We’ve been a little distracted this week. If things had gone as planned, you'd be seeing a pizza-adjacent article about Marcella Hazan’s hatred of the garlic press, and what that might mean for you as a home pizzamaker. But then came the news about Los Angeles. The Fabulous Honey Parker and I used to live there. We have at least one friend whose home has been incinerated. Watching the destruction unfold has been a surreal experience. [If you’re a TL;DR type, and you’re never going to read any further, click here and click "Donate," or scroll down to the info for pizzerias, home pizzamakers, and “Pizza Fans.” It tells you what you need to know.] We have friends in the Napa Valley who’ve experienced wildfire destruction, and have visited them in the wake of those fires. It’s startling, the smoking scars left by random infernal ferocity.
But you don’t expect to see this flagrant mayhem in the urban setting that used to be your own back yard. It feels more like something you’re supposed to read about from the 19th century involving Mrs. O’Leary’s cow. We’ve got a home pizzamaker friend in Los Angeles. The first night of fire, I’m thinking, "He’s nowhere near Pacific Palisades. He doesn’t have that much money." The next morning, his entire neighborhood was a pile of ash. (Though I can’t help thinking about the Hollywood version, that in the coals and rubble lies his pizza steel, awaiting recovery to make pizza for hungry neighbors. Somewhere there must still be an oven.) It’s numbing. And what do you do about it? I’m not sure you ignore it and write a snarky story about a stupid kitchen tool. As I was pondering this, I glanced at my in box. There was an email from a friend’s charity. And I thought, THAT’S what you do. You may know of Scott Wiener, the king of the pizza geeks. He’s famous for running Scott’s Pizza Tours in NYC. That’s probably what most people know about him. Scott also consults to pizza businesses nationwide. He’s a pizza educator and an author. He was even part of a team of high-profile American pizzaioli who worked with the fabled Neapolitan flour company Antimo Caputo to formulate a product for the American pizzeria market. If that’s not enough, Scott holds the Guinness World Record for the planet’s largest collection of pizza boxes. Scott’s business is being Mr. Pizza. It was only a matter of time before he founded a charity. It's called Slice Out Hunger. The stated mission of Slice Out Hunger is “fighting food insecurity across the US.” To date, they've raised over $1.6 million to fund hunger relief across the country. And right now, Slice Out Hunger Pizza Relief is feeding Angelenos in need with the Slice Out Hunger LA Wildfire Relief Fund. The email says in part, “Hundreds of thousands of LA residents have been evacuated and we'd like to make sure that they are well fed during this difficult time. “YOU can help us raise $30,000 to buy pizza from LA pizza shops who are feeding their neighbors who have been displaced.” If you’re like most of the people who read my nonsense, you do not own a pizzeria. You’re more like me: a guy who likes pizza and has a home oven. You might be thinking you could make a cash donation to help feed displaced Angelenos. And you’re right. You can do that by clicking this link and clicking "Donate.” It links you to the direct donation page. However, if you’re a pizzamaker, whether amateur or pro, there a couple of other things you can do to raise money by bringing some fun. As a home pizzamaker, you can host your own Pizza Relief party or pop-up by February 5th. You can invite the guests at your party to donate with a QR-code sign provided by Slice Out Hunger. Click here and scroll down to “Home Pizzaioli.” They’ll link you to registration and send you a QR code. If you’re a home pizzamaker running a pay-for-pizza pop-up, you can send Slice Out Hunger a portion of your proceeds. (I’m also assuming you can do both: send proceeds and ask customers to donate. What charity turns away more money?) During the course of writing this, I mentioned "Home Pizza Party" to The Fabulous Honey Parker, and... As I suspected, it was only a matter of minutes before that mention snowballed into a date, a time, and a quick list of 50 people who are invited to our upcoming pizza-slice happy hour. I now have to make a pile of dough for 20 pizzas for next weekend’s party. (I could just buy dough from the pizzeria across the street. But where’s the challenge in that?) I’ve submitted our application to Slice Out Hunger. We’re waiting for the info. We’re starting a Facebook page for our pizza-loving friends where we'll bombard them with details so they can swing by for happy-hour slices and adult beverages and, oh, a quick QR-code donation. And if you’re a pizzeria owner (I know there are a few of you out there), you can run an “LA Wildfire” special, now through February 5th. You send 15% of the proceeds from your LA Wildfire special to the Slice Out Hunger LA Wildfire Relief fund. And, as with the pizza party and pop-up option above, you can put up signage provided by Slice Out Hunger to encourage your customers to donate and maximize your impact. To register and obtain the materials, click here and scroll down to “Pizzerias.” Whatever you do, thank you for doing it. To make a cash donation to Slice Out Hunger, click here and click "Donate." See you at the pizza party.
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1/12/2025 11:00:21 pm
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AuthorBlaine Parker is the award-winning author of the bestselling, unusual and amusing how-to pizza book, Free The Pizza. Also known as The Pizza Geek and "Hey, Pizza Man!", Blaine is fanatical about the idea that true, pro-quality pizza can be made at home. His home. Your home. Anyone's home. After 20 years of honing his craft and making pizza in standard consumer ovens across the nation, he's sharing what he's learned with home cooks like you. Are you ready to pizza? Archives
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