I Made My Own Pizza at Wheat Penny!

Recently, I had the chance to create my own pizzas at Wheat Penny Oven & Bar and I’m still not over it. Here’s how it went.

First, how did this happen?

My friends Anna and Channing won a raffle benefitting the Glen Helen Raptor Center and the prize was gathering four friends to Wheat Penny on a Sunday to learn about pizza making and to create our own pies.

Here’s how it went!

When we arrived, there were snacks and drinks waiting for us. After taking the edge off our collective hunger, we put on aprons and went to the kitchen for a lesson in pizza dough shaping.

Wheat Penny co-owner, Chef Liz Valenti, explained that Wheat Penny makes a four-day dough, which is a method that ensures a perfect, delicious crust. She also gave us a tutorial on stretching the dough into the ideal size and shape for our pizzas. I did ok – I couldn’t toss the dough like Chef Valenti, but I made a normalish pizza shape! My only experience up to this point was the refrigerated pizza dough from Whole Foods (the ancient grain one is really good but it gets seeds all over your kitchen).

Next, I was surprised that we had full use of every Wheat Penny pizza sauce and topping they offer. It was like being a kid in a candy store. Here’s my first pizza:

• Red sauce
• Vegan ricotta (They make it in house using cashews. I make it at my house using blanched almonds. WP’s is SOOO much better so I will be making that switch.)
• Roma tomato slices
• Smoked pulled jackfruit
• Jalapeño slices
• Spinach
• Peperoncino pepper slices
• Basil oil

I could only eat half of this glorious thing. Then Chef Valenti gave us dessert! Tiramisu for everyone and she made me a special vegan stone fruit crumble with a side of vegan vanilla ice cream. I was not expecting that and yes, I ate every bite.

Making my second pizza

For my second pizza, I wanted to switch it up, but I ended up making only a few changes. Here’s what I went with:

• Red sauce
• Vegan ricotta
• Smoked pulled jackfruit
• Jalapeño slices (This was the star of the day – we nearly used up all of their jalapeño, but in our defense, have you ever seen such paper-thin slices of jalapeño in your life? I haven’t!)
• Marinated artichoke
• Peperoncino pepper slices
• Basil oil
• Balsamic glaze

I took that entire pizza home with me. We ate very well for a few days!

Final thoughts

It was really special to visit Wheat Penny when it was closed and have the whole place to ourselves. I have hardly ever seen an empty table at Wheat Penny, so it was really neat. Plus, getting a chance to visit their kitchen is a whole new experience for me.

The afternoon was magic and really inspired me. I love to cook, but obviously Wheat Penny is on a whole other level. Every ingredient is special and prepped to perfection. The intention behind everything is so personal and creative and flavorful. I have always loved Wheat Penny but now I’m somehow an even bigger fan than before.