Pizza Archives - Page 10 of 10 - Good Food St. Louis

I was attracted to this project when my grandson showed up at the family farm with a book entitled, “How to Build a Cob Oven.” It described in step-by-step detail how a pizza oven made with mud, straw, and sand could be constructed in two weekends for less than $100. Wow! You don’t get bargains like that these days.

Preparing the sand mold for the pizza oven.

Shaping the oven required building a sand mold that would be covered with layers of mortar and then the sand removed. It was a primitive procedure, but it worked. Cob is usually mixed by foot with sand and straw to get a stiff material.

I had read that the early cathedral designers in Europe, wanting to achieve a large dome had considered this approach, but with an interesting twist. Removing the sand without modern equipment was tricky, so the idea was to leave coins in the sand. Once the dome was completed, they’d turn the peasants loose to scavenge for the coins as they removed the sand. As it turned out, we had to make do with agile onlookers, who thought it was fun to stomp in the mud.

My grandson, Andrew, (left) and friends stomp the cob mix

I should have been suspicious when the writer noted that success of the project depended on the number of friends you could involve, their abilities, the weather, and the availability of cob ingredients. No problems there. We had friends will to pick up rocks from the creek bed in exchange for a few meals. And, as a frustrated gardener, I knew there was a lot of clay to be found in the area. As to expertise, well, my grandson and his friend had worked on cob projects at college. What could go wrong?

My son-in-law applies the four-inch cob mixture to the oven.

Dirty Dancing: Mixing the sand and clay ingredients

Over the many weekends that followed our helpers varied. There were several lawyers, a neurologists, a couple of college students and professors, a geologist, and some walk-on politicians. Clearly, there was a deficiency of expertise in our workforce. Still, they were an enthusiastic lot, working in anticipation of pizza someday, but settling temporarily for cold beverages. Sensing the messiness of any project involving mud and water, kids and dogs happily joined the fun as well.

The first finished pizza oven that later cracked

Interior inspection

Testing the pizza peel (or paddle)

Our concrete block base was not a thing of beauty, but it was level and the size to support our project. We would later have it faced by a stonemason with rocks from the creek–a cost the writer on cob oven construction neglected to mention.

Not everyone was “fit” for patching the interior.

A tired but proud work crew

As time went on, I became to suspect the instruction book we were following might have been written by delusional hippies, sitting around the campfire in the sixties. The book needed an update, if not a sequel. They had clearly left out some of the finer points of the construction process.

The re-built pizza oven

The proper ratio of straw to clay is essential to prevent cracking. Remember the Biblical story of the Israelites being forced to make bricks without straw? It didn’t work, because fiber is needed to prevent the clay from cracking when it dries.

The completed oven was perfectly arched and the cob smooth and symmetrical. We even got a few splendid pizzas from the high-temperature oven that baked much like those in the professional pizza parlors.

Then it happened. Cracks began to appear and there was an infestation of borer bees, or carpenter bee as they are often called. After much research on the Internet and bringing in a geologist friend, we determined it would be best to tear out the dome and start over with a little different cob mixture. Fast forward several months. The new cob has been applied, dried, and the oven ready for another test run.

Preparing to Test the Second Pizza Oven

It all begins with the dough.

That’s not a nimbus of light above Austin’s head; it’s a tossed pizza crust being flung into shape.

The saucy bottom layer

The first pizza from the second oven was sprinkled with rosemary.

The first pizza from the first oven.

Now, that’s a pizza pie!

Once upon a time, Cherokee Street was the domain of authentic Mexican cuisine. Now others have moved into the ethnically diverse area, making it a popular St. Louis food destination for any appetite. Wanting to maximize my recent visit to Cherokee Street, I devised a clever strategy when I found the three places I wanted to try were within a stone’s throw of each other: Master Pieza, Athlete Eat, and Diana’s Bakery.

A seat in the window at Master Pieza.

First, I ordered a slice of vegetarian pizza from Will Porter, owner-operator of the artsy pie shop, who immediately began rolling out the dough for my small oval-shaped pie. With a choice of cheese, I picked Mozzarella over Provel. (Slice, $2.99, plus additions; Veggie, $3.75).

As the pie took shape, I dashed across the street to Athlete Eat, where Simon and Angelica Lusky, once chefs and nutritionists for the Cards, dished up healthy, paleo, organic, gluten-free, local foods. Yelp gave the place a hearty 5-star rating, so I figured it was hard to go wrong. I chose the veggie smoothie with everything from kiwi to kale to apples and carrots and shared it with my friend. And since they specialize in carry out and delivery, I ordered a to-go of the Bibimbap, a Korean stew that friends had raved about.

The spiffy exterior of Athlete Eats

Paleo Crab Cake Pea Salad

I raced back across the street where Will was pulling my pizza from the oven, its thin crust smothered with the healthy veggie toppings. I pulled up to the narrow counter in the window and savored every finger-licking bite.

Diana’s Mexican Bakery with its colorful and inviting exterior

Infinite variety in a small shop

By now I was wondering if I should try the bakery shop, but my fellow diners said I shouldn’t miss the fruit empanadas, flans, cookies, and churros. I yielded without argument. Upon entering the small store, I could tell the regulars knew the routine: take a cafeteria tray and tongs, make your selections from the pastry-lined walls, and present yourself to the clerk who efficiently calculates the bill. The only problem was in making the selections.

Hmm…would it be the blueberry empanada or the apple? A flan or a sack of churros—those elongated Mexican donuts you dip in chocolate rather than your coffee. Or the heavenly Tres Leaches Cake?

Having already overindulged, I made a few judicious, but difficult choices, with the promise to myself that I would return another day.

Master Pieza, 2846 Cherokee. M-Th, 11a-10p; F-Sat, 11a.-3a (Yes, night owls, you’re in luck—open until 3-ish in the morning on weekends!) Menu here.

Athlete Eat, 2837 Cherokee. M-F, 10a-6p; Sat & Sun. 9a-5p. An exciting and guilt-free menu with no absence of flavor. Menu here. (Out of Business)

Diana’s Bakery, 2843 Cherokee, Wed-Sat, 7a-8p. A haven for those with a sweet tooth or for those wanting a small something to nibble on during a stroll along Cherokee.