“Wood fired cooking is unique unto each oven and each chef. It is the chef who creates stimulating and inspired creations, who must perfectly execute the technique, but it is the oven that exquisitely cooks and accentuates the chosen ingredients.”

I couldn’t explain this dynamic more perfectly. Todd then writes,

“I believe there is no greater style of cooking that so wonderfully combines the heritage of food with the present day palate of the experiential diner. Whether you have a wood-burning oven at home or a kettle grill, cooking with wood can make the ordinary, extraordinary.”

This is the truth about wood fired cooking. Every time we fire up our Le Panyol oven, something extraordinary happens. As we all take our turn cooking for our colleagues here at Maine Wood Heat, from the craftsmen, to the girls in sales, to the CFO, it’s amazing what everyone comes up with – leg of lamb, homemade macaroni and cheese, cinnamon bread, succulent pizzas, and steaks on the hearth from a local grass-fed beef farm. We carefully collect our ingredients, and the wood fire coaxes out the very best of their flavor.

Today, for example, was another day extraordinary day here at the office. Cheryl Barden, CFO of Maine Wood Heat Co., brought in ingredients for her own lobster pizza recipe which she designed from scratch. She prepped the dough early, cooked the lobsters, sauteed the asparagus, mixed the olive oil with freshly diced and ground tarragon, and melted 1 1/2 sticks of butter. I fired up the oven for her, and the cooking began. Cheryl was the chef with an inspired creation, as Todd explains above, who executed her technique perfectly.

Step 1

Stretch & roll the dough (Cheryl uses a King Arthur Flour recipe to make the dough from scratch)

Step 2

Drizzle the olive oil and fresh tarragon

Step 3

Add dollops of fresh whole milk Ricotta – if you’re in Maine you can find it a Crooked Face Creamery

Step 4

Layer the asparagus

Step 5

Mix the lobster in with the melted butter then place the lobster on the pizza

Step 6

Add a little salt and pepper to finish off the toppings

Step 7

Slide the pizza into the wood fired oven

Step 8

Rotate the pizza every 30 seconds or so to cook each side evenly

Step 9

Pull the pizza out and let it rest for a minute

Step 10

Slice the pizza, and devour (I didn’t take a picture at this step because I was too busy eating, I apologize).

Click here to read a more detailed description of this wood fired lobster and asparagus pizza recipe, and visit our gallery to see the entire photo series.

To celebrate the holiday, I was given free reign to try something different in our wood fired oven. I chose a new twist on an old favorite, Macaroni & Cheese – wood-fired style. First, I have to give you a little history, because mac & cheese and I go way back.

I grew up eating the “stuff.” It was the macaroni in a box, with powdered cheese. I’m not sure if it even was cheese but it was orange and that was convincing enough for me at 8 years old. I didn’t eat macaroni and cheese just at lunchtime or dinner, but often at breakfast, and as a snack in the middle of the day. I was addicted. As you can probably imagine, I did not have a very sensitive palate as a kid. If I was good, or was extra helpful taking care of the animals on my parent’s farm, I got Velveeta Shells, the extra creamy kind with the “real” cheese. Had I known I would later work on my parents farm and start making farmstead cheese professionally in my late 20’s, and that I would have the fortune of working for Maine Wood Heat Co. the elite builders and designers of wood fired ovens, I would have held out for the real thing. But that’s all in the past.

When I expressed an interest and passion for the food, Scott forwarded me along a link to a Baked Mac & Cheese recipe in the Joy of Cooking. I brought in the ingredients, fresh Jersey milk from our farm, a wheel of my 6 month old Gouda-style cheese, local butter, onions, macaroni, paprika, breadcrumbs & flour. This may sound trite, but I followed the recipe (my rendition is below), and two hours later pulled the very best macaroni and cheese I have ever had, and am certain, will ever have the pleasure of tasting in all my life. I strongly encourage you to add this recipe to your holiday menu.

Please note that I was cooking for our whole crew here, so I tripled all of the ingredients. Refer to the original recipe when you begin (for recipe, click here), and just use my account below as a guide if you’re using a wood fired oven.

1. Fire up your oven, and get the temp up to about 650 degrees.

2. Fill a cast iron pot with a few cups of water and bring to a boil.

3. Add pasta and place cast iron pot in the middle of the hearth. Check it every few minutes, stirring often. After 15 minutes, the pasta was fully cooked. The temp had increased to 750 degrees.

4. Take the pasta out of the oven, strain, and pour into a baking dish. Cover and set aside.

5. Head back to the oven, rake the coals over the hearth and let them sit for 20 minutes, then rake them out of the oven and close the door. This will equalize the temperature. It had dropped down to 700 degrees for me.

6. Next, melt the following in your cast iron pot (see recipe for exact measures) – butter, flour, milk, minced onion, 1 bay leaf, and paprika. Let these simmer for 15 minutes before adding your cheese.

7. I brought in a wheel of my Gouda-style cheese, so I cut the wheel into wedges and grated it. I decided I couldn’t risk not having enough, so I used the entire wheel.

8. After grinding a little salt and pepper to taste, I added two-thirds of my grated cheese and decided to melt it all down a bit more so I put the cast iron pot back in the oven for 10 minutes before adding in the macaroni.

When the cheese melted, stir in the macaroni, and pour half of it into the baking dish. Then sprinkle half of the remaining cheese over the layer of macaroni. Add the rest of the macaroni on top.

Before putting the macaroni and cheese back in the oven to finish baking, I combined a half of stick of butter with a cup and a half of breadcrumbs to make the top layer along with all the cheese I had leftover. I only had to leave the butter and breadcrumbs in the oven a few minutes before it was ready to be spooned on top of the final layer of cheese covering the macaroni.

The last step – putting the dish back in the oven to bake. It took 18 minutes at 350 degrees. When I took it out, the breadcrumbs were lightly browned and the cheese was sizzling. We let it rest for a few minutes before diving in.

I am, by no means, an expert in the art of wood fired baking, and I’m lucky to have some pro’s here at the office to guide me, but I continue to be amazed at what I’m able to pull out of the oven. I’m convinced our Le Panyol has my back. It roots for me and makes up for my inexperience and miscalculations.

I watched with complete joy and satisfaction as my colleagues ate their helpings, and happily jumped at the opportunity to serve them seconds. I’m finally feeling in the Christmas spirit.

Happy Holidays!

The oven had a little residual heat left after cooking pizzas a few days earlier, so when we started the fire, it was already 90 degrees. Once the fire took hold, and we began adding more fuel, the temperature rose about 200 degrees every 15 minutes. After one hour, we reached a temp of just over 850 degrees.

The hearth was looking warm and inviting, so with confidence, I tossed the steaks in. I watched them sizzle for five minutes and then flipped each steak and cooked them for another five minutes as Scott advised. I have to admit, whenever I grill meat, I often second-guess myself in terms of knowing when the meat is fully cooked. I did the same with the steaks in the oven and asked Scott for some help. He had me push my cheek with my finger, then push the steak. The texture was the same, which he explained was a good indicator it was ready.

Now here are two other very important tips that Scott & Cheryl taught me.

Tip #1 – Always let the steaks rest for one minute after taking them out of the oven. The outside of the meat is fully cooked and is hotter than the interior, so more cooking actually happens after you take them out and let them settle. After a minute, I cut in and revealed a perfectly cooked medium rare steak – exactly what I wanted.

Tip #2 – I noticed some residual fat on the hearth after I took the steaks out, so as I let the steaks rest, Cheryl advised me to rake the coals over the hearth. She explained that the oven is self-cleaning, but it took seeing to believing. After about ten minutes, we raked the coals back to the rear of the oven, and to my amazement, exposed a perfectly clean hearth, ready to cook our next masterpiece. See the before and after pictures below…

Overall, steaks on the hearth was a huge success. What I love about working with a Le Panyol, is even when you’re a beginner and trying to cook new things, it’s actually difficult to make mistakes. The oven is really forgiving, and what you get out of it tastes so amazing, you just gain more confidence with each firing.

With that experience under our belts, we’ve decided to branch out again and try something different. On the menu this week – a new twist to an old favorite – wood fired macaroni & cheese.

Earlier this year, we had a few visitors interested in a Le Panyol mobile oven. They wanted to work with the oven hands-on before making their final decision. So we decided to throw together a little pizza party. Amy planned to bring her homemade ricotta, and Cheryl would prepare the dough and toppings.

A few weeks prior, Cheryl had discovered a pizza competition in her favorite magazine, Bon Appetit. The article featured previous winners from all over the world, along with their delicious pizza recipes. Maine, however, was nowhere to be seen. We may not be considered the pizza capital of the world, but with our abundant farmlands and fresh local food, and with the ever-growing interest in rustic eateries and wood fired baking, there are plenty of pizza makers around here who can certainly throw together a world-class pie.

This got Cheryl’s wheels turning. Determined to put Maine on the map, she practiced making different pizzas with local ingredients over the next few weeks. By the time our visitors arrived, she was ready to unveil her creation – Fresh lobster & asparagus pizza with ricotta cheese and tarragon infused olive oil.

We watched as the crackling fire lightly browned the toppings, and listened as the flavors came to life, sizzling to the surface. We took our first bite and knew we were tasting wood fired pizza at its best.

We’ve kept it under wraps for a while now, in pursuit of perfection, but at this point we feel guilty about not sharing such an unforgettable recipe. It just wouldn’t be fair to you and all the other pizza lovers around the world. As the saying goes, “ideas are like pizza dough, made to be tossed around.”

Cheryl’s Wood Fired Lobster & Asparagus Pizza

Ingredients

• 2  1 lb lobsters cooked, shucked and cut into 1″ chunks
• 1 1/2 Cups cooked asparagus diagonally cut into 1″ pieces
• 1/4-1/2 Cup melted butter
• 2  Cups grated havarti or fontina cheese, or Amy’s homemade ricotta (my preference)
• Tarragon infused olive oil

Tarragon Infused Olive Oil

• 1/3 Cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1-2 Tbsp chopped fresh tarragon
• 1/4 Tsp sea salt

Mix all the ingredients in a small bowl, cover, and put in the refrigerator until ready to place on the pizza. Have pizza dough ready to go.

Cooked Asparagus

Take the asparagus and wash it. Cut off the woody ends so all you have is the delicate part of the stalk. Cut into 1″ pieces with a diagonal cut. It will actually look like the pieces are more than 2″ cut this way. Using medium heat, place 1-2 tbsp olive oil and a pat of butter in a skillet. The butter will keep the olive oil from overheating. Add the asparagus and saute for about 2-3 minutes but do not brown. Then add 2 tbsp of water, cover, reduce heat and simmer for about 5 minutes or until asparagus is bright green and tender. Before removing add sea salt to taste. Remove from pan and drain off any liquid and let cool in the refrigerator to stop the cooking process.

Boiled Lobster

Take the cooked lobster and remove from the shell. I like to use every bit of the lobster meat I can so this includes the claws and tail. Take these and cut into 1″ pieces.

Once all these ingredients are prepared, melt the butter, (this is the really decadent part), I dip the pieces of lobster in the butter, draining any excess off before placing on the pizza, mmmm…

On a Roll

Roll the pizza dough into the desired diameter and thickness. I like it on the thin side. Brush the surface of the dough with the tarragon infused olive oil making sure to include the chopped tarragon. Then I place the cheese, the butter dipped lobster and asparagus spacing them evenly around.

Place in the oven. Because the lobster and asparagus are already cooked, we only need to get the crust to brown, the cheese to melt and the toppings heated. I usually have my Le Panyol oven around 650 degrees, so it may only take 3-4 minutes. Make sure you move the pizza around to keep them from burning. Once the cheese is melted and the dough is browned on the bottom and edges, remove. Let stand a couple of minutes, slice, and bon appetit, real Maine lobster pizza!

This is just one of the many recipes we’ll feature on our blog this summer. Enjoy, and happy pizza making! Remember, the world is your lobster.

Note: This recipe makes 2 10″ pizzas. We use King Arthur Flour whole wheat pizza dough. For a non-wood fired lobster pizza, a pre-baked crust would need to be used. The toppings would then be placed in the same manner. The cooking time may vary. Cook until the cheese has melted and toppings heated.

Cate is busy preparing for delivery to a local foods market, and I stopped in to get a few wood fired baking tips (and to help out just in case she needed a taste tester).

Cate’s passion for baking certainly ties in well with the family business of designing and building Le Panyol wood fired ovens. As a member of the staff, I’ve been able to experience the best of the best in wood fired baking, from pastries early in the morning, pizzas on our lunch breaks, and occasionally sizzling steaks on the hearth as the sun sets after a long day.

I initially thought, there has to be a secret behind this incredible food – the roasted veggies, meats, pizzas, and breads are like nothing I’ve ever tasted. Maybe she used some exotic spices, or family recipes passed down from generations? When I asked, Cate revealed that many of her secrets lay in the oven. All you need are a few simple ingredients…

1. Salt & pepper
2. Garlic & butter
3. Olive oil & garlic
4. Any simple herbs – Rosemary, Thyme, Sage or Taragon

That’s it. These basic ingredients are Cate’s go-to’s, and are sure to tempt the natural flavors and goodness out of any food you’re preparing.

There are certainly more tips for cooking with a live fire, so stay tuned for more cooking with Cate!

I wiped my brow as I read the recipe for classic French bread. I’ll admit, I was a little nervous I would be the only one in the class to make a mistake. I think Michael may have sensed my uneasiness, because he made multiple trips around the table to check in on my progress. He had prepared the Poolish (a French pre-ferment for rustic country style breads) the night before. My classmates and I were responsible for making the dough, combining the Poolish, spring water, unbleached all-purpose flour, salt and instant dissolving yeast. A combination that promised to deliver a flavorful French bread with a chewy center, crispy crust and lovely holes throughout.

Measuring has always made me nervous. It’s so exact, you either succeed or you don’t. There’s no grey area.

My mother is not much of a baker, but is an amazing cook. She’s the type that throws in a little of this, with a little of that and the food she creates without a single measuring cup is unforgettable. Her cookbooks just collect dust on the shelves. Growing up, I developed a similar technique, and never looked back.

Recently, however, I’ve started exploring the art of bread baking, as well as making raw milk cheese. The margin for error with both baking and cheese making is so vast. The variables you need to consider are seemingly endless – temperature, humidity, the time of year, the environment you’re in, never mind following the often difficult recipes themselves. These all need to be taken into consideration when making such delicate, finicky, artisan foods.

Anyway, in terms of bread baking if you go with the “a little of this and a little of that” approach, you’ll end up with nothing else but a big mess to clean up. So you can imagine what I looked like trying to measure exactly 1 3/4 cups of water. Picture this: I pour… dribble, dribble… ahhh too much…. pour some water back…dribble dribble, ahhh I poured too much again! Fifteen minutes later I was going cross-eyed from staring at the measuring cup lines and decided it was time to move on.

During the process of adding flour, I somehow managed to get it all over me. Michael and his wife Sandy watched (I’m sure in amusement) all of us carefully measuring and pouring the flour into our stainless steel bowls. Michael, again sensing our self-consciousness, cracked a joke that I’ll never forget. He said something along the lines of “when you’re working with flour, no matter where you are or what you’re making, you’ll always be downwind.” At that point, I couldn’t help but laugh at myself. Despite the fact I just stirred with such force that flour went flying across the table, I took a deep breath and realized I was really beginning to have a good time.

The next step… kneading the sticky, delinquent dough. We kneaded, flipped, and kneaded over and over until the blob of dough started looking a little like a loaf. I was amazed at how easy Michael made it look. It was like all those times I watched my older sister dance to New Kids on the Block as a kid. She was born with rhythm, and I thought I had it too until I tried to mimic her moves. I just ended up looking clumsy and confused – much like the way I looked trying to knead this dough. Eventually, we were all able to make sense of it, and proudly placed our creations on the proofing rack.

While we let the dough rise, we took a break and made our own wood fired pizzas for lunch. I’ve had the luxury of enjoying many wood fired pizzas over the past year here at Maine Wood Heat, but I was looking forward to the experience all the same.

We shaped our dough, threw on whatever toppings we wanted, and let the Jubinsky’s Le Panyol oven do the rest of the work. Each pizza that came out looked and tasted incredible. A few tips I took away from lunch were to go light on the sauce, use a generous amount of Semolina (it acts like little wheels that roll your pizza right off the peel and onto the hearth) and throw some fresh basil on top of your pizza immediately after you take it out of the oven. Perfecto.

The rest of the afternoon we learned how to shape the bread dough, and how to etch our signature cuts on the top of each loaf, and then waited eagerly around the oven. Like little kids, we ask Michael and Sandy, is it ready yet? What about now? Can we look at it? Just a peek? What does the timer say? How many minutes left?

The anticipation was brutal.

Finally, what had felt like an eternity (aka 16 minutes) later, we were holding our warm, lightly browned loaves of bread in our hands. They were a beautiful sight.

The entire day flew by.

We reluctantly said our goodbyes and I embarked on the 2 1/2 hour trip home. The sun was shining, my windows were down, and the smell of artisan French bread accompanied me the entire ride.

Tasting bread fresh from the hearth of a wood fired oven is a soul-nourishing experience never to be missed.

In light of the holidays, we’d like to share ways you can give the gift of wood fired baking with a few of our favorite recipe books.

Turn the pages and unveil the limitless possibilities, and the best of wood fired baking with:

1.  Bread: A Baker’s Book of Techniques
and Recipes
by Jeffrey Hamelman

2.  Whole Grain Breads: New Techniques, Extraordinary Flavor
by Peter Reinhart

3.  Baking Artisan Bread
by Ciril Hitz

4.  A Blessing of Bread: The Many Rich Traditions of Jewish Bread Baking Around
the World
by Maggie Glezer

5.  The Bread Builders: Hearth Loaves and Masonry Ovens
by Alan Scott

To read more about The Bread Builders, and other wood fired baking resources, check out this New York Times article which also includes a mention of Maine Wood Heat.

If you own a wood fired oven or have even entertained the thought, contact us to learn more about how you can enrich your life, and the lives of your loved ones, with wood fired baking.

She brought out a few trays of neatly stacked pitas, lightly sprinkled in flour, which she had spent the entire morning preparing. Even in raw form, they looked perfectly delicious. The fire was ready, with a few nice coals and a small flame. The hearth was self-cleaned, which happens when the oven reaches the right temperature. The flame and the smoldering coals, the open space, all felt so inviting. If I wasn’t so tall, I would have crawled right in.

The art of tossing the pitas into the outdoor oven, appeared deceivingly easy. With a closer look, I could tell it took Cate some practice to master her ability to accurately toss each pita into the oven with the right timing and release. In watching her carefully handle each pita, and cast them into their own spot in the oven, with even spacing in between, I started to understand the connection between the baker and the wood fired oven.

The way Cate talked about knowing the right temperature of the fire without using a dial or thermometer, knowing each inch of the hearth, her ability to get a perfect rise, to me is a relationship that grows over time. The best way I could describe it would be to relate a baker and their wood fired oven to poetry, comparable by its distinctive beauty, rhythm, and style. There are qualities of respect, appreciation, and confidence shared between the two, which is difficult to grasp unless you’re present.

The pitas took only seconds to rise, and as Cate scooped them out of the oven, a trail of steam casually followed. I held the pita in my hands, straight from the oven, took my first bite and smiled. The wholesome, natural taste of the locally grown wheat, the perfect amount of moistness balanced by the light crispness of the crust, and the kiss of the wood fired oven nourished my mind, body and soul.