Pizzarackaphobia

I recently confessed in my Facebook status that I have pizzarackaphobia. That's right, I'm afraid of putting frozen pizzas directly on the oven rack. Now, I'm not one to be a rule-breaker, but I even use a pan when the directions specifically say not to. I'm pretty sure I'll need therapy for this later. I can't help but think of all the 'what ifs'.

What if it drips in my oven? What if the pizza melts to the rack and gets stuck? What if a piece of crust falls onto the heating element and catches fire? What if? What if? What if?
Oh, the agony of it all!


So.... yesterday I decided to take the plunge. It took a lot of guts. I put on my brave face and decided to suck it up, Sally.
I grabbed myself a supreme Red Baron frozen pizza. I didn't have the scarf or goggles to wear like Red Baron, but I'm not sure if that would matter:
"DIRECTLY ON THE RACK". You bet, Mr. Baron:
Here it is on the rack, for proof:
I bit my nails in anticipation. What's going on in that oven?!?!?!?! Breathe in. Breathe out....
22 minutes later.....
Voila!! Look how crisp the crust got? Wow. Now, I wondered how to get it off the rack? I used two spatulas and lifted it from the oven (with the rack pulled just partially out) and then transferred it to a pizza pan for cutting. Is there a better way because I almost dropped the pizza in route to the pan. Really.

So, was it worth the agony? How did it compare, you ask?

In the words of my resident pizza expert, Nathan, "This is the way you should do it.... for now on." There you have it, folks. There you have it.

I do believe that the Red Baron would be proud. Real proud.

Comments

Sarah C said…
I put the cutting board up to the edge of the rack and scoot the pizza onto it.
March 19, 2010 at 11:58 AM
happymcfamily said…
I cheat and rather than putting it on a sheet or directly on the rack, i put it on a baking stone, which makes it cook rather nicely as well. I also have pizzarackaphobia....er, well, really the fear of dropping it en route. :-)
March 19, 2010 at 3:10 PM
Mariah said…
Use a fork and the cardboard it came on. Stab the pizza with the fork and pull it out, sliding it right onto the cardboard. Saves you from still cleaning a pan or cutting board.
March 19, 2010 at 5:30 PM
Karen said…
I concur with Mariah. I also put a sheet of aluminum foil on the bottom of the oven, just in case anything drips down. Much easier to clean up!
March 19, 2010 at 7:13 PM
Christi said…
Glad you overcame that phobia! It always seems weird to me to put it directly on the rack, too.
March 20, 2010 at 11:23 AM
Andrea said…
Amber...it's called Eazy-Off! In fact, they have a new version that doesn't smell and takes 1/2 the time to clean...and you won't kill brain cells in the meantime! :-)
March 24, 2010 at 4:14 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

At the hospital - LIVE UPDATES

Image
Hello, blog readers! I am blogging live from the hospital with Nathan as my guest blogger. If anyone is awake out there, you can feel free to check out my blog for updates throughout my hospital visit. I was having contractions at home so we were sent to the hospital around 10pm for observation. I was dilated to 3cm when I arrived. They made me walk two 40-minute rounds which felt like a marathon for me. I didn't have any shoes on and got to wear a super cute hospital gown though. Essentially, I'm here for false labor. But, they are afraid to send me home because of how quickly I go into labor so I'm staying to be induced. ---- This is Nathan - it's 2:11 AM. Amber just got her epidural. She's at 4 cm. Her blood pressure just dropped to 80 / 43 and we had a bit of a scare. She thought she was going to pass out and had some nausea. Feeling better now. 2:35 AM. 2:55am Working to start Pitocin (drug to speed up contractions) because the ba...
Read more

Whoooo's Out There?

Image
I'm turning the tables today! This blog is a chance for YOU to be the writer.... and me the reader. I often wonder who is reading my blog. Are you a friend ? A lurker ? A crazed stalker ? I'd love to see who all reads my blog.... even if you're not a regular. So, whoooo's out there?? Here's your chance to leave a comment. It doesn't even have to be a full sentence. A mere, "I'm out here!" will do. Or, feel free to be creative-- just pretend you're signing my yearbook or something. I'll feel really lame if only 2 people are out there so please, everyone, respond! If you don't have a google account, you can still leave a comment. Click on "comments". Then just select "Name" and type in your first name, or your fake name if you're in witness protection. Then your comment will have your name in the header. Or, if you're my stalker -- just click on 'anonymous' and your secret is safe with me....
Read more

Kennedy's Corner: The BIG FIVE

Image
Happy birthday, Kennedy!!!!      To our sweet & fun girl! She's 5 today!  She LOVES to dress up whether it's jewelry, fancy clothing, or princess stuff.   Here's her latest-- a pink fur coat and sequins skirt.   Classy! She's nurturing.  She loves playing "mommy" to her baby dolls and caring for other people.  She loves to sing ( and I mean constantly ).   She is thoughtful and compassionate and loves to pray for others.  She can be headstrong and difficult too (just like her mother) but we're working together on that!    She goes to Pre-K 5 mornings a week and loves her teacher and school.   Her favorite foods are cheese quesadillas, pepperoni, and Ritz crackers.   Her favorite show is Curious George.   She's also obsessed with dogs whether it's pretending to be one, begging us to buy one, playing with a toy one, or asking every stranger in the city if she can pet th...
Read more