Home Fired Pizza

From Retirement to Pizzaiolo

Retirement has gotten off to a productive start. I’ve tackled a number of projects around the house — the garden, a 40-foot clothesline, and most recently our fire pit. But it was when I finally turned my attention to the kitchen that things got really interesting.

A few months ago, while wandering through a big box store, I stumbled across a discontinued item tucked away on the shelf: the Ooni Karu 16 multi-fuel pizza oven. Normally listed on Amazon for $700–$800, it was marked down to $224. I couldn’t resist the temptation — it came home with me that same day.

Since then, I’ve been deep in the world of Neapolitan-style pizza making. I’m turning out plump little 330-gram dough balls, learning to work with a 65% hydration dough, and figuring out the art of launching and turning pizzas with a peel in a blazing hot oven — with mixed results, I’ll admit. Patience is everything. The oven takes 30–40 minutes to come up to around 900°F, but the real key is waiting for the pizza stone to hit at least 750°F. That’s what gives the bottom of the crust those beautiful leopard spots — the hallmark of a crust that’s crisp on the outside and soft and airy within.

This has become more than just a hobby. Pizza dough was one of my father’s favorite things to make, and his sourdough was legendary. He passed in 2023, but he left behind years of carefully honed recipes and handwritten notes. I find myself channeling him every time I work the dough — hoping that somewhere along the way, his passion has rubbed off on me.

So far, every pizza out of the oven has been a classic cheese pie. The mozzarella is straightforward, and the tomato sauce is intentionally simple — a good passata reduced in a pan with olive oil and fresh basil stems. I rarely add garlic. Keeping it simple gives me a clean, versatile base to build from. Anna has been an enthusiastic fan of everything I’ve pulled out of that oven. Me? I’m a tougher critic. I know what I’m chasing, and I’m not quite there yet.

The next frontier is dialing in the dough — pushing the hydration a bit higher to get that ideal balance of light, crispy, and pillowy. More trial, more error, more flour on the counter.

And of course — wine pairs beautifully with pizza.