A busy month, with a week visiting the Beer Festival (a personal best of 43 different beers sampled), 3 family birthdays (mine included), a Fish Concert & a trip to the theatre to see the stage show version of `I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue'.
I thought I'd start the first of a (hopefully) regular feature of `serving suggestions' - those helpful additions to the packaging of your food, giving you vital assistance in serving & presenting said item correctly. These can be far more subtle & in depth than may at first appear the case, particularly to the uninitiated & I hope to guide you through the potential pitfalls of food presentation thus helping you avoid any food faux pas that may entrap the unwary.
A simple one to start with...`Iceland Thin & Crispy Pizza'
This seems fairly simple to start with - put it on a plate. However, closer inspection reveals more...the peperoni has clearly been re-arranged from the usual `pile on one side' that normally occurs when you take the pizza from the freezer. The slice is also important, although I haven't sussed the technique to make it hovver at the 30 degree angle as suggested...The plate, although difficult to discern against the background appears to be an Ikea model & the colour is also clearly important (as you will see below) - to place a `thin and crispy' on a red plate for example would cause confusion for any guest & place you in danger of ridicule & humiliation
The pair to the `thin and crispy' is the `deep pan'
As it can be seen, the basics are the same - arrange the topping in a pleasing & even way, make a slice (& make it hovver). The crucial difference is in the plate - same Ikea styling but in a vivid shade of red. Imagine the embarrasment - you bring a young lady (or gentleman, depending on your own preference) home for the first time, eager to impress with your gourmet skills with a view to an evening of seduction. The lights are low, the music suitably romantic, you bring in a `thin and crispy' on a red plate & your intended can hardly pick themselves off the floor for laughing at your lack of social grace. The relationship is over before it begins & should the pair of you share any mutual aquaintances, you are in store for months of finger pointing & sniggering behind your back. At least you have a whole pizza to yourself though.
It should be noted as an aside that both `deep pan' & `thin and crispy' come with the following helpful warning on the pack `WARNING:TOPPING WILL BE HOT ONCE COOKED'. Well blow me down, 20 minutes in a 200 degree oven & it becomes hot. A sad indication of the increasingly `Americanised' letigious environment we are living in.
If this leaves you nervous, best leave the oven off & dial out to Domino's - all in all so much safer!
Til next time, remember, it's a jungle out there,
Take care, stay alive.
