Restaurant review: Emma's Brick Oven Pizza

On weekends, Emma's Brick Oven Pizza and Cafe in Cranford, New Jersey, usually has a line to the door. This no-reservations, BYO pizza and pasta place definitely draws a crowd. Perfect for families, it's a great place for an inexpensive dinner out. We've eaten at Emma's many times. If there's a line, don't fret; it moves pretty fast.

Lately, we have our meals picked out before we even get there, so we hardly glance at the menu - but have a look. The front page is all about pizza. Build your own or select one of their specialty pies. Inside you'll find three pages of salads, appetizers, pastas, entrees, panini and more. Our preference is for the pizza - thin-crust brick oven pies. Yum! We've tried the pasta, and it's not bad, but Emma's is our stop for pizza. If we want pasta, we head across the street to Bel Paese.

For starters, the fried calamari is enough for at least two people and has a light batter. Served with homemade marinara, it's a great start to a meal. We've also tried the mozzarella en carozza - basically a fried mozzarella sandwich - crispy, gooey, cheesy and wonderful! Salads are large enough to share as well.

When it comes to pizza, we haven't found another place in our area we like nearly as much. The pies are made fresh when you order and each is fired in the brick oven that occupies center stage in the restaurant. My favorite is the vodka pie. Homemade vodka sauce is spread over the crust and then topped with mozzarella, bits of prosciutto and a few mushrooms. A sprinkle of Parmesan completes the pie. This is a pie for garlic-lovers. A personal size has 4 slices - I usually bring at least 1 home. My husband opts for the classic margherita pie with pepperoni, mushrooms and onions. Emma's uses fresh mushrooms and red onions which are cooked, but still a bit crunchy. The marinara sauce has fresh basil that adds another layer of flavor to the pie. And the pepperoni is cooked to perfection - it gets a little crisp on the edges and isn't drowning in grease.

On other visits, we've tried the pesto bianco pie. This white pie has mozzarella and pesto ricotta. Add broccoli or broccoli rabe for a vegetarian meal that's outstanding. The Emma pie has provolone, fresh sliced tomato and basil, another winner.

With a BYO policy and friendly service, Emma's is a great place for a casual lunch or dinner. It's hand's down our favorite for pizza.

Have another favorite in the area? Leave a comment and let me know!

DB October Challenge: PIZZA!!!!

Since we were travelling in September, I missed the Daring Bakers' Challenge so I was very excited to learn that the October challenge was pizza - homemade, from scratch. I've made pizza at home before but always with store bought dough.


It also worked out nicley that my husband's birthday is in October so we had pizza night on his birthday. He chose the toppings: pepperoni, homemade marinara, buffalo mozzarella from a local maker, prosciutto, mushrooms, onions, fresh basil and a little fresh grated Parmeggiano Reggiano. It was excellent although I think my dough was a bit too moist. I cut the recipe in half and it made 2 good sized pies. We at 1 and I delivered te second hot and fresh to Mom and Dad!

Here's the recipe:

~ BASIC PIZZA DOUGH ~
Original recipe taken from “The Bread Baker’s Apprentice” by Peter Reinhart.

Makes 6 pizza crusts (about 9-12 inches/23-30 cm in diameter).

• 4 1/2 Cups (20 1/4 ounces/607.5 g) Unbleached high-gluten (%14) bread flour or all purpose flour, chilled
• 1 3/4 Tsp Salt
• 1 Tsp Instant yeast
• 1/4 Cup (2 ounces/60g) Olive oil or vegetable oil (both optional, but it’s better with)
• 1 3/4 Cups (14 ounces/420g or 420ml) Water, ice cold (40° F/4.5° C)
• 1 Tb sugar
• Semolina/durum flour or cornmeal for dusting

DAY ONE

1. Mix together the flour, salt and instant yeast in a big bowl (or in the bowl of your stand mixer).
2. Add the oil, sugar and cold water and mix well (with the help of a large wooden spoon or with the paddle attachment, on low speed) in order to form a sticky ball of dough.
3. On a clean surface, knead for about 5-7 minutes, until the dough is smooth and the ingredients are homogeneously distributed. If it is too wet, add a little flour (not too much, though) and if it is too dry add 1 or 2 teaspoons extra water. NOTE: If you are using an electric mixer, switch to the dough hook and mix on medium speed for the same amount of time.The dough should clear the sides of the bowl but stick to the bottom of the bowl. If the dough is too wet, sprinkle in a little more flour, so that it clears the sides. If, on the contrary, it clears the bottom of the bowl, dribble in a teaspoon or two of cold water.The finished dough should be springy, elastic, and sticky, not just tacky, and register 50°-55° F/10°-13° C.
4. Flour a work surface or counter. Line a jelly pan with baking paper/parchment. Lightly oil the paper.
5. With the help of a metal or plastic dough scraper, cut the dough into 6 equal pieces (or larger if you want to make larger pizzas).NOTE: To avoid the dough from sticking to the scraper, dip the scraper into water between cuts.
6. Sprinkle some flour over the dough. Make sure your hands are dry and then flour them. Gently round each piece into a ball. NOTE: If the dough sticks to your hands, then dip your hands into the flour again.
7. Transfer the dough balls to the lined jelly pan and mist them generously with spray oil. Slip the pan into plastic bag or enclose in plastic food wrap. Put the pan into the refrigerator and let the dough rest overnight or for up to thee days. NOTE: You can store the dough balls in a zippered freezer bag if you want to save some of the dough for any future baking. In that case, pour some oil(a few tablespooons only) in a medium bowl and dip each dough ball into the oil, so that it is completely covered in oil. Then put each ball into a separate bag. Store the bags in the freezer for no longer than 3 months. The day before you plan to make pizza, remember to transfer the dough balls from the freezer to the refrigerator.

DAY TWO

1. On the day you plan to eat pizza, exactly 2 hours before you make it, remove the desired number of dough balls from the refrigerator. Dust the counter with flour and spray lightly with oil. Place the dough balls on a floured surface and sprinkle them with flour. Dust your hands with flour and delicately press the dough into disks about 1/2 inch/1.3 cm thick and 5 inches/12.7 cm in diameter. Sprinkle with flour and mist with oil. Loosely cover the dough rounds with plastic wrap and then allow to rest for 2 hours.
2. At least 45 minutes before making the pizza, place a baking stone on the lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven as hot as possible (500° F/260° C). NOTE: If you do not have a baking stone, then use the back of a jelly pan. Do not preheat the pan.
3. Generously sprinkle the back of a jelly pan with semolina/durum flour or cornmeal. Flour your hands (palms, backs and knuckles). Take 1 piece of dough by lifting it with a pastry scraper. Lay the dough across your fists in a very delicate way and carefully stretch it by bouncing it in a circular motion on your hands, and by giving it a little stretch with each bounce. Once the dough has expanded outward, move to a full toss.
4. When the dough has the shape you want (about 9-12 inches/23-30 cm in diameter - for a 6 ounces/180g piece of dough), place it on the back of the jelly pan, making sure there is enough semolina/durum flour or cornmeal to allow it to slide and not stick to the pan.
5. Lightly top it with sweet or savory toppings of your choice.
6. Slide the garnished pizza onto the stone in the oven or bake directly on the jelly pan. Close the door and bake for abour 5-8 minutes or until cheese is bubbling and crust is golden brown.
7. Take the pizza out of the oven and transfer it to a cutting board or your plate. In order to allow the cheese to set a little, wait 3-5 minutes before slicing or serving.
   

Are you hungry?

You may not be hungry, but it's safe to say my husband is! Married 8 months and he eats more all the time. Where he puts it I don't know - he doesn't appear to have an ounce of fat on his body. I work pretty long hours so putting a good meal on the table isn't always easy, but I've learned to plan ahead so that I can serve a well-balanced delicious meal every night of the week. I know plenty of other couples in the same situation, so this blog is my effort to help them out. I'll be posting my weekly menus and some recipes.

We do love to eat out on the weekends, so I'll tell you about some of our favorite places. Here's a start (and a good one!)

For some of the best pizza in New Jersey, Emma's Brick Oven pizza in Cranford is excellent. This little BYO is always bustling, but you get a great meal at a reasonable price. We went last Friday and brought a bottle of Spanish Jumilla. To start, we shared the fried calamari - SHARE - it's enough for more than two! Then I ordered the famous Vodka pie, a personal sized thin crust pie topped with their homemade vodka sauce, mozzarella, prosciutto, and mushrooms. There's a little garlic in this one, too! Jeff had his favorite - a margherita pie with pepperoni, mushrooms and onions. Located on North Union Place in downtown Cranford, this is one spot you don't want to miss!