To begin with, let me say that I'm relatively new at baking.   I worked in commercial food venues for a long time, then left that for a string of factory jobs.  These days, I am self-employed and work out of my home.  (www.sandraydesigns.com) I do high-end embroidery and graphic design for many clients, but food has always been my first hobby.  

And now, open the curtain upon the wonderful world of baking! 

When I started researching baking, it was with the simple motive that my family could barely afford bread at the local supermarket.  I needed to find ways to not just make ends meet, but bend them like pretzels and make them taste good too.   So, I've kind of gone back to my foodservice roots, making the simple, wholesome fare that... errr, generations of college students relied on... like deep fried everything, gourmet burgers, and delicious pizza.

You need certain tools to create the right taste, whether it is an outdoor grill, good cooking oil, or hmm, a peel, a baking "stone", and some specialty cutlery. 

Let's just say I'm oppurtunistic when it comes to finding the right tools.  If it can be cannabalized for my latest obsession, I'll strip it down and use it in a heartbeat.  My wife just rolls her eyes and sighs when I get into something, but she also knows the end result will be good.

Heres a picture of my peel, made from an aluminum cookie sheet and a 2" dowel piece.  On it is another dowel piece, that I use for a roller, and my nifty little mezzaluna-onna-stick that I made from an alaskan snow knife ("Ulu") and another 1/2" dowel.  I put a 15" ruler next to it for scale.

And here is the finished product, with crust showing...

Recipe to follow, in the next post.