This past week has shown definite signs of Spring.  These include frequent rain spells, the greening of our surroundings, and a man’s need to play with fire (while cooking on the gas grill and the wood-fired pizza oven).

Trees turning green while sucking up the rain

The male Rose-Breasted Grosbeak on our feeder

Fresh asparagus on the grill

Fresh Porcini all the way from South Africa to our grill

Memorial Day weekend was pleasantly warm and sunny, so Barbara and I agreed that it was time to start the pizza season.  We decided to make four pies, just for us — two to eat that night and two for the freezer.  It was fortunate that we did not have guests this time because the oven took a couple of extra hours to get to full temperature.  This was necessary to drive off the moisture that had collected in the oven structure, but eventually we got there.

Pizza Plaza

Roasting mushrooms in preparation for adding them to pizzas

Roasting fresh ramps for pizza topping

First pies of the season ALWAYS taste good