I love my Pampered Chef pizza stone. I just leave it in my oven and throw pretty much anything on it and it heats to crispy perfection. I have had the pizza stone for years and replaced it several times - not because you have to replace it but because it gets dark with use (which is normal). I have the large size (I think it's 15") and it comes with the handles built in which is wonderful. The old ones had a rack. It's not that much money. I think it was under $30. Get one!

I agree. I have the large pampered chef stone and love it. I have had mine probably about 10 years. Works great!

Thanks TamDave123 & Kristine_2009! Party's in 35 minutes...anyone else?

I have enough pampered chef to choke someone... literally. Ooodles and oooodles and oooodles of the stuff. I am paring down my bakeware collection and actually discovered I had 7? of the round cinnimon roll size dishes. Yep, 4 of those are going to donation! Lol.

Seriously, I find pampered chef at the thrifty store often. If you watch, they will come. Passing that, I love the stuff!

Yes I use my stone quite a bit. It's especially nice for cookies -- they seem to bake more evenly with less likelihood for burning on the bottom.

I replaced my original because it broke when I baked a pizza with a self-rising crust on it. It was weird - it just cracked into 3 big pieces. So it's worth asking about that. (A couple PC reps told me that does happen; another wasn't sure.)

Be sure to get the little plastic scraper with it. (Maybe it comes with one, not sure.) I got a few of those scrapers and have used them for everything from scraping the baking stone to removing labels to smoothing spackle. Handy!

Have fun at the party!

I've cracked a lot of pizza stones. None of them PC. I cracked so many now I just use a large tile from Lowe's. Which eventually cracks, too.

Unglazed quarry tile, 79 cents.

I've had several pizza stones including a PC one. Nothing special about the PC one. They all break. :)

Quarry tile work just as good.

Oh, I don't recommend leaving the stone in the oven all the time. If anything bubbles over onto the stone, the stone will probably break. I've lost two stones that way & finally learned to not keep it in the oven.

I leave the PC stone in the oven but ALWAYS take it out when I put the oven on if I'm not using it. It gets oily if you don't. Have had these stones for years. The only time one broke was when I put my PC casserole dish in the sink with cold water when it was still hot. You need to make sure they cool off a bit before putting water on them. They are great. Hope you got one!

Love my PC pizza stone, but had problems with the one with the built in handles. It cracked straight down the middle when I was taking it out of the oven. Fortunately it wasn't hot and there was nothing on it at the time. PC gave me a replacement and it happened again! Ended up just asking for their regular pizza stone (no built in handle) as a replacement and haven't had any problems. Seems to be a design flaw in the one with handles so I could only recommend the regular (no handle) kind

Mine is not PC, but from what I've heard and read, my impression of them is good. I have one from Willims-Sonoma that DH gave me 17 or 18 years ago and I like having the large rectangle to slide things onto. We've been baking bread and pizza on it and leaving it in the oven unless there has been a reason to move it (generally needing the space, but that isn't that often when you keep it on the lowest rack). We finally broke down and got a second one so we could bake pizzas faster and not eat in shifts, so I can endorse having two even without dietary concerns.

I did use quarry tile for a while. I did not like the way they baked as well (had them side by side with my stone before I bought a second one) and they were a pain to use. If you enjoy baking breads and pizza, a good stone is definitely a worthwhile purchase. If you got the PC ones, I hope you enjoy them. If you didn't, I can recommend the WS version. Have fun either way.

I heard that you can use just a regular unglazed quarry tile. You should be able to find them very cheap. (Cheaper than the woman in this thread. $8 is way too much.)

Here is a link that might be useful: pizza tile

$.33 each

Here is a link that might be useful: tile from home depot

Love mine...have had it for a lot of years. I bought another one at a kitchen store and I don't like it as much.

So what did you do buehl? If you didn't get the stone, did you get anything else? I'm like morgne. Well, maybe not that bad; I'm not ready to take anything to the mission store, but I do have lots of their stuff. Mainly because I go to all the parties I can and usually get a few things each time. Some of the stuff I love, some I don't use at all. Hard to know sometimes. I think the quarry tiles are a great idea!

Thanks everyone! I did order the two stones. If one breaks I may try the unglazed quarry tile next time.

I didn't use the tile for long -- breads are not as tricky on them as pizza, which can get stuck in the cracks, even drip down. When you need to move them, it's 6 or 8 pieces instead of one (I was using mine as a second baking surface and wound up moving them more than if they were primary and could stay in place most of the time). They are darker and thinner and do bake differently-- and they break more easily. You also have to make sure you get them from a source that has lead free clay (the glazes can have lead and those are easier to find out about than the tile material itself -- or at least it was for me). They are worth trying, but I like a stone and think it's worth it -- especially as I near 20 years on one of them.

buehl--I think if one breaks, you are covered for a replacement. I have a PC stoneware jelly roll pan--cracked and I got a new one!

My pizza stone is about 18 years old, not a PC one, it is much thicker than the one they sell, bought it when I worked at a gourmet cooking store, so big discount for me on it.

Good luck, and if you want crispy crust, use an ordinary spray bottle filled with water and give a couple of mists during the cooking!

I was thinking of ordering a third (I have until Saturday to add to my order)... Maybe instead I should order the rectangular one as my third so I have more options? The rectangular one does not have handles (just flat) nor does it have a rack like tamdave123's had.

Rectangular 15" x 12" (I think it's 12").....$28
Medium Round 13".....$24
Large Round 15".....$32

Oops....that should have been
...should I order...

:-)

Or maybe not! (My grammar is lousy today!)

I know this is going to sound silly, but how does a pizza stone work? Do you put the fresh pizza right on the stone? Or do you put the pizza which is on a baking sheet on to the stone?

Pizza stone in oven, get it hot, throw cornmeal on it, then using a pizza peel that has cormeal on it, along with your raw pizza, slide it onto the stone. Just bakes on that. The trick is to get the stone really hot before baking on it.

What if you don't own a pizza peel? I tried the back of a cookie sheet covered with cornmeal, but the pizza didn't slide off all that easily...it worked, but got a little folded up. Anyone have some tips on sliding technique?

No pizza peel? How about a cutting board? I bet the dough just stuck to the metal of the cookie sheet in the places where there was no cornmeal. If you have the stone, a peel is really nice to have. I think a lot of people think of them for getting the bread/pizza out of the oven, but they are so important for getting it in the oven. They aren't too expensive....$10 @ BedBath&Beyond. Use a 20% coupon at BB&B, and get it for less.

Here is a link that might be useful: BB&B pizza peel

Does the pizza stone go on the floor of the oven or the bottom rack?

We have a Gaggenau oven that has a plug in stone accessory but it is really expensive, so we don't have it.

Scootermom, I use the baking stone for home made bread & home made pizza. Put the dough on parchment paper which is on the peel & slide the parchment off onto the stone. A cookie sheet would work in place of a peel.

The first time I used it, didn't have the parchment paper & made kind of a mess of things. The parchment makes it lots easier but then, I'm a bit of a klutz.

I have both sizes of the round PC pizza stones (no handles) with racks. I LOVE them. I also eat gluten free and they make the best pizza! I also use them to oven fry meats.
The PC stones aren't heated before you put the product on them. The stone can crack with the extremes of temperature. I cracked a few stone baking dishes before I got the hang of it all. Because of the temp extreme problems, I also let them cool for hours before I wash them. It's been a few years now and nothing else has cracked.

lindiver--I should have clarified that I do not have a PC stone. Mine is thicker, and in order to get the best result it is heated first. I have seen the PC ones, and I can understand that they might crack if preheated too long. That is what gives my bread the really crisp crust. It is like a pizza oven. In fact sometimes I preheat it for about 20 minutes before the bread goes in.

This site has lots of good hints and video clips about moving pizzas around. It is also easy to come up with your own variation of the basic moving belt idea if you want to.

The real peel is tough to work at first without constant practice. This belt idea slows things down and is a lot more forgiving.

Here is a link that might be useful: For the peel challenged

We bought a thick, rectangular pizza stone from our local kitchen store chain - kitchen kaboodle, 20 years back. The stone fills our oven and we leave it in the oven almost all the time. We bake breads for sandwiches, pizza and naans regularly. For naans, the oven is set at its hottest possible temp and we have left the stone in the oven when self-cleaning, the stone comes out looking brand-new. Also, we regularly switch sides as the side exposed to the element gets cleaned out eventually from the high heat. Mind you, we don't have the pampered chef stone, so am not sure how it will hold up to a self-cleaning mode. Also, we take the stone out when using the convection mode while baking things like cookies.

For sliding the pizza, we use the parchment paper and peel method. Lay the parchment on the peel, then place the risen dough onto the paper, ease the dough into a desired shape, top the dough and slide the pizza with the parchment and all into the preheated oven(preheated with the stone for at least 30 minutes). After 3-4 minutes of baking, we pull the parchment paper out and slip the pizza directly onto the hot stone to finish the baking.

Several years ago I had a pizza and baking stone from a company called HearthKit. It was a large, heavy base plate, more than 1 inch thick, with side stones, also very thick, that could theoretically replicate a brick oven, when place inside an ordinary kitchen oven. It worked quite well, although it did require about 40 minutes to fully heat the mass, which was constructed of refractory cement. It worked very well for baking breads and pizza. As I recall, it was about $200.

When I moved to my new home, I gave it to my sister, as I installed a real, wood-fired brick oven (www.mugnaini.com) in my present home.

Anyway, while the Hearthkit stone doesn't perform as well as real wood-fired oven, it was the best thing I'd found up to that point. Alas, I'm not sure it's still being made, although there still seem to be a few places from which you can order one. If you do find a source, I recommend HearthKit. A very high quality product, that absolutely performs as advertised. I've not seen any other stone that contains the mass and heavy construction of this baking stone.

The link below will take you to one source that still seems to be selling the HearthKit stone, but do a google search for HearthKit, and you may find others.

Here is a link that might be useful: HearthKit Baking Stones

Lindiver...do you make your GF pizza dough from scratch? Mix? What's your recipe? I haven't yet found a pizza shell that I like. So far, the best gluten-free pizza I've found is at Uno Chicago Grill! I generally prefer a "thin & crispy" crust, but a good thick crust can be good as well.

Hmmmm...that "HearthKit" looks interesting.

I went to Costco today and there was a pizza kit with a pizza stone, a metal peel-like spatula thing, and some other gadgets. I think it was $25. The metal peel was strange, though - like a giant pancake turner.

Thanks Edie_G.

LinDiver? :=)

Another alternative for the wimpy is to put the pi zza on a perforated pizza p an. No moments of terror as the pizza and toppings crumple up into a wrinkled mess as you slide it onto the stone, but the crust still gets crispy from the holes on the bottom of the pan.

If you use one of these pans, avoid last-minute changes of plans that let your dough rise again while on the perforated surface. Otherwise, you get an aluminum-stuffed calzone instead of a pizza. Do not ask me how I know this.

Here is a link that might be useful: Some perforated pizza pans

Edie--I tend to collect kitchen gadgets as a result of my rummage sale habit...

Anyway, I use my wooden peel for placing the pizza inside the oven & use my aluminum (pancake turner) peel for fetching the baked pizza out of the oven. My metal peel is smaller than the rectangular pizzas that I make so it won't work for both tasks.

Sorry, Buehl. Mom moved in, new rooms aren't finished yet (we're starting month 8 of the promised 2 month construction--sigh) and she's bunking in the room with my computer. I haven't checked in for a couple of days.

I mostly use Carol Fenster's recipe for pizza crust. You can make it as thin or thick as you like. I make it with sauce and mozzarella usually.
I've also made it for company and "gussied it up" as a Reuben pizza--spread the raw dough with mustard, sauerkraut, corned beef and then Swiss cheese. Bake. Serve with Russian dressing.
Another version I've made is pizza with goat cheese.

My friends thought these were some gourmet dishes and were surprised that I could eat them. :-)

IMHO, the pizza stone makes the difference in getting a crispy crust at home.

I live on Long Island. We have great pizza parlors and many are now making GF pizza. I haven't tried Uno Chicago Grill.

BTW--when I make bread outside of my Zojirushi machine, I put the dough in the PC loaf pan. YUM!

Have fun experimenting!

beekeeperswife - You know, maybe I'll just get a peel. We've never had one because when we first got the stone, it was a wedding gift (given w/out the peel) and we didn't make homemade pizza very often, so we didn't use the stone much (never occurred to us back then that it could be used for other uses as well). Now I make homemade pizza, focaccia, etc. quite often, so we'd use the peel a lot, and therefore it would be worth sacrificing some storage space.

marcolo - Your aluminum-filled calzone reference cracked me up...would really love to hear the story! I do have a perforated pan, but my crust doesn't get crisp enough (no matter how thin) unless I put toppings on the pizza. When I make a cheese pizza, the cheese browns too quickly. I guess I could just partially bake the crust before topping.

ci lantro - thanks for the parchment paper tip! And it's also a good reminder that I'm out of parchment paper, so thanks for that, too! I will pick some up and try that.

I use a soapstone pizza stone. I works great. I got it with my soapstone counter....I'm still experimenting with it but so far so good.

It' very heavy...I linked to it below...scroll part way down the page.

Here is a link that might be useful: soapstone pizza stone