PZ - November - December 2022

NOV/DEC 2022

CANADIANPIZZAMAG.COM

LABOUR SHORTAGE:

MEET CHATBOTS Could this AI technology help your pizzeria operate?

P. 9 Everything is marketing P. 12 Profile of B.C.’s Wild Flour Pizza Co. P. 14 Pizza Summit East highlights

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Nov/Dec 2022 Vol. 28, No. 6

DEPARTMENTS 6

From the Editor Community matters

7

Industry News Movers, shakers, legislation and news you can use

9

The Pizza Chef Everything is marketing!

10

18 Making Dough Six easy promotion ideas for the holidays

19 Recipe Butter Paneer Pizza

20 Tools of the Trade New products

CONTENTS ONLINE

COVER STORY

Watch our webinar, Show & Tell: Canadian Pizza Innovation Partnering with the Baking Association of Canada, we learned from top pizza chefs across Canada how they are innovating with crust and toppings. Explore techniques and styles, novel ingredients and gather ideas to refresh your own pizzeria at canadianpizzamag.com.

10 Labour shortage: meet chatbots Could this AI technology help your pizzeria operate?

By Michelle Brisebois

12

12 Overseas experience Steven Che, co-owner of Wild Flour Pizza Co.in Burnaby, B.C., shares his exciting path to pizza that earned him second place at Pizza Summit West

By Colleen Cross

14 Pizzerias in the house!

COVER: © NIKKIMEEL / ADOBE STOCK

Highlights of the first Toronto Canadian Pizza Summit in three years!

By Canadian Pizza staff

ON THE COVER

14

22 Sourdough 101 Testing the durability of a sourdough starter

By Alan Dumonceaux, Northern Alberta Institute of Technology

Labour shortage: meet chatbots. Could this AI technology help your pizzeria operate?

See page 10.

CANADIAN PIZZA · November/December 2022

CanadianPizzaMag.com

3

FROM THE EDITOR

BY COLLEEN CROSS

November/December 2022, Vol. 28, No. 6

Your community matters

W

hen we speak with pizzeria operators, quality of ingredients is almost always the top consideration. Many put quality front and centre. Rightly so. It is a clear way to stand out in a sea of pizza. And it is the top reason customers give when asked how they choose where to buy their next pizza. But it isn’t everything.

Value for money is a close second and never more so than now when the price of almost everything is sky high. But it’s almost comparing apples to oranges because we’re talking about two different customers: people looking for a great pizza they can’t make at home made by proud artisans who know their stuff and people who are looking for a good deal.

I want to talk about something that comes a very close third. A sense of community. In fact, it bridges the gap between these two customers because every Canadian knows the value and comfort of being part of a community. People have many choices of where to get their pizza.

The more they know about your pizzeria, the more likely they are to want to return again and who you are, who your staff are, when and why you opened the business, how you’ve grown over the years, what setbacks you’ve overcome, how you make your pizzas, which local ingredients you use, what other businesses you work with and what you care about.

Community means different things to different people. It means sharing information among an industry – the focus of Canadian Pizza. That means holding events that allow operators to share information and ideas at the Canadian Pizza Summits in Vancouver and Toronto.

It means hosting webinars (Show & Tell: Canadian Pizza Innovation) in September. It means holding virtual pizza summits such as our 2021 event highlighting community where we heard from pizzeria operators in B.C., Alberta, Ontario and Prince Edward Island about how they were connecting with their communities.

Community means creating your own world consisting of your favourite customers, their

families, friends and connections. It means building a strong relationship listening to them, understanding their needs and responding. Incidentally, that’s something that can be done well through online channels if it’s done with care, intention and consistency.

Community means building strong relationships with local retail businesses who have common goals and interests and can work with you on charity projects and events. You can see this in community festivals across Canada and in any strong BIA. Hamilton, Ont., is a great example of a thriving, collaborating food scene.

It means finding associations that share your background, challenges, goals and interests. On the news page you’ll find information about the Baking Association of Canada. The longstanding industry organization, which is run by volunteers and represents all those involved in baking in Canada, invites pizzerias to become members. BAC advocates on behalf of pizzerias and bakeries to government on all issues that affect their members, including pushing for easier access to temporary foreign workers.

The BAC is a hardworking, well-connected and highly motivated group looking out for the interests of related baking businesses.

Our parent company, Annex Business Media, and sister magazine Bakers Journal have long worked closely with BAC to organize its annual Bakery Showcase and Canadian Pizza Summit and Chef of the Year Competition, held last in Toronto in 2022 and to be held next May 14-15, 2023, in Vancouver.

We hope to see you in Vancouver! We are proud as punch and excited to help bring this exciting event offering educational sessions, demonstrations, a vast array of baking- and pizza-focused products and, of course, our own Chef of the Year Competition!

There is much to look forward to in 2023!

Wishing you and your loved ones a prosperous and happy holiday season surrounded by your community – whatever that means to you! | CP

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INDUSTRY NEWS

ON THE WEB Greco Pizza holds ‘Pizza Roulette’ hot-sauce challenge for Halloween; Food and Beverage Canada makes recommendations to federal government on TFW program | FOR MORE PIZZA NEWS, check out our website, canadianpizzamag.com

ASSOCIATION FOR PIZZERIAS CHEF OF THE YEAR EAST

Giovanni Campisi named Chef of the Year Our Chef of the Year is Giovanni Campisi, pizza chef at Red Door Cucina in Dundas, Ont. Campisi’s Octopus Pinza featured octopus carpaccio, micro rocket, buffalo burrata, cherry tomatoes, grated lemon peel with oil and lemon salt and garlic. The fluffy, colourful pizza was made using a biga with hydration of 80 per cent leavened for 36 hours. Campisi wins a trip to Vegas Pizza Expo in March to compete and will grace the cover of Canadian Pizza.

Second-place honours went to Salar Madadi, owner of Maipai in Hamilton, Ont. Jeremy Paone, co-owner of The Lock Wood Fired Oven Pizza in Port Colborne, Ont., placed third.

OPERATOR EDUCATION

ILLUSTRATION BY BRIAN FRAY

Group aims to increase Black representation in restaurant industry The food-service industry needs to attract, retain and promote Black employees. A dedicated group launched with the help of Restaurants Canada aims to make that a reality.

The Re-Seasoning Coalition, a non-profit initiative dedicated

to helping achieve greater representation for Black Canadians within the food-service industry at every level, has launched with support from Restaurants Canada.

TRSC’s goal is to take meaningful action to dismantle the inequalities experienced by Black Canadians in the industry.

Racism affects everyone, but each group experiences it differently, Restaurants Canada said in a news release. Black Canadians in particular face great barriers to success. They also grapple with the impacts of inequality at higher rates than others, including seeking opportunities in organizations that are not adequately prepared to support, retain and advance equity-deserving Canadians.

Through interactive modules, the coalition will assess and validate participants’ HR policies to reconfigure them in alignment with anti-racist and anti-oppression guidelines in a bid to equip participating companies with the tools and frameworks that will help them attract diverse talent and become the best in class brands of the future.

The Re-Seasoning Coalition partnered with Technomic, a consulting firm specializing in food-service industry research, to conduct a deep dive on understanding the Black guest and employee experience within the restaurant industry.

To learn more, visit thereseasoning.org.

CANADIAN PIZZA · November/December 2022

Baking Association of Canada invites pizzerias to join The Baking Association of Canada invites pizzerias of all sizes – from large chains executives to franchisees to independent and artisan pizza makers. If you are involved in baking, you belong in the BAC. Since pizzerias don’t have a dedicated association of their own, becoming a member is a great way to help this longtime association advocate on behalf

of bakeries and pizzerias to all levels of government, including a push for easier access to temporary foreign workers. Membership is open to all Canadian bakers, large and small, who are currently conducting (or planning) business in the Canadian marketplace, as well as affiliate suppliers of goods and services and individual tradespeople.

Benefits include discounted access to the Bakery Showcase and Chapter events, expert assistance and latest resources support your business, access to training through American Baking Association and Bread Bakers Guild of America, savings with insurance and group RRSPs and other perks such as special payment processing rates and mobile plans. Find more details at baking.ca or ask editor Colleen Cross (a member!) at ccross@ annexbusinessmedia.com.

CanadianPizzaMag.com

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INDUSTRY NEWS

Greco Pizza and Covered Bridge team up on Atlantic Canadian ‘Storm Chips Pizza’

COMPETITIONS

Montreal Pizza Fest honours top pizzerias Montreal Pizza Fest showcased high-quality pizza in an annual event that culminated in the crowning of seven new champions on Oct. 25.

This year pizzerias competed in two broad overall categories: Margherita and Speciale.

Roberto D’Elia of Bottega Laval won top honours in the Margherita category, Napoletana-Style division. Jason Pizzolongo of Restaurant Fuoco placed second. Two pizzerias shared honours for third place: Frank April of Pizzeria des Battures and Angelo Perrotti of Buon Gusto Laval.

In the Roman-Style Margherita division, Francis Lorrain of Gigi’s Deli et Pizza took first place. Roberto Catervi of Roberto Pizzeria Romano earned second place.

Gourmet Margherita division saw Marco Bertoldini of 8

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Fiorellino take first place. Roberto D’Elia of Bottega Laval placed second. Paolo Oliveira of Melrose NDG placed third.

The New York Style Margherita winner was Toby Bouchard of Brook-NYC. In second place was Argen BL of Isola Pizza.

Jason Pizzolongo of Restaurant Fuoco placed first in Napoletana Style in the Speciale division. Second place went to Fritz-Alex Anson of Restaurant Quindici. Third place went to Angelo Perrotti of Buon Gusto Laval.

Sacha Giorgettini of B il Taglio took first place in Roman Style (Speciale). Second place went to Francis Lorrain of Gigi’s Deli et Pizza. Roberto Catervi of Roberto Pizzeria Romano placed third.

In the Gourmet division (Speciale), Paolo Oliveira of Melrose NDG won top honours. In second place was Roberto D’Elia of Bottega Laval. In third place was Marco Bertoldini of Fiorellino.

Congratulations to these talented pizza chefs!

Truro, N.S. – Atlantic Canada pizza chain Greco Pizza has partnered with Covered Bridge Potato Chip Company to introduce a limited-time “Storm Chips Pizza.”

The specialty pizza is available for a limited time at participating Greco Pizza and Greco Pizza Xpress locations.

It features an edge encrusted with bite-sized Storm Chips with extra Storm Chips tossed in the middle.

Covered Bridge worked closely with Greco Pizza to ensure the crunchiness of the kettle chips and the unique flavour profile of Storm Chips complemented the pizzas at Greco. The four flavours of Storm Chips – creamy dill, ketchup, smokin’ sweet barbecue and sea salt and vinegar – combine with the flavours of Greco Pizza.

“Over the years we have partnered with a variety of Atlantic Canadian companies to do unique chip flavours and this time we were excited to be approached with a fun pizza collaboration using our Storm Chips, a product that has become a staple in our product lineup over the last seven years,” said Megan Cullins, marketing manager at Covered Bridge.

“One of our brand pillars is to support, and when possible, partner with Atlantic Canadian companies so the opportunity to collaborate with Covered Bridge, which is

a well-known Heritage brand like Greco – well, it was the perfect fit for us,” said Don Moore, president of Grinner’s Food Systems Ltd. STAFFING

Papa John’s expands employee tuition benefits Pizza chain Papa John’s is extending its Dough & Degrees tuition benefit to team members who work as few as 10 hours per week and offering them new ways to earn degrees and professional certifications at no cost to them.

Team members who work as few as 10 hours per week and have been employed for only 60 days at stores owned

by Papa John’s can now earn a degree at no cost, the company said in a news release. More than 80 per cent of Dough & Degrees students are working on the front line in Papa John’s restaurants, and more than 60 team members have earned associate’s, bachelor’s and master’s degrees at no cost to them since the program launched in 2019.

Many graduates are now applying their education in new roles across the chain.

Team members can also benefit from an expanded range of learning programs no matter when their formal education ended or what course of study they wish to pursue.

New educational programs include career online high school, academic and guidance coaches, English as a Second Language and new professional certificates. EdAssist

by Bright Horizons will help administer the program.

November/December 2022 · CANADIAN PIZZA

PHOTO: MATHIEU FORTIN

LIMITED-TIME PIZZAS

THE PIZZA CHEF

BY DIANA CLINE

Diana Cline is an award-winning pizza chef, a partner with Diana’s Cucina & Lounge in Winnipeg. In addition to creating award-winning recipes, Diana is a consultant to other pizzeria owner/operators in menu development, creating operational systems and marketing to help operators grow their business strategically. Contact her at diana@dianascucinaandlounge.com.

Everything is marketing

PHOTO: © FIZKES / ADOBE STOCK

T

he greatest challenge for any independent pizzeria is getting the word out, also known as marketing. We think that as long as we make a great pizza and provide friendly service customers will come back again and again. And tell their friends, families, and co-workers.

I like to believe that there’s truth to this. But that’s not a marketing plan.

That’s more of a company mission statement. A marketing plan consists of new customer acquisition, lost customer reactivation, social media and customer retention strategies, to name a few. The vast majority of independent and chain pizzeria owners don’t have a clue about how to attract a customer in the first place and know even less about how to keep them coming back.

We put all the responsibility on the customer to come back to see us. Most independents will copy the chains and send out glossy flyers with coupons in hopes that sales will follow. The bestcase scenario for unaddressed ad mail is a three to four per cent response rate with 96-97 per cent waste. That’s not exactly what I’d call an efficient sales strategy rather it’s more like a lot of wasted money. Nowadays companies will run Facebook and Instagram ads, targeting their ideal customers by key data such as age, income and physical proximity to their establishments.

Some time ago, a mentor of mine said to me, “It’s not your customers’ job to remember you. Rather, it’s your job to make sure your customers don’t forget about you.”

To this day, it’s still wise advice.

We all live busy lives, and customers have lots of options when choosing where to eat and where to spend their money. Why should they choose you over any of those choices? That’s the big-money question: why are you special and what can you offer your

Everything inside your store is a potential marketing strategy. Your level of customer service is vitally important as well. Does your staff treat each and every customer as you would like to be treated?

Marketing is everything you and your staff do in your shop and how you interact with each customer.

CANADIAN PIZZA · November/December 2022

customers that other pizzerias can’t or are unwilling to? The answer is your unique selling proposition or USP. If you are unable to answer that question, then your customer really has no compelling reason to spend their money at your establishment over another. After all, if you as the owner don’t know what sets you apart, then why should they?

Give them all the reasons to visit you. Do you make your dough on site and prepare everything fresh? If so, it’s important to let your customers know that, especially if your competition is mostly large chains that prepare very little product on site.

Do you offer a gluten-free, vegetarian or vegan option on your menu?

Are you open for lunch or late night?

Do you offer catering? Do you have a

take-and-bake option? Is your chicken whole muscle while others are using chopped and formed chicken? Do you make and blend your marinara yourself while your competition uses sauce from a can? Do you use 100 per cent dairy cheese while the other guy uses imitation cheese? Is your mozzarella low fat?

Everything inside your store is a potential marketing strategy. Even simple things such as having a uniform for your staff and maintaining a spotless restaurant are marketing strategies. Your level of customer service is vitally important as well. Do you treat each and every customer as you would like to be treated? Better yet, do your staff? All it takes is one bad employee to sabotage your business and cost you thousands of dollars in future sales. How you handle complaints is another marketing strategy.

Mistakes happen, and just one upset customer who isn’t well taken care of can easily tell hundreds or thousands of others about it through social media and damage a stellar reputation.

You really need to think of everything as marketing if you want to be successful in this business. New customer acquisition strategies and lost customer campaigns are important, but customer retention can make or break you. It costs eight to10 times more to attract a new customer than it does to reactivate a lost customer, and in comparison, very little to keep your existing customers coming back again and again.

Marketing isn’t just one or two or three different things: marketing is everything you and your staff do in your shop and how you interact with each customer. It’s a daily effort that you must continually put energy into if you want to thrive in this industry.

As long as you give your customers valid and compelling reasons to continue to order from you and make things right if someone does drop the ball, then you’re certain to stay on the winning side. | CP CanadianPizzaMag.com

9

COVER STORY

LABOUR SHORTAGE: MEET CHATBOTS Could this AI technology help your pizzeria operate?

W

e’ve had pandemics, war, inflation and labour shortages before.

They’ve not ever arrived as one big cosmic happy meal – all at the same time. As the restaurant industry got the green light to operate normally again after the global pandemic, it suddenly became clear that the new bottleneck would not be seating capacity or forced closure due to public health restrictions but a deficit of human labour.

Will the labour magically reappear? And if not, where did it go?

Can hospitality survive a long-term deficit of humans to deliver the guest experience?

The labour shortage in the 2020s has always been a given. Baby boom10

@CdnPizzaMag

Will the labour market magically reappear? And if not, where did it go?

ers born in the late ’50s and early ’60s had their alarm clocks set for 2020 since birth. If one is born in 1960 and retires at age 60, the math works out to 2020. The pandemic did accelerate things as many people left the workforce earlier than anticipated to help take care of grandchildren or to avoid going back to the office. This has freed up hundreds of thousands of office jobs with health benefits and Monday-to-Friday schedules for people formerly working in the hospitality industry and the new entries into the job market are a smaller cohort with more choice for employment.

The war for talent is here and it’s here for a while.

The term “the future of work” was coined by labour trend-watch-

ers decades ago to begin to parse out workplace shifts as technology became more advanced. It sought to clarify how the work would be done, who would be doing the work and where the work would be done.

Great questions with complex solutions, but the key to all of it is technology. Humans and robots working alongside one another. The future of work assumes that bots will take repetitive tasks away from human labour to allow people to work in ways that celebrate our creativity, strategic thinking – our humanity.

Chatbots are pieces of technology uniquely positioned to be of assistance in the restaurant industry.

The first chatbot was developed at MIT in 1964 and was named ELIZA. ELIZA was on the cutting edge as a

November/December 2022 · CANADIAN PIZZA

PHOTO: © NIKKIMEEL / ADOBE STOCK

BY MICHELLE BRISEBOIS

COVER STORY

natural language processing computer program intended to mimic a conversation between humans.

ELIZA used a basic pattern-matching algorithm to give the appearance of understanding but couldn’t add context. Today’s chatbots use AI (artificial intelligence), also known as machine learning, and can respond to the human’s side of the conversation more accurately than ever before. It seems less intimidating to realize that chatbots are pushing 60 years old. The technology is not new – just coming into its own at a vital time.

Fluido.ai is an Edmonton-based technology company that has created a chatbot especially for the restaurant industry called Digital Server.

The chatbot can work by text (where the customer types their questions and answers using a keyboard) or with a voice interface. “What makes it so powerful is its ability to interface with all of a business’s customer touchpoints,” says Wessam Gad El-Rab, cofounder of Fluido.ai. “The chatbot can interact with customers on the website, the phone, Facebook Messenger . . . the restaurant operator only must glance at one dashboard to see the total picture regarding their customer interactions through various channels. Digital Server also takes payment,” Gad ElRab says. Fluido.ai has also developed a recommendation engine that is currently being used by a U.S. coffee chain. The technology uses the licence plates in the drive-thru to tag customers, and based on their previous ordering history, brings up a recommendation for a product addon or upsell for the human server to suggest on the speaker as the customer places their order. The coffee chain is finding that nine per cent of customers are taking the recommendation. The recommendation engine can work with humans or with chatbots but what’s great is that the technology won’t quit tomorrow and

go to another job. The technology retains the customer’s preferences, without you having to deal with the loss of customer knowledge due to employee turnover. The chatbot will train new staff.

Progressive restaurant chains are already figuring out how to use chatbot technology to enhance their brand experience. The U.S. pizza chain &Pizza developed a customized chatbot that interacts with customers using a fun, quirky tone and manner. Chipotle has launched a chatbot they’ve named “Pepper” and customers interact with this concierge bot (as they refer to Pepper) on Facebook Messenger. The

fective human resources – continues to dry up. The labour tap isn’t getting turned on again anytime soon. Research shows that most customers are happy to interact with chatbots for basic, transactional activities. According to Tidio, 62 per cent of consumers would rather talk to a chatbot than a human agent if it means not having to wait 15 minutes. Nine out of 10 consumers have interacted with a chatbot at least once in the last year.

Customers want to know they can speak to a human if the situation is complex or requires things like a return, refund or other concern.

We are entering a phase of business development when investing

Progressive restaurant chains are figuring out how to use chatbot technology to enhance their brand experience. customer will touch the “Message Us” button. Pepper then invites the customer to start an order. It asks the customer if the order is pickup or delivery and presents choices for the person to customize their order.

Pepper also takes the payment. Starbucks embraced chatbots for ordering via its app in 2016.

Many restaurant operators are hesitant to implement chatbots because they fear it will be costly, with hidden fees. Other barriers to using chatbots include lack of comfort with technology and concern that using bots to replace human talent will ruin the guest experience.

Restaurants are “high-touch” operations. Some wonder, can a bot really replicate human warmth?

These questions are rapidly becoming less important as the technology continues to improve and your access to plentiful, engaged, cost-ef-

CANADIAN PIZZA · November/December 2022

in things like chatbots is more like choosing to have Internet in your business. Once upon a time, it was a “nice to have,” then it became a “have to have.” Chatbots will cost you less than many other equipment purchases you make for your business. Find a good partner, make sure they understand your operational goals and challenges, start with one build, and keep building from there as the benefit to your business becomes more apparent. | CP Michelle Brisebois is a marketing consultant specializing in e-commerce and digital content strategy and retail/instore activation. Michelle has worked in the food, pharmaceutical, financial services and wine industries. She is currently an adjunct professor at the Canadian Food and Wine Institute at Niagara College and can be reached at michelle@textrixconsulting.com.

CanadianPizzaMag.com

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PROFILE

OVERSEAS EXPERIENCE Steven Che brings international flavours and experiences to Wild Flour Pizza Co. of Burnaby, B.C.

BY COLLEEN CROSS

S

12

@CdnPizzaMag

Steven Che, co-owner and head chef at Wild Flour Pizza Co. in Burnaby, B.C., earned secondplace honours at Summit West with his Butter Paneer Pizza.

ship with Clayton Spalding, in whose restaurant Scratch Kitchen in North Vancouver Che made a name for himself as head chef. Spalding approached Che about starting a pizzeria and they worked on the concept for a year. Spalding oversees much of the financial side and behind the scenes of the business while Che’s expertise and previous experiences equipped him to run the culinary side of Wild Flour Pizza Co. Wild Flour Pizza Co., which opened in early April, is a fast-casual restaurant where customers order at the counter and there is some seating. He estimates the operation is about 60 per cent delivery, 35 takeout and five per cent dine-in. It’s located between two areas

That’s what we strive for – a consistent customer experience in which everything has to hit a certain window of success.”

where there is lots of residential development, including apartment and office towers.

How did he get into this business?

“I’ve been interested in food since as long as I can remember. I’d rather watch the really bad infomercials with the kitchen gadgets than regular TV shows,” he says with a laugh.

Che graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in food science and human nutrition. “I started a cooking club, Culinary Arts Student Union, which is still going strong.” He went into food service and hospitality full time in Orlando. He worked at a sushi bar that recently received a Michelin star and also a popular ramen bar.

November/December 2022 · CANADIAN PIZZA

PHOTO: DAVID JUDD / CANADIAN PIZZA

teven Che took the road more travelled to end up in his happy place at Wild Flour Pizza Co.. in Burnaby, B.C. The talented chef found his niche in creating tasty pizzas with innovative flavour combinations and high-quality, digestible dough.

When the Canadian Pizza Summit went west for the first time in June, Che knew the time was right to introduce his creation, Butter Paneer Pizza, to a wider audience of appreciators.

Che, co-owner and head chef at Wild Flour, earned second place for his India-inspired pizza featuring a Makhani gravy base consisting of the pizzeria’s house-blended garam masala, ripe California plum tomatoes, butter and cream. It was topped with caramelized onions, paneer (an acid-set cheese made from cow or buffalo milk) and mozzarella cheese.

Che told us the pizzeria has been getting consistently busier, selling in the neighbourhood of 1,000 pizzas a week and dipping its toe into private dining events.

The pizzeria started as partner-

Che describes the business as an approachNearing the end of his work visa, Che con- tent customer experience in which everything able, streamlined sourdough pizza concept tacted restaurants in Europe and found his has to hit a certain window of success.”

Working Down Under, he encountered where consistency, execution He was happy way to Norway in early 2017. He worked as a stagiare, or unpaid intern, at three-star Miche- ingredients never heard of before but learned to come back to Vancouver, where he’d lived he could apply similar principles to every- since age 5. lin restaurants.

His goal in three to four years is to open a “I committed to six months of free labour, thing and get the result he wanted. He often knowing I’d be at the right place right time prepared Marron, which he compares to a fine-dining restaurant celebrating his experiwhen an opportunity came,” Che says. He end- freshwater lobster, with meat that had almost ences as a member of Asia-Pacific culture. In ed up doing just three months as stagiere and no flavour compared to the saltwater counter- preparation for this venture, he served a nearstayed on as a paid chef for about a year under part. It was often served with Geraldton wax, ly four-hour tasting-style dining experience to “super high-stress” conditions that included a flower that is vibrant green with a sweet and his sister and her friends. “On the menu were veggies and seafood and things from this area working 8 a.m. to 1 a.m. and managing three sour flavour.

“I would taste everything all the time. The made with Chinese techniques and ingredistagieres. “We’d clean down three times a day and at 4 p.m. we would take up all our prep mouth gets quite fatigued – it’s a lot of salt and ents and putting together everything I learned overseas. It took about 60 hours of labour to fat constantly hitting your mouth.” and show our chef what we’d made.”

Brand & Promotions everything prepped. ” He also learned he was ready toCulture runMarketing a get He went to Australia to join a similar type 3365 Hargrove Road | Mississauga Ontario | L5L 4E6 “If0740 I execute like I plan to, we’d serve only of restaurant working with Australian-style restaurant after serving as chef de partis and Cell: 416 930 ingredients. Here he found his groove. “My doing a lot of more advanced head chef and 30 guests a night. Looking forward to that in DATE: JULY 28, 2022 REVISION: FA sous chef duties. With his year of working hol- the future.” | CP mind is analytical. I started noticing patterns.

DOCKET: RI22-003 CLIENT: Reuven International COLOUR: CMYK idays coming to an end, he returned to I started weighing things. Everything was PROJECT:seaReuven Beef Pizza Ad TRIMVanSIZE: 7” x 5” 1/2 page horizontal ad - ENGLISH and met his future partner, BLEED SIZE: n/a Find Che’s delicious Butter Paneer Pizza couver in 2020 soned by percentage, really dialed in.DESCRIPTION: That’sCanadian Pizza CONTACT: Alicia Bruyea DATE REqUIRED: July 2022 LIVE AREA: .25 margins recipe on page 19. what we strive for [at Wild Flour] – a consis- Clay Spalding. The rest is history.

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2022-11-14 2:42 PM

CANADIAN PIZZA SUMMIT

PIZZERIAS IN THE HOUSE! Giovanni Campisi named Chef of the Year at first Toronto Summit in three years

BY CANADIAN PIZZA STAFF

C

anadian Pizza Summit East returned triumphantly to the live event stage as a showcase for 20 talented, creative Canadian pizza chefs.

Chef of the Year East is Giovanni Campisi, pizza chef at Red Door Cucina in Dundas, Ont. Campisi’s Octopus Pinza (Il profumo del mare) featured octopus carpaccio, micro rocket, buffalo burrata, cherry tomatoes, grated lemon peel with oil and lemon salt and garlic.

The fluffy, colourful pizza was made using a biga with hydration of 80 per cent leavened for 36 hours.

Second-place honours went to Salar Madadi, owner of Maipai in Hamilton, Ont. Madadi tickled the taste buds of judges with his playful Pumpkin Spice not a Latte.

The Detroit-style pizza featured slow-roasted pumpkin puree seasoned with sage brown butter an maple syrup, crumbled goat cheese and smoked pineapple.

Jeremy Paone, co-owner of The Lock Wood Fired Oven Pizza in Port Colborne, Ont., placed third with Nonna’s Favourite featuring 14

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Chef Kirk Borchardt of Ardent Mills demonstrates for operators ideas and tips for making great gluten-free pizza.

his nonna’s homemade meatballs, sauteed onions, cup and char pepperoni, goat cheese, arugula and hot honey.

The Great Pizza Box Fold-Off returned with an enthusiastic group rallied by Marco Caveglia, owner of Tuscan Wolf Pizzeria Inc. in Whitby, Ont. Caveglia brought members of his team to the Summit, including Jayden Collins, who won the

box fold-off easily by folding 10 boxes in 46 seconds. Collins started at Tuscan Wolf in 2019 as a dishwasher, then became a pizza maker and, as boss Caveglia says, “a solid part of the business.”

The standing record was 36.33 seconds set by Virgil Risi of Maria’s Original Pizza in Brantford, at the Virtual Pizza Summit in 2020.

In a well-attended demo, Ardent November/December 2022 · CANADIAN PIZZA

Tim Andresen, head chef at at Morris East Restaurant in Halifax, made The Lumberjack, a legendary pizza served featuring local bacon, sausage, fried rosemary, smoked cheddar and maple syrup.

Isabelle Emtage of Izzy’s Pizza displays The Currywurst, dedicated to her late grandmother who inspired her during a visit to Germany.

Toppings include house-made curry sauce, potatoes and sausage.

Mills executive chef Kirk Borchardt showed operators ideas and tips for making great gluten-free pizza.

Five dedicated judges had their hands full evaluating 20 creative signature pizzas. Diana Cline is a twotime Canadian Pizza magazine chef of the year champion, three-time winner of “Canada’s Best Pizza Chef” at international pizza competitions and a judge for international pizza culinary competitions in Las Vegas, Italy and France. She is partner with Diana’s Cucina & Lounge in Winnipeg and a consultant to other pizzeria owner/operators.

Tom Stankiewicz has owned and operated Bondi’s Pizza in London, Ont., for 23 years – since 1999. Tom

Chef of the Year was a showcase for 20 talented, creative pizza chefs. .

CANADIAN PIZZA · November/December 2022

was our 2009 Chef of the Year with his Pizza Calabria featuring Italian sausage, Canadian goat cheese, grilled portobello mushrooms and roasted red peppers. For several years, Tom was involved with the Canadian Pizza Team. In recent years, he tackled diverse topics related to pizza and pizzeria management in his Pizza on Fire column in Canadian Pizza.

Giorgio Taverniti owns Frank’s Pizza House in Toronto, which has been in his family since 1990. Frank’s has received numerous awards including Best Panzerotti in Toronto by BlogTO and Best Pizza Delivery Toronto by BlogTO. A graduate of George Brown College’s culinary management and Italian culinary programs, Giorgio helped found a popular pizza-making workshop at the college.

Judging duties were split between Frank Mazzuca (morning) and Rocco Agostino (afternoon).

Frank Mazzuca is the principal of Mazzuca Design, Photography & Ideas established in 1995. Mazzuca’s award-winning graphic design firm focuses on design CanadianPizzaMag.com

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CANADIAN PIZZA SUMMIT

Angie Risi displays her Friday Night Ticket signature pepperoni pizza as judges Diana Cline and Frank Mazzucca snap photos. Risi, the longtime owner and operator of Maria’s Pizza West in Brantford, Ont., wore her signature pizza cutter earrings for the occasion.

with direction, photography and ideas that inspire. He is passionate about pizza making and created a Pizza Lookbook with a focus on Neapolitan pizza in 2010.

Google Frank Mazzuca FamilyStyle and view any of his over 500 videos on his Food Channel on YouTube alongside his Instagram account.

Rocco Agostino is executive chef and partner for Pizzeria Libretto and partner of Enoteca Sociale.

Agostino studied at the Stratford Chef’s School, then studied abroad in Rome. His first experience leading a kitchen was at Ferro Bar Café and from there he went on to open the Silver Spoon. Rocco, alongside Max Rimaldi, opened Pizzeria Libretto in 2008, and as a partner in Libretto Restaurant Group, which includes Enoteca Sociale.

Chefs baked their pizzas in one of four Moretti Forni ovens supplied by Faema Canada: the CEKY gas-fired oven, the Moretti Forni gas deck, the S Series electric deck and the Neapolis.

Out on the show floor, Ardents Mills had its specialty artisan flours featured, Lactalis Foodservice Canada shared information about its dairy products and Reiser helped operators explore options for new equipment and automation. Annex Bookstore had good reads for pizza chefs and operators, including Pizza Czar

by Anthony Falco and Tony Gemignani’s Pizza Bible and a selection of books for baking professionals. We 16

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Enjoy our Facebook gallery and video found at cdnpizzamag.com and watch for a profile of our new Chef of the Year East in the next issue!

welcomed for the first time Pizza Cloud, who supply phone solutions and internet backup for pizzerias.

Jean-Charles Madour of Lallemand educated about yeast and brought samples of the company’s InstaFerm yeast, which is ideal for yeast-leavened products containing 3-25 per cent sugar (sweet dough) and rich doughs.

Madour also encouraged pizzerias to join the Baking Association of Canada. Since pizzerias don’t have a dedicated association of their own, becoming a member is a great way to help this longtime association advocate on behalf of bakeries and pizzerias to all levels of government, including a push for easier access to temporary foreign workers. There are many benefits and pizza operators can find more details at baking.ca.

If attendees didn’t get their fill of great pizza by sampling the competition pizzas, they had a chance to enjoy more goodness as Faema Canada held an exciting margherita pizza eating contest. Joe Gonzalez of St. Catharines emerged the winner by finishing his margherita, made by Faema’s chefs and the competition’s oven managers Pasquale Ponticello and Gianluca Ruggieri.

Pizzeria Libretto’s Rocco Agostino brought some of his lucky team members as part of a teambuilding day.

Libretto staff competed to win a day out: a visit to their cheese supplier, an afternoon at the Pizza Summit and November/December 2022 · CANADIAN PIZZA

Canada’s Premier Dairy Ingredients Manufacturer Providing a full line of specialty and commodity ingredients:

Isaac Hall, owner of Toller Pizza in Cobourg, Ont., made NOCO (Northumberland County) Harvest, a seasonal pizza with doublesmoked lardon, nduja, pecorino and house-made hot honey.

dinner. What a great idea to motivate your team!

Watch for more on this exciting event, including a profile of our new Chef of the Year East in the pages of Canadian Pizza.

The Chef of the Year competition has always been a place for discovering trends and this year was no exception. Our 2019 Chef of the Year Dean Litster, owner of Armando’s Amherstburg, brought his Roni 3 Wayz pizza featuring shredded and round pepperoni finished off with crispy pepperoni chips.

Christopher Quinn of Maurizio’s in Parry Sound made The Hippie, an original vegan pizza he created for his employer, Maurizio Mascioli, that led to his promotion to sous chef. It features red chili pepper hummus, zucchini, asparagus, carrot shavings, chia and hemp seeds, among other fresh ingredients.

Isabelle Emtage of Izzy’s Pizza made The Currywurst, dedicated to her late grandmother. Toppings include house-made curry sauce, potatoes and sausage.

Marco Caveglia, owner of Tuscan Wolf Pizzeria in Whitby, made his pizza in the European tradition without tomato sauce.

The Sweet Reaper featured prosciutto cotto, mascarpone cheese and spicy honey garlic sauce. “It’s a ‘hot’ pizza that kicks your taste a few seconds after your first bite, but that makes you crave it more.” Several in the crowd noticed that kick!

Thank you to Host and Platinum Sponsor Faema Canada, Gold Sponsor Ardent Mills, Silver Sponsor Lactalis Canada and Bronze Sponsor Reiser for supporting this who’s who of pizza innovation in Canada! Enjoy our Facebook gallery and video found at canadianpizzamag.com. | CP CANADIAN PIZZA · November/December 2022

• Butter • Cheese • Cream Cheese • Dairy Powders • Egg replacers • Fluid & Evaporated • Functional Proteins • Milk & Whey Replacers • Milk Powders • Whey Powders

Lactalis’ ingredients are used by some of the world’s most respected and successful food processors and feature prominently in a diverse selection of many popular and well-known brands.

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CanadianPizzaMag.com

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MAKING DOUGH WITH DIANE

BY DIANE CHIASSON

Diane Chiasson, FCSI, president of Chiasson Consultants Inc., has been helping foodservice, hospitality and retail operators increase sales for over 35 years by providing innovative and revenue-increasing food service and retail merchandising programs, interior design, branding, menu engineering, marketing and promotional campaigns. Contact her at 416-926-1338, or chiasson@chiassonconsultlants.com, or visit www.chiassonconsultants.com

Six quick and easy promotion ideas for the holidays

D

ham breakfast sandwiches, cranberryapple gravy, and sour cream and cheddar baked mashed potatoes.

Cater to everyone’s needs by including vegetarian and gluten-free dishes.

Consider preparing virgin Christmasthemed drinks as well as unique coffee and hot chocolate drinks.

ecember is a month packed with celebrations.

It’s a busy time for big businesses and one that could benefit your pizzeria as long as you make the proper preparations.

Trying out new and original promotion ideas is always a good idea to help grow your pizzeria business.

1. Grow digital marketing It is very important for independent pizza operators to increase your digital marketing. Being found online is the most important thing when trying to attract new customers to your pizzeria.

Spend time attracting new customers through your online presence so that customers can easily find your pizzeria to place their online orders.

You also need to continue engaging with your existing customers through your social media platforms as well as via emails and mobile devices so that your pizzeria is always on their mind. It is important that you convert your online visitors to guests and drive repeat business through loyalty rewards. Social media platforms provide a great way to engage and stay on top of mind.

2. Create unique specials This time of year, even your Christmas pizzeria menu should look unique.

Most restaurants offer traditional Christmas food items, and while this is good, it’s not enough. To draw customers in, you have to create a to-die-for holiday-themed menu that includes both traditional dishes and other options for your customers for whom Christmas is just another day of the year. To draw old and new customers to your restaurant, create a unique Christmas-themed pizza, Christmas puddings, sausage, cranberry and chestnut rolls, egg and 18

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Prepare some colourful pizzas dressed with red and green trimmings and shaped as a wreath.

3. Make festive Christmas pizza specials Try to attract the most non-traditional of customers by preparing unique and creative Christmas specials. The festive season is traditionally a time of higher spending. So, consider emphasizing that your pizzas are prepared with a personal touch and a bit of history, which may strike a chord with customers seeking traditional items.

How about a pizza wreath? Prepare some colourful pizzas dressed with red and green trimmings and shaped as a wreath. Use a 4 ½-inch circle cookie cutter to make a circle out of the middle of the dough. Then add some arugula or spinach and diced red and green peppers or sun-dried tomatoes, sprinkle with a little mozzarella cheese and then add pepperoni slices. While the pizza is baking, cut slices of red pepper in strips and arrange them in the shape of a bow.

What about a special seasoned roasted turkey dinner pizza with stuffing, pork sausage, homemade gravy and cranberry sauce? Have you ever thought of baking a honey-glazed ham with pineapple pizza? If younger customers come into your pizzeria and see something unusual, they will post anything special on social media.

4. Consider promoting and selling unbaked items Many families look for meaningful activities to enjoy at home during the holidays. Bring out innovative unbaked

pizza items, and it will be a sure thing to attract customers. For instance, you could prepare some pizza pie dough that customers could bring home to make. Children love to do the mixing, rolling and cutting of dough. It will also allow your customers to put the finishing touches of their choice, so it becomes their own creation. Put a big sign in your window saying, “We make, you bake.”

5. Offer deals, gift cards Take advantage of the 12 Days of Christmas ideas to offer customers who come into your pizzeria deals and gift cards. You could offer discounts on specific items or free drinks or desserts. Gift cards will be all the rage this holiday season, both online and offline. Because almost 90 per cent of cards are redeemed in the first 60 days after they are received, selling them at your pizzeria during the holidays will give your business a nice boost in sales in January and February. Place your gift card display and signage next to the register to maximize sales. And train your employees to upsell these cards. Make sure your gift cards are in a prominent place on your website and add these gift cards as an item in your e-commerce inventory.

6. Decorate!

There are several things you can do to make your pizzeria feel cozy, special and decorative. How about tying large red or green ribbons (or both) to chair backs, plants, wreaths, basket handles, gift boxes and doorknobs?

You can easily get inexpensive ribbons at dollar stores and discount shops.

You could also consider metallic silver or gold. You could also make your own bows using wire, and once done, attach them to many objects, furniture, display cases or wall units.

Bring out any presentation plates, dishes, bowls and mugs that fit the holiday theme. Many discount and dollar stores carry fun winter designs that are not so common. | CP

November/December 2022 · CANADIAN PIZZA

RECIPE

BY STEVEN CHE, WILD FLOUR PIZZA CO.

The Butter Paneer Pizza This pizza like many others at Wild Flour Pizza Company are the sum of Steven Che’s experiences, and seeing patterns for delicious food around the world. This pizza attempts to reinvigorate the experience of eating a delicious Paneer Makhani with naturally leavened naan.

INGREDIENTS

• Makhani gravy (garam masala, ripe California plum tomatoes, butter, cream) • Caramelized onions • Paneer • Mozzarella (sprinkling) • Garlic oil • Spiced crema • Dried fenugreek • Fresh cilantro METHOD

DOUGH

The dough uses unbleached Canadian Hard Red Spring Wheat and Dark Rye to produce a crust that is very flavourful, tender and structural. It starts with a healthy sourdough mother, which not only provides leavening from natural yeasts but also fermentation of the flours used in the crust to provide a deep umami and mildly sour crust.

The process also allows for a tender crust without the use of oils to shorten gluten in the dough.

The pizza starts with the Makhani gravy consisting of their house-blended garam masala, ripe California plum tomatoes, butter and cream. As with the base of most delicious Indian curries, caramelized onions are added, along with paneer and a light sprinkling of mozzarella cheese.

The pizza is then cooked at 420 C with a focus to cook the top and bottom of the pizza evenly in about 3-4 minutes.

The Butter Paneer is then finished with garlic oil on the crust, a spiced crema, dried fenugreek and fresh cilantro. | CP

CANADIAN PIZZA · November/December 2022

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TOOLS OF THE TRADE

competitive advantage for bakeries while helping them achieve good quality loaves. Bakeries can expect significant total processing savings based on overall cost of ingredients, the company said.

When it comes to new ingredients, equipment and services, Canadian Pizza keeps you in the know. For more on new products for the pizza industry, check out our website, canadianpizzamag.com

channels, streamlines order and delivery with increased accuracy and faster service and captures voice transactions for full oneto-one marketing. voicify.com, paytronix.com

For example, employees can redeem earned points for various rewards – from electronics and gift cards to travel experiences – through Raydiant’s recognition platform. raydiant.com

lallemandbaking.com

PAYMENT TECH RESTAURANT TECH

DOUGH STRENGTHENER

New enzyme-based dough strengthener reduces usage levels of expensive vital wheat gluten With the soaring prices of vital wheat gluten, bakeries all around the world are seeking alternative ingredients to reduce the usage level of this indispensable ingredient.

Lallemand Baking introduces a new enzyme-based dough strengthening solution that will help bakeries reduce their gluten use in bread formulas: Essential GR 1620 WW. Easy to scale, this solution allows a reduction of 20 to 50 per cent of added gluten (depending on the application) and contributes significant cost savings.

Reducing gluten in the formula tends to negatively impact the balance between dough elasticity and stability. To allow bakeries to optimize their process and increase profitability, Lallemand designed the Essential GR 1620 WW to be clean-label, convenient and to increase gluten functionality for improved dough strength and stability in reduced added gluten in bread formula.

As a baking industry partner and supplier of innovative solutions, Lallemand Baking developed the dough strengthener to offer a 20

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Paytronix and Voicify partner on voice-based restaurant ordering

Raydiant and Square team up to create experiences for customers and employees

Voicify, a conversational AI (Artificial Intelligence) platform used to deliver custom voice assistants, and Paytronix Systems, Inc., a digital guest experience platform for restaurants and retail, are joining forces to help restaurants to incorporate voice ordering across all customer touchpoints.

Restaurant ordering options include mobile apps, online ordering, drive-through kiosk and third-party apps such as DoorDash, GrubHub and UberEats.

The Voicify – Paytronix partnership enables brands to add voice ordering to each of these channels while simultaneously capturing and funneling each transaction into an ongoing oneto-one customer relationship.

The Voicify Conversation Experience Platform provides restaurants the ability to create engaging conversation-based apps in one location that automatically deploys to Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Custom Voice Assistants, chatbots and other devices.

The Paytronix customer experience platform combines online ordering, loyalty, omnichannel messaging, AI insights, stored value, and payments in one platform. The platform can be integrated with Paytronix’s web, mobile and in-store

Raydiant, an in-location experience platform for brick-and-mortar businesses, is partnering with Square, a software, payments and hardware company, to help restaurants create in-store experiences for both customers and employees.

By integrating with Raydiant’s Digital Menus app, Square merchants now have the ability to create, schedule, and automatically update digital signage that connects to their Square POS system. This eliminates manual updates to menu items.

Square merchants will also soon have access to Raydiant’s Self-Service Kiosks outfitted with Square’s POS system, automatically updating any changes to item availability and pricing.

The goal of the integration is to create a seamless, streamlined ordering experience while reducing manual, time-consuming tasks for front-of-house staff.

Square merchants can also use Raydiant’s Employee Experience Platform for connecting, motivating, and celebrating back-of-house employees.

Data such as average physical sales by employee, sales by location, and top selling items are transformed from Square’s POS system into motivating contests, games, and other healthy employee competition.

CONDIMENTS

Peace River Hot Honey adds zing Peace River Hot Honey, a new line by Honey Bunny Inc. of Guy, Alta., features sweet and savoury flavours to inspire pizza chefs.

The honeys come in three flavours – Peace River Hot Honey, Peace River Bourbon Hot Honey and Peace River Pineapple Jalapeno Honey – with an opportunity to create custom flavours.

They may be used on pizza, as a dip, or on chicken wings, breakfast sandwiches, cocktails, grilled vegetables and many other menu items.

Peace River Hot Honey was named 2022 Canadian Grand Prix New Product Awards Winner in the condiments and sauces category. It is sold in easy-to-use squeeze bottles or in bulk.

Its parent company, Honey Bunny Inc., a 4,000-hive apiary and food processing facility, has been owned and operated by the Wolfe family since the 1980s.

The company has been certified organic since 1996. In 2016, it became the first apiary in Canada to be non-GMO project verified.

It is also certified kosher, CFIA licensed and SQF audited. The honey products are gluten-free. peaceriverhoney.com

November/December 2022 · CANADIAN PIZZA

PIZZA POWER PAGES EQUIPMENT

Advertisers Index Annex Bookstore .............................................................. 21 BAC Showcase. .................................................................23 Faema Company (Canada) Ltd. / Euro-Milan Inc. ......24 Lactalis Canada ................................................................. 17 Lallemand Inc. ................................................................... 21 Reiser / Robert Reiser & Co. ............................................. 2

INGREDIENTS

RAISING BAKING

BJ_Routhier_BC_Dec20_MLD.indd 1

STANDARDS

USA Tel.: (800) 687 6483 or (901) 547 1579 Canada Tel.: (800) 840 4047 or (514) 522 2133 Mexico Tel.: (800) 710 4856 or +52 552 6205300

baking@lallemand.com | www.lallemandbaking.com | Find us on

PZ_Lallemand-BC_MayJune22_CSA.indd 1

Reuven International Ltd................................................. 13

THROUGH

Ricco Food Distributor .................................................... 19

2020-11-09 3:18 PM

SCIENCE &

INNOVATION

Routhier et Fils .................................................................. 21 Stanislaus Food Products...............................................4,5 Use these advertiser contact numbers to find out more about a product advertised in this issue or to place an order. This index is provided as a service. Canadiqan Pizza Magazine is not liable for errors or omissions.

TO ADVERTISE Contact Stephanie Jewell sjewell@annexbusinessmedia.com • 705-826-2254

2022-05-30 9:31 AM

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Where does all of this art come from? Scott Wiener has been collecting and cataloging pizza boxes for 10 years. In Viva La Pizza!— named after a popular box design—Wiener traces design trends over the past four decades and speaks to some of the world’s most prolific box designers.

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2022-11-14 3:56 PM

HOW-TO ARTICLE

BY ALAN DUMONCEAUX

F

or many years now I have been teaching artisan bread classes to foodies, bread lovers and students. It is interesting that a common theme from students is they don’t like sourdough bread.

After a few quick questions, however, I realize they have not had real sourdough bread that’s naturally fermented. Instead they have been eating a “bread product” made with flavour additives like acetic acid, lactic acid and fumeric acid that have been added to a premix or base to replicate the smell and taste of a naturally leavened sourdough bread.

It is unfortunate that very few bakeries culture and maintain their own levain, which in turn becomes the key ingredient in making sourdough breads. Common reasons are it takes too much work. What happens on our day off? What do I do with it when I go on holidays?

These are all legitimate questions for someone who has not been trained in making and maintaining a sourdough culture, but what I understand after spending the last decade learning about sourdough breads from industry respected bakers around the world is that sourdough is relatively easy to make, maintain and work with.

There are a few inherent issues with a sourdough, one of which includes the introduction of unwanted bacteria or a problem with mould spores. The bad bacteria issue can be avoided with proper sanitation practices. Mould spores are all around us, and if the environment where you maintain your levain has a significant mould issue then it may spoil the levain and it would have to be discarded.

Over the years, I have been my own worst enemy for my levain, forgetting to feed it, neglecting it and abusing it. Over time I came to the realization that once you

22

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Common reasons few bakers culture and maintain their own levain: it takes too much work. What happens on our day off?

What do I do with it when I go on holidays? ?

have a healthy levain with the right balance of lactic and acetic acid it is extremely resilient.

From articles that I have read about a levain left unattended for a length of time, it was apparent that there are a wide range of opinions.

Some people say it must be fed at least every three weeks to survive.

Others say that the liquid that separates out of the levain should be poured off, others who call this liquid “hooch,” stir it back in and start feeding it again with no issues.

I decided to test the theory that my levain was very resilient. On Jan. 2, 2016, prior to my departure for the Coupe de Monde de la Boulangerie in Paris, I set aside my usual 240g of levain in a container in my fridge at home. Then at the end of May I set aside a second container in the back of my fridge. I left them both completely undisturbed until early September.

After seven months and after three months left untouched, I removed the levain from the back of my fridge. Both had an ample layer of “hooch” on top, with the container that was seven months old having a

darker colour.

After allowing the cultures to warm up, I simply stirred the liquid in and took out 40g to use with a feeding schedule of 100g flour and 100g water and 40g levain.

Whenever the levain is thinner than normal there are two key steps to correct the levain. Hold back some water and add a dash of salt. For the first feeding I held back 10g of water and added a dash of salt. Due to the length of time in the fridge, I allowed the first feeding to go 24 hours. After 24 hours the levain that had rested for 7 months unattended was lower than the 3 month undisturbed levain.

On the second day I held back 5g of water and added a dash of salt to each to bring the correct consistency back to the levain.

After 12 hours on day two the levains were nearly at the same level of activity.

After the third feeding the two levains were basically at the same level of activity. The conclusion to my experiment was the seven-monthold levain, after the first feeding, was behind in activity and aroma, but by the third feeding the two levains were identical.

After the fourth feeding I made sourdough bread and there was no discernible difference between the two finished loaves.

The results of this experiment resulted in the conclusion I had anticipated: My levain seems to be pretty resilient. Once you have the correct blend of bacteria and yeast, they are very resilient to being stored for extended periods of time with no loss in fermentation power once a regular feeding schedule has resumed. | CP Alan Dumonceaux is chair of the baking program at NAIT School of Hospitality and Culinary Arts in Edmonton. You can reach him by email at adumonce@nait.ca.

November/December 2022 · CANADIAN PIZZA

PHOTO: ALAN DUMONCEAUX

Sourdough 101

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