We're into the sixth week of the the Covid lockdown, and parties are just as illegal as buying a beer or going to the beach, all of which we've been diligently disobeying. It's not like we're having big parties with tons of people, either. Usually it's just our core group of six, plus a couple of neighbors we're friends with, and hang out together most of the time anyway. And so occasionally, but at least once a week, somebody says “Pizza tomorrow?”
Usualy Julia starts out making the dough in the afternoon, first inquiring regarding our hunger by yelling out in her adorable Italian style: “Should I use a kilo or one-and-a-half?” It doesn't really make a difference, because in the end it will always be plentiful.
Then, as the evening settles down, we start chopping up ingredients. Whatever we have. By now we've been through a couple of radical pizzas that have all been quite delicious, each in their own way. While the rest of us practice cool knife tricks on the zuccinis, a chosen one is haned an empty wine bottle to use as a rolling pin.
This scepter of honor also makes them top and final authority on what goes on the pizza, and in which way. It's never an easy job being Pizza Master, having to take into account everyone's special wishes, including their own. But so far there have been few complaints, and since we tend to make at least five pizzas in one evening, we all get a turn at some point.
Once the first pizza is taken from the oven, the actual Pizza Party starts. Production has to be kept up until all the dough is gone, but while we squabble over ingredients, listen to weird music, squeeze limes into drinks, and have onversations about completely different stuff, we can munch on slices of delicious pizzas, as they keep coming out of the oven.
Who says you need to go out or order delivery? Pizza is quite simple, really.
