An endless journey of pizza

I was surfing on YouTube when I came across an old guy making pizza and cooking it on his Weber BBQ on top of a few construction bricks. His pizza looked like an amoeba but it had potential. I played it again and laughed out loud. Then I started thinking about it. I said to myself, "I think that would work." That was my beginning. I wasn't dissatisfied with the local fast food pizza that we'd always ordered but I, by nature am a curious guy.

When I see a magic trick I want to know how they do that. Throughout grade school I read and learned everything I could about Houdini. I had caught the magic bug. The Dewey Decimal numbers are still burned into my brain. 793.8 in any library and you will find books on magic and many about Houdini. Back then we didn't blog so if your friends aren't interested in padlocking your wrists together anymore to watch you escape you lose interest and find something else to do.

While attending my cousin's Ordination to become a Catholic priest in Oakland some 40+

years ago we attended the celebration and meal that came afterwards for all that attended the Ordination. From a deck above the main seating I watched in awe as some guy in a suit attending and listening to the thank you speeches draw on a paper placemat a portrait in pencil of the person across from him. I was again awe struck. I had to earn how he did that. Art, penmanship and spelling were my 3 best subjects in grade school. When I got to college they didn't offer degrees in penmanship or spelling so I pursued art. I got my Bachelor's with a degree in Fine Art in 1979. I can honestly say that I can now draw a portrait on a paper placemat with a pencil.

None of this means anything except that when I need to know I become wrapped up in the quest. Some will say obsessed but I know from experience it will someday pass but I have much to do before that can happen.

I had worked assembling pizzas twice in my young career. Once in a pizza chain franchise and once again at a privately owned pizza place. Neither one thrilled me and neither one taught me much about pizza. I was just an assembler on the pizza assembly line of life.

Now as I have grown in wisdom and age I still love pizza and don't seem to ever tire of it. It's the one food I don't get tired of. I can eat it 3 times a weeks as an adult! The wisdom at my age is that again, I want to know how they do it. I have to start somewhere so I started on the internet. You Tube is an amazing tool for learning.

My wife taught me to always Google: by saying "the best" or "world famous" in front of the item you are looking for when it comes to recipes. I do this and sure enough, everyones is the best! But it does help bring some of the cream to the top.

With pizza it starts at the bottom. The crust has to be great or the rest of the pizza will suffer.

I started by googling world's best pizza dough recipe. This is where my pizza journey begins.