Pizza stone

[mayzey]

I'm so confused. How can I make a pizza with home-made dough using a pizza stone? Most of the how-to videos and instructions I've checked say you must never put the stone in a hot oven because it will crack. They say to put the stone in a cold oven, then heat to 450, by which time the pizza stone will be "like a fire brick" and too hot to handle

Comments

[dazzlynn]

the "paddle" is a pizza peel.

[ipsafictura]

Ditto the parchment paper recommendation, I find it makes for a crispier crust.

[randomjen]

Yep, love parchment paper for so many things. Pizza peels seem like uni-taskers and I just don't have the space.

[spaceprostitute]

This. You don't shape your dough on the stone. You do that on a floured or cornmealed counter top or on parchment or whatever floats your boat. My previous pizza stone stayed in the oven 24/7 because it helped the oven to heat more evenly. If you want to take your pizza stone to the table for serving directly from the stone, then yes, the metal handles do go in the oven so you've got something to grab on to (with oven mitts obviously) to carry the stone from one place to the other.

You can find pizza peels at Target, Macy's, Crate and Barrel, Bed Bath & Beyond. Amazon.com sells like 40 different ones. http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=pizza+peel&x=12&y=20