affectinately refered to as the Gaza Strip. 

So, with the help and guidance of my now friend Brendan Leathem we took out a couple of yards of dirt, laid down some beautiful Connecticut flag stone, built a long redwood table with benches for dinners with friends, installed some sun sails, and built a space for an herb garden. That was phase one.

Phase two consisted of building an L shaped bar from redwood with a small sink that is hooked up to the garden hose for some water. It has a good 6 feet of table space for prep, and room for at least 3 bar stools so people can just sit,  eat or enjoy a drink, and it has a two burner Lynx grill. I painted everything and varnished the bar top with 6 coats of marine varnish .
The grill has a smoker with it and cooks at 50,000 BTU's and supposedly will get up to 800 degrees. But, if I want to smoke anything it will be smoked in the pizza oven.
There will be a canopy over the bar soon, and a sign in the back that will read Geraldine's La De Da Cafe'. Phase two almost complete.

Phase three consists of a Forno Bravo pizza oven. We had a steel stand fabricated with locking wheels so I can move it around when necessary. It's about four and a half feet off the ground, and comes up high enough so you don't have to slump over to use it, very functional, and easy on the old back.
The kit comes shipped in a crate, and you put it together. I'm not going to detail that event here, but it takes at least two people, two days to put the kit together, and then another two days with two people to wrap the fire blanket on top or the oven, cover it with chicken wire, and do the stucco work.
I also had the assistance of our good friend Tom Monaghan, so thank you Tom.
Once the oven was complete the fun starts, FIRE. It has to be cured, and that's where the rest of this blog will begin. Stay Tuned On.

Peace,

Make Food, Not War