The wife and I have been watching Master Chef lately — a famous cooking competition show that we had somehow managed to unintentionally evade since its inception a decade ago. It was originally intended to be background noise as we took care of chores such as folding laundry or washing dishes. But with time, we started to pay attention. Before we knew it, we were invested. Now, I am inspired to cook.
I, like most people, have passionately loved pizza since, well, since I can remember. For that reason, 13 years ago I decided to try making my own, from scratch. Long story short, it was disgusting. The dough was under-cooked, the sauce was unbearably salty, and the toppings were sub-par — the memory still haunts me. Over a decade later, through perseverance and multiple, multiple attempts, I have perfected The Ramdolfi Pizza™ (not actually trademarked).
Master Chef in mind and inspiration in heart, we drove to the grocery store to acquire the freshest of ingredients for the freshest of pizzas. Admittedly, Mrs. Ramdolfi is vastly more talented in selecting the perfect fruits, including tomatoes — and yes, they are technically considered fruits. For that reason, the stunning wife pictured above helped me pick the perfect tomato for this pie.
Ready to create the perfect pizza sauce with the perfect tomatoes, I proceeded to inspect the store’s basil for freshness, as pictured above. Satisfied with their selection, we moved on to the garlic, mozzarella, and other secret ingredients. It’s actually a rather simple recipe, but it is one that I’ve been developing since the mid 2000’s.
Fun fact: The wife enjoys riding the ends of shopping carts — up until I decide to take pictures, then she is just unamused. I like to give her a hard time, but the truth is that I think it’s adorable, which is why I also tend to encourage it.
Back to Master Chef. Upon securing the most delicious ingredients, I spotted some items that beckoned me with their tempting convenience…
I entertained them for an instant, and even lifted them just to confirm what I instinctively knew, they were but a mockery of Italian cuisine. Could they make a decent pie? Maybe. But would I have to turn in my Italian card? Absolutely. Unamused by these Americanized ingredients, we headed straight to the self-checkout stations, and on to our Master Chef challenge at home.
Tell me, do you like to have shows playing as background noise? Do you pronounce it tomato or to-mah-to? Would you rather buy premade meals or make your own from scratch?
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(Featured Image by: Mr. Ramdolfi)
Caffeinated In Los Angeles 
I love the Ramdolfi’s daily adventures 😂 As an Italian, I can’t stand even looking at the last ingredients you picked up 😱 (I’m kidding, my laziness made me use them once hahaha)
Concerning the pronunciation of tomato, I think mine changes all the time hahaha 😂
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Hahaha, that’s hilarious! 😂 As an American, I think I should be using those last ingredients. Haha thank you for your comment and for the laughs! 😄
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Hahaha nooo it’s good you’re making pizza properly! 😂
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Ooh, pizza! 😛 Those ingredients are some of my favorites. I pronounce it tomato. 🙂 We almost always make our own pizza at home, though sometimes it’s nice to take a break and get store bought (as long as they’re not thin crust. 😝)
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That’s awesome! I wish I had grown up making my own pizza. I love those ingredients too! Thank you for your comment, Kenechi! 😄
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I love Master Chef too! Just finished watching yesterday’s episode. I also make pizza and make the dough from scratch. The dough is super easy to make and you’ll never want to go back to buying store bought pizza.🍕
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I completely agree with you! Homemade dough is so much better! 😄 Master Chef is awesome! The wife and I have been streaming it (starting with Season 1) on Hulu for a little while now. We’re currently on Season 5, but we’ll catch up soon. 😉 Don’t spoil it for us! Haha 😄
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We don’t get Hulu in Canada so I’m reliant on the cable schedule which sucks. It definitely is – and it takes just as long to make homemade pizza as it does to get takeout. Master Chef is season 10 now so you’ve got a ways to go. Tbh I haven’t watched all of the seasons.
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Interesting! I did not know that! Have you considered using a VPN? I remember a few years ago when I went to France and wanted to stream something (music on Pandora, I think), I had to use a VPN to get around the country restrictions. Maybe the culture is different in Canada, but most of my friends and I have not had cable for about a decade now. Mostly I think because it’s too expensive and not as convenient.
I can’t wait to catch up to the latest season. We just saw Luca win season 4 and absolutely fell in love with his journey to the Master Chef championship! I want to buy his cook book, but am afraid that if I look it up I’ll see who wins the next 5 seasons via recommendations. Haha
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