Theo & Co.: The search for the perfect pizza

By Theo Kalogeracos

Theo & Co. covers all aspects of pizza making, from raw ingredients and fine art of dough to the decadent and delicious finished pizzas. Step-by-step instructions, effective tips and stunning photos make it possible for us all to be master chefs in our own homes.

• Language: English
• Publisher: UWA Publishing
• Release date: Aug 1, 2009
• ISBN: 9781742583099

Theo Kalogeracos

Theo Kalogeracos is a Master Pizza Chef and owner of Little Caesars Pizzerias, in the Perth suburbs of Mundaring, Leederville and Hillaries. Over the years his pizza prowess has seen him stamp his mark on the world stage, with recent titles including: 2010 World Champion Pizza Maker - Las Vegas Pizza Show; and 2006 Las Vegas Italian Chef Wars Winner. Theo's philosophy, when it comes to making pizzas, is about using quality, fresh produce and developing a taste sensation. He is far from being a traditional pizza maker and some of his pizzas are considered a little outside the box.

Book preview

1 GETTING STARTED

IN THE BEGINNING

For as long as I can remember bread has been my favourite food – fresh crusty bread with cheese. I like butter with it as well, but it has to be really good butter. However, when I go out for breakfast with friends and everyone else is ordering toast, scrambled eggs and other breakfast food, I’ll be looking around for the sweet stuff such as carrot cake. It’s almost like I’m on this mission to find the perfect recipe. I suppose it’s not all that surprising because at almost every stage in my life I’ve been making something with flour.

My parents are both Greek-born Australians who arrived in Perth around about the same time in the early 1960s, but under quite different circumstances. Dad was, and still is, a typical Athens man – a real smoothy who is always happy, even when he’s in trouble. He left Athens in a bit of a hurry when he was just 15 and arrived in Fremantle as a merchant seaman a year or so later. He liked the look of the place so much he jumped ship and promptly found himself locked up, as an illegal! Mum’s family was very different. They were from a small village in the north of Greece, in Macedonia, and the family had been separated during the Greek Civil War in the late 1940s. When the war was over her father – my Pop – followed his brothers to Australia to find a better life for his family. It took years of working and saving to bring his wife – my Yaya – and their children, one by one, to their new home.

My parents were married very young, and like many other wog families in the’60s we lived in the inner-city suburbs of Northbridge and North Perth. Early on Dad had lots of jobs which often took him away from home. He worked up north driving dump trucks in the Pilbara and cutting bananas in Carnarvon, but he was happiest when he was gambling. When he was at home he had this great system for the horses, which he worked out on our big kitchen table. But his system wasn’t foolproof and Mum became the family breadwinner – in every sense. After working at Brownes Dairy and Plaistowes lolly factory she ended up as a bread carter for Tolcons Bakeries. She often worked two or three jobs at a time, so I spent most of my early childhood with Yaya and Pop at their home in Monmouth Street – and I loved it.

Yaya and Pop were simple country people who knew the importance of self-sufficiency. They grew all their own vegies, and had chooks and grapevines in the backyard. It was a magical playground for me. I was their first grandchild and they spoiled me rotten.

Breakfast with them was the real deal; always beautiful home-made crusty bread, fresh feta, black olives and black tea. Pop worked for the city council cutting grass, so most of the time I was at home with Yaya on my own, and this was where my interest in cooking began. Yaya did everything with me. One of my earliest memories is standing on a kitchen chair watching her making pita, the famous Greek flat flaky pastry that has countless types of fillings. She used an old cut-down curtain rod to roll out the thin sheets of Fillo pastry on her large kitchen table. When we made spanakopita (Greek spinach pie) it was my job to brush the sheets with melted butter after she had put in the layers of spinach and feta. Making Fillo is a long, labour intensive job, but believe me it’s worth taking the time for that great taste – even if you can’t make it as well as my Yaya!

Spanakopita

SPINACH & FETA MIX

1 small bunch spring onions, finely chopped (white part only)

1kg spinach, cooked (frozen spinach can be used but take care to squeeze out all excess water after defrosting)

1 cup of olive oil

1 bunch flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped

1 bunch fresh dill, finely chopped

450g Greek feta, crumbled

3 free-range organic eggs, lightly whisked Salt and white pepper Fresh breadcrumbs, if needed to stiffen mix (see Method)

FILLO PASTRY

500g plain flour

25mL white wine vinegar

50mL extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon fine salt

300mL cold water

1 tablespoon butter

1 cup extra plain flour for dusting

Sauté the spring onions in a large pan until they are soft and translucent. Add spinach and cook until wilted.

Remove from heat and drain off excess liquid.

Place in a bowl and carefully stir in other ingredients with a wooden spoon. Be careful not to make a mush of green. If the mixture looks too sloppy at this stage add fresh breadcrumbs to stiffen the mix. The mixture should be pliable enough to roll into small balls.

Combine all the ingredients (except the dusting flour) in a bowl and mix until it comes together.

Knead for 10 minutes to form a smooth dough ball.

Roll the dough ball in extra flour, place in a clean bowl, cover with cling film and refrigerate for an hour.

Remove dough from the fridge and cut into six even pieces. Knead each piece into a ball.

Sprinkle dusting flour onto the bench and start rolling one ball at a time. (Use a rolling pin that is wider than the baking tray because this will help to make even sized sheets of Fillo) Roll the dough out one way and, when it is thin, turn it clockwise and roll it the other way.

Repeat rolling until the dough is as thin as paper but without any tears. The word Fillo means leaf in Greek, so that is what you are aiming for. It takes a lot of practice and it’s not as simple as rolling ordinary pastry. You don’t become Super Yaya overnight!

Place each sheet to one side to air dry, and lightly dust both sides with extra flour.

Spanakopita

PUTTING THE PIE TOGETHER

Preheat the oven to 180°C for 15 minutes.

Melt the butter in a small saucepan.

Line a large baking tray with a sheet of greaseproof paper and place the first sheet of Fillo Pastry on top so it slightly overlaps the edge of the tray.

Brush the sheet lightly with melted butter.

Repeat this process with the second sheet of Fillo Pastry.

Spread half the Spinach & Feta Mix on to this sheet and top with the third sheet.

Spread the remaining filling on the third sheet and then place the last three sheets of Fillo Pastry on the pie, remembering to brush each one with melted butter, especially the top of the final layer.

Use a sharp knife to make random spike holes through the pastry to allow the pie to cook evenly.

Press the edges firmly to ensure the