pizza party with Mr. ken!

July is full of smiles here at Anna House! We were so fortunate to have another of our occasional pizza visits by Mr. Ken, otherwise known as Ken Adams, husband of our Executive Director, Joanne K. Adams.

Outside of his real job, Ken is a dedicated pizza baker, so the news that he’d be visiting was met with much excitement by our school-age kids!

Two kinds of pizza were on offer. First, Ken had our kitchen oven “ready to go” for two Detroit-style pies—think pizza meets focaccia, with a crazy caramelized edge to the crust. He used special pans and a steel slab, to ensure that crisp crust.

Then he set up shop outside Anne House and cranked out six 16-inch New Haven-style pies—think a crunchier, slightly charred version of a regular New York-style pie. It required a carload of gear, including an Ooni pizza oven, a cart for the oven, a folding steel table, three kinds of pizza peel, and two dough boxes. The ingredients were straightforward: dough balls he made two days ago, using organic high-gluten flour; a simple tomato sauce; and two kinds of mozzarella.

The kids observed the process—for Detroit-style pizza, adding yet more cheese cubes on top of a dough that already contained plenty of cheese, and adding stripes of tomato sauce after the pizza came out of the oven. For the other pies, he baked them first in a preheated 750°F Ooni oven with the flame off, then reignited the flame, and during both stages turned the pie regularly to ensure even baking.

The kids listened to Ken intently, and a good time was had by all, including BCCA staff, who swooped in to dispatch the extra pizzas after the kids had had their fill.

Joking aside, Ken’s visit was consistent with BCCA’s mission—to expose kids to the world of possibilities in even the most basic of activities.

Thank you Mr. Ken! We are so grateful for your incredible generosity and support.

You are the MVPP (Most Valuable Pizza Person)!