Use the Microwave Oven Alternatively. Did you know that you can use the microwave oven in many different ways? This type of oven has been present in our kitchens for a long time, but it would seem that not everyone knows the potential of this object.

In addition to defrosting food, reheat or cook it, this type of oven can be used in other ways. In this short guide we will see together some alternative ways with which it is possible to use this type of oven.

Use the Microwave Oven Alternatively

Sanitize kitchen sponges: Very easy trick to implement, kitchen sponges often get dirty, therefore they can be sterilized in the microwave oven, after having washed them well, place them in the oven 4/5 minutes at maximum power.

Neck pains: If you suffer from neck pain, put your favorite scarf in your microwave, heat it and wrap it around your neck. Pay attention to the label, as not all types of fabrics can go in your microwave.

Other Suggestions of Alternative Uses

Sterilize Glass Jars: After having washed and dried them well, put them in the microwave for about 30 seconds.

Dry your herbs: And, just so, during the various seasons you will have happened to collect fresh aromatic herbs in abundance, using your microwave oven you can easily dry them and store them in jars. Let's see how to do it: put the herbs in the oven at maximum power for a few minutes and your herbs will lose all their moisture as if by magic, by doing so they can be preserved for a very long time.

Conclusions

Always take great care of your microwave oven, clean it constantly.

This method of drying aromatic herbs is widely used in our "School of Pizza Makers”. During our professional practical courses that we organize weekly, we often use herbs. If you are interested in our professional practical courses to become a pizza chef, follow this link.

For those who do not have the time or resources to come here to school and attend one of our courses in person, I remember that here on our site there is a “Fantastic Online Pizza Maker Course” that you can follow from the comfort of your home, download it on your PC or Mobile. You will find all the information at this link.

Greetings

Before leaving, I wanted to remind you that it is already possible to download my latest recipe book called: NOT ONLY PIZZA. More here.

Visit or subscribe to my youtube channel, you'll find hundreds of video recipes for pizza.

See you soon

Silvio Cicchi

Foods not to be kept in the refrigerator. The refrigerator is certainly one of the most popular appliances in the world. You know that it is very important to keep the fresh foods we buy daily, both to preserve the taste, both to make sure they last longer.

Unfortunately, not all foods must be stored in fridge, because the taste of them may deteriorate. Here is a list of some foods that should not be kept in the refrigerator.

Foods not to be kept in the refrigerator

Pane: The low temperature of the fridge is the main cause of the deterioration of leavened products prepared with flour. Cold causes yeast inhibition so bread will tend to dry out quickly. The best way to store bread is to place it in a paper bag at room temperature, or as the grandmother did in a cloth bag.

Honey: Our sweet honey if kept in the refrigerator would tend to crystallize. The best place to store honey is away from any heat source, whenever possible in a dark place.

Foods where to store them

Some kind of fruit and vegetables: For some types of starchy vegetables the low temperature of the refrigerator is not really recommended. Let's take the example of potatoes that in the refrigerator would oxidize immediately and irreparably become rancid.

Even tomatoes like all red fruits should not be kept in the fridge, you know that molds and yeasts are comfortable in low temperatures, then they would take on the mold process.

Conclusion

These things, these suggestions are studied in depth during the "Professional Courses" to become pizza chefs that we carry out weekly in our pizza school. If you are interested in having more information about our courses, visit this link.

For the less fortunate who don't have the time or resources to come to our pizza school, we suggest our fantastic "Pizzaiolo Online Course" that you can download on your PC or mobile phone and follow from the comfort of your home. You can find it at this link.

Greetings

Before saying goodbye I wanted to remind you that it is already possible to download my latest recipe book which is called NOT ONLY PIZZA - What all pizzerias should have on their menu. You can find it at this link.

Here you will find information 300 pizza recipes prepared by the pizza chef students who attend our professional practical courses weekly. You can find them at this link.

If you still have them 5 free minutes, visit my youtube channel, you will find many video recipes of classic and light pizzas.

See you soon

Silvio Cicchi

Diet Which Pizza To Choose. Pizza is loved by everyone and frankly said it is very difficult to give it up. When you are a diet and you decide to go to a pizzeria, the choice of which pizza to order is always difficult.

Let's try to remedy this doubt that assails us every time we set foot in a restaurant, let's find out which pizza is best to order.

Diet Which Pizza To Choose

Let's start with the calories contained in a daisy. Approximately 280 calories for each 100 grams of dough. Considering that the ball of dough for a pizza weighs on average from 250 to 300 grams, we will have approx 800 calories for each margherita pizza.

Tips For Those On A Diet

The best thing to do when possible is to choose another type of dough when this is possible, maybe a wholemeal dough would greatly reduce the calories consumed.

Another useful solution could be to order a pizza with vegetables. The light version with vegetables contains between 600 and 700 calorie.

Choose a pizza without mozzarella.

A valid suggestion can come from a sensible choice, that of ordering a pizza without mozzarella.

For those who do not want to give up the healthy principles of the diet, all that remains is to order the Pizza marinara. Tomato, garlic, fresh basil and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Less than 600 calorie. You just can't do better than this, unless…

La Pizza Super Light

How about a nice focaccia? A fragrant focaccia with a little rocket and Parmesan cheese, or simply a focaccia with raw ham. We're talking less of 500 calorie.

On our site entirely dedicated to pizza, in the video recipes there are hundreds of pizza and focaccia recipes to be considered truly light. Below all the links to access it.

Useful links

Our school of pizza makers and practical courses

The calendar of upcoming courses

300 pizza recipes

Our "Online Pizza Chef Course"

My latest book to download

See you soon

Silvio Cicchi

Pizza Cooking Temperature. In the many years that I have been doing this job, friends and followers of our site entirely dedicated to pizza, they ask me so many questions, but there is one that is certainly at the top of the ranking: At what temperature should I set the oven to cook the pizza?

This question has no standard answer, because it depends on the type of oven we are going to use to cook our beloved pizza.

Pizza Cooking Temperature

Wood-fired oven? Static or ventilated electric oven? Gas oven? The home oven or a professional pizza / bakery oven?

As you can see the question regarding the temperature, sometimes it can be misleading. Unlike bread that cooks at a low temperature, around 190 degrees and takes just under half an hour, the pizza should be cooked at a higher temperature to prevent it from drying out too much by remaining in the oven for a long time.

At What Temperature

So let's try to solve once and for all which is the right temperature for each type of oven.

home baking. Unfortunately the home oven does not reach high temperatures, most of this type of oven reaches the maximum temperature of 250 degrees, so it's not very good for the classic plate pizza, but you can overcome this problem by putting it to the maximum and preparing the classic pan, maybe only with tomatoes and adding the ingredients and mozzarella only in the last few 5 minutes of cooking.

Cooking Temperature of the Pizza

The convection oven is not suitable for cooking a quality pizza, it may dry out and still remain moist inside, let's say that with a setting of 300 degrees, an acceptable product is obtained.

The professional ovens in electric or gas pizzeria, are set around 320/330 degrees, while the wood-burning oven can also reach i 400 degrees for the Neapolitan pizza version.

Pizza cooking at what temperature

For pizza lovers I remember that here on our site there is a fantastic Online Pizzaiolo Course that you can follow from the comfort of your home sofa. To find out more, follow this link.

For lovers of the classics of Italian recipes, I suggest reading my recipe collection which is called: Not just pizza - What all pizzerias should have on their menu, it is a collection of classics of Italian cuisine ranging from panzerotti to supplì that you will find in this link.

I'll meet you in a few days for other news regarding the world of pizza.

Ciao

Silvio Cicchi