Pizza Today - August 2015 - 20

RESPECTING THE CRAFT / BY TONY GEMIGNANI

ANCIENT GRAINS like this spelt-based
crust are gaining traction in U.S. pizzerias.

Ancient Revival
Multi-grain doughs are making their way to the mainstream

his year I decided to compete again at the World Pizza
Championships in Italy. It's
been three years since I have actually
competed in an Italian cooking competition. As a competitor you are always
trying to figure out what pizza you are
going to offer up to the judges. Since I
have several different types of multigrain
pizzas that I use at different locations, I
thought I would use one of them for fun,
so I chose an organic six-grain pizza using
two sprouted grains. Sprouted grain is a

wheat that is hydrated, which brings out
a sweeter and more natural flavor in the
grain. The process is called germination
and it converts the endosperm from a
starch into a simple sugar. This is why it
tastes a bit sweeter.
I wanted to be the first competitor to
ever compete using an organic, multisprouted, ancient grain in a competition. I
know that is a mouthful, but it's progressive and I see this as the future. I added
other ancient grains, such a spelt, then
added semolina, a type 00 and whole

wheat. As I entered the competition and
started watching the other competitors
I couldn't help but notice other Italian
competitors using multigrain doughs.
They weren't using sprouted grains, but
they were using other types like soy.
In Italy, soy has been added to doughs
since the early '90s. I worked with it a
lot when I studied in Italy years ago. But
the Italians were using other grains as
well. The word "biological" was used a lot
when competitors spoke to the judges
about their pizzas. In Italy, "biological" is
another term for "organic."
Ancient grains are grains that haven't
been manipulated in a laboratory. Typically this grain is very simple and similar
to a grain that was harvested hundreds
of years ago. The gluten and protein content is different, which makes this grain
much easier for our body to digest.
Ten years ago organic wasn't very
popular in the pizza industry in Italy.
Now I see it used from many, many
competitors.
In Italy it has always been about
digestibility. With organic, ancient
grain, and/or multigrain doughs, pizza
has never been more digestible like it is
today.
Here is a recipe for a multi-ancient
grain dough that can be used in a
500 -to 650-F oven:
8 pounds flour (organic / protein
range near 13 percent)
1 pound spelt (organic)
½ pound soy
½ pound whole wheat (organic)
6 pounds cold water (40-45 F)
½ pound warm water (80-85 F)
3.2 ounces fine sea salt
1.6 ounces dry active yeast
1.6 ounces organic EVOO
1.6 ounces organic local honey
1.6 ounces low diastatic malt

RESPECTING THE CRAFT features World Pizza Champion Tony Gemignani, owner of Tony's Pizza Napoletana in San Francisco and Pizza Rock in Sacramento. Tony compiles the column with the help of his trusty
assistants, Laura Meyer and Thiago Vasconcelos. If you have questions on any kitchen topic ranging from prep to finish, Tony's your guy. Send questions via Twitter @PizzaToday, Facebook (search: Pizza Today) or e-mail
jwhite@pizzatoday.com and we'll pass the best ones on to Tony.

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Pizza Today - August 2015

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