the elements of pizza book review

Book Review: The Elements of Pizza

Round these parts, we take our pizza very seriously. And I know what I like when it comes to pizza: thin crust that isn’t soggy or a cracker, a tomato sauce that is slightly on the sweet side and just the right amount of cheese. Everyone’s got their local pizza shop where they get a pie every so often. But there is a certain sense of satisfaction to making your own pizza at home. And, it can taste better, too. James Beard Award-winning author and chef Ken Forkish has recently released The Elements of Pizza to help us home cooks up our pizza-making game.

Forkish covers pizza from start to finish. After an overview of pizza and its most popular styles, he details the tools of the trade and the methods you can use to get the pizza you want. Then it is on to the recipes which make up more than half of the book.

Unlike cooking, baking is often an exact science. But The Elements of Pizza offers options. Didn’t plan ahead but still want pizza tonight? Try the “I Slept in but I Want Pizza Tonight” dough recipe. Trying to get ahead of the weekly food schedule? Try the 48- to 72-Hour New York Pizza Dough. Can’t (or won’t) eat gluten? Forkish has a recipe for you, too. There are options and options galore.

You can’t argue with results. The two to three day NY pizza dough that I tried was surprisingly quick and easy. Easier than the pizza dough I usually make at home. While I typically use my stand mixer with the dough hook, I stayed on manual (aka my hands) for Forkish’s recipe.

What I like about The Elements of Pizza is the variety. There really is something for everyone. And with the dough recipes separate from the sauce recipes, you have no excuse not to mix and match to meet your own tastes. For home cooks and pizza-lovers alike, The Elements of Pizza is a welcome addition that provides options that you can build from to suit your own likes and dislikes.


I received this book from the Blogging for Books program in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed are my own. This post contains affiliate links.

2 thoughts on “Book Review: The Elements of Pizza”

  1. I love, love, love pizza and would have never thought to purchase a book like this before! Thanks for sharing your review and I’ll definitely be thinking about buying this amazing, pizza-filled book 🙂

    Jenna (www.joyfullyjenna.com)

  2. I’ve actually been making a ton of homemade pizza lately. But I buy the pre-made crusts from like Target or Whole Foods. It’s probably time to step up my game and make dough from scratch…

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