Larry and I love pizza. We. Love. Pizza. In fact, we love pizza so much that one year for Larry's birthday I surprised him with a private Pizza & Calzone cooking class. We did learn the secrets to easy fail-proof pizza dough and sauce, and the pizza was very good but I've never been able to replicate that crispy restaurant-style crust, even with a pizza stone.
Last week we were in Williams-Sonoma looking for juice glasses (we chose these) and we saw the new Breville Crispy Crust Pizza Maker. We love Breville products. Almost all of our small appliances are Breville because from the very first purchase (the juicer) the products have proved outstanding. We asked the associate about the product, especially the pre-heating time. Typically, we make pizza at least once (sometimes twice) a week and I pre-heat the pizza stone for two hours each time at 450 degrees. This is four hours of energy usage that also heats the kitchen, not ideal during summer. The tabletop Breville pizza maker (with pizza stone) pre-heats to 660 degrees in 30 minutes.
Because we had already had the dough + the sauce perfected, we decided that this pizza maker could be just what we needed to turn out the restaurant style pizza crust we were looking for. We took a moment to scan the reviews online and encouraged, we bought the Breville Crispy Crust Pizza Maker for $149.95.
Last night we tried it for the first time. It was easy to set up, literally just removing the pizza maker from the box and turning it on. Earlier in the day I had removed my homemade dough from the freezer and while the pizza maker heated up I divided the dough in two and rolled the first ball out to 10 inches in diameter, medium thickness.
With the dough rolled out onto the slightly floured pizza peel, I prepared the sauce in less than 5 minutes. (Sauté minced garlic + olive oil + chopped tomato + basil). Next, I added the sauce to the dough and topped it with freshly shredded mozzarella cheese and pepperoni. Carefully, I opened the pizza maker (Be careful with this step! It will be HOT!) and using a spatula I slid the raw pizza on the hot pizza stone and closed the lid. I turned the dial to Medium thickness and set a timer to 7 minutes.
Here is the before and after.
Using a spatula, I easily slid the hot pizza onto a serving board. As we let it cool for a couple moments, I rolled out the second dough ball into a thin 10 inches and added the pizza sauce, shredded mozzarella and fresh basil. I slid it onto the pizza stone, set it to Thin crust and set a timer for 5 minutes.
As the second pizza cooked, Larry and I sat down across from each other, ready to try what could be the perfect pizza. We each took a slice and took a bite. It. Was. Perfect. It was better than literally any pizza that we have ever had. This crispy, cheesy, spicy, hot pizza tasted like it was cooked in a brick oven in Napoli. It was incredible. We tried the second pizza, this time the thin crust pizza and it was just as good. The crust was crispy and the topping melted to perfection. Both pizzas could not have turned out better. We were hooked. The Breville Crispy Crust Pizza Maker was absolutely a hit.
Thin crust Margherita pizza made with our new Breville Crispy Crust Pizza Maker
{Review}
The Breville Crispy Crust Pizza Maker earns our highest marks. This is a product that turned out restaurant style pizza quickly and cost efficiently. It is an investment at $149.95 but we did a cost analysis and the pizza maker will pay for itself in less than 6 months. Here is the cost breakdown:
Average pizza delivery: $15 (pepperoni delivered)
Average pizza night out: $28 (pepperoni pizza + drinks)
Average Breville Crispy Crust Pizza Maker pizza: $2.70 (dough + sauce + cheese + pepperoni)
Breville Crispy Crust Pizza Maker Pros:
- You control what's in the pizza, using more or less cheese, pepperoni etc. You can make an extra cheesy meat lover's pizza or a healthy pizza using whole wheat dough, veggies and no cheese.
- You will save a significant amount of money (over time) versus delivery
- You can have pizza 24/7
- You can make homemade pizza in less time than you can cook a frozen pizza
- You can make everyone in your home individual pizzas
- Your house smells amazing
- Clean up is minimal
Breville Crispy Crust Pizza Maker Cons:
- The machine is bulky, about the size of a crockpot. It will take up considerable space in a cabinet.
- It is very hot! Take care when opening the pizza maker. If you have small children around, keep them away from this appliance. It is HOT!
- The initial investment is steep
We love this product and suggest giving it a try! Enjoy!
