Fat lies about thin-crust pizza

Andre Burgener has been immersed in all things food since she took over the making of the family's lunch box sandwiches aged eight (her mom could make a mean creme brulee and a staggering souffle, but could never butter the bread all the way to the edges).

PIZZA UNWRAPPED

MANY lies are written and spoken about authentic thin-crust pizza. Among them is the myth a thin base means a flat base.

While pizzas from Naples (pizza's birthplace) and Rome (the home of even slimmer pizzas) should be thin, this doesn't mean flat. In fact, the Associazone Vera Pizza Napoletana (the association which "protects" real pizzas) stipulates that a risen crust of at least 2cm is paramount.

A great base will be well-proved, edged with that wondrous ring of charred and blistered bubbles. The puff-up is all about air, not extra dough, so relax.

The key concept, then, is lightness. The pancake-flat matzos-like base that has dieting girls ecstatic is just plain wrong.

What's more, it contains as much dough as its risen counterpart. The real deal (always cooked in the furious heat of a wood-fired oven, with generous tomato and scant cheese) is hard to come by.

Who does them right? Not many. In Johannesburg I swear only by Piza e Vino, Rosebank, 011-447-6569, and Pomodoro, 087940-3811. In Durban my fussy reviewing friends say Neil Roake's Craft, 031-562-1951, is top of the pile. In Cape Town, professional pizza hounds tell me Massimo's in Hout Bay is in a league of its own, 021-790-5648.

SWEET TALKING: TOFFEED APPLE CRUMBLE

Using treacle sugar is a cheat's way to get that deep resonance of burnt sugar - the umami of the pudding world.

This crumble is addictive. It serves two unrestrained eaters.

Filling: Four small or three big apples, peeled, cored, sliced thickly / juice of one small orange / bold dash of cinnamon / 2 tablespoons dark soft treacle sugar (no replacements please) / 1½ tablespoons butter.

Crumble: 90g self-raising flour (I know non self-raising is traditional, but this is better) / 65g cold butter, cubed / four tablespoons light brown sugar. Rub butter into flour until you have granola-like rubble. Mix in the sugar. Refrigerate until needed.

Mix prepared apples with the orange juice. Pour apple and all juice into 20cm ceramic pie dish. Dot butter over apples and sprinkle sugar over all. Scatter crumble over apples.

Bake at 180C for 30 minutes or until crumble is golden. Serve pronto with pouring cream or the plainest ice cream.

FAREWELL

Dear wonderful Walter Ulz, who kept the flame of fine, and even nostalgic, dining alive at Linger Longer since 1976, died on Sunday.

How much poorer our city and our food universe is without him.

I was always amazed at how generous and kind he was to me when, as a young upstart restaurateur, knowing little, I served him some chronically daft dishes. Goodbye and thank you, splendid Walter.