Gail's Pizza Parties brings the pizza — and the party — to your home

Gail Churinetz is obsessed with pizza.

When she was developing her award-winning crust recipe, she used to have friends ship her water from Connecticut to ensure she had the perfect “New Haven-style” crust.

Attention to detail and creativity have led her to prominence on the national pizza stage — winning competitions on Food Network and at the International Pizza Expo, as well as landing her a spot on the prestigious U.S. Pizza Team.

You don’t have to be a competition judge to savor Churinetz’s tasty pizzas. She’s happy to come to your home.

Her business, Gail’s Pizza Parties, is an at-home, live-action cooking experience featuring her delicious pizza pies.

“I will come into your home, bake the pizzas of your choice, entertain your guests and create amazing, award-winning pizzas,” she said.

Hosts can choose from a variety of pizzas, including her award-winning Crawfish and Andouille Sausage Pizza. This Cajun pizza won her $25,000 on Food Network’s “Ultimate Recipe Showdown.” “This pizza pie — I call them pies since I am from Connecticut — has my homemade San Marzano tomato sauce, mozzarella and pepper jack cheeses, crawfish tails, Andouille sausage and fresh lemon."

Her pizza menu includes more than a dozen options, each made from scratch using fresh ingredients. “I even grate my own cheese,” she said. “I use only Galbani cheese because it’s the best for pizzas.”

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When Churinetz arrives at your home, she brings everything she needs — all the ingredients for making pizzas, plus the gear. She bakes her pizzas on steel baking sheets that ensure a crispy crust, while being easy to transport into people’s homes. All you need to provide is a clean kitchen and the ovens. She does the rest, and leaves your kitchen spotless when she leaves.

“I can entertain your guests and get them involved in making the pizzas, or just cook for you,” she said, as she pointed to her pizza-themed sneakers, leggings and earrings.

With her bubbly personality and pizza enthusiasm, we recommend the first option.

Also available are kids pizza parties and “How to learn to make award winning pizzas” cooking classes.  Churintez is also happy to provide appetizers, salads and desserts if you’d like.

The one thing she requires is at least a three-day notice when booking a party.

“I use a sourdough starter and the dough rests for 72 hours in the fridge before I can cook it,” she said.

While Churinetz no longer ships in water from Connecticut, she is still a stickler for her pizza crust. She creates a New Haven-style pizza. She explained that this famous Connecticut pizza is crispy on the bottom, but still has a soft “chew.” She added that it is different than Neapolitan pizza, which is softer and has a much chewier texture.

Churinetz’s cooking career began when she and her husband, Bob, moved from Connecticut to Germantown in summer 1994. “When we moved here, one of the first things I did was search for the best pizza in Germantown. Pizza was a big part of our weekly family dinner. Unable to find anything that resembled the awesome New Haven, Connecticut-style pizza, I began experimenting with recipes in the hope of developing the best New Haven-style pizza possible,” she said. 

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That passion for pizza led her not only to competitions, but a culinary career teaching classes and working for national corporations like ACH Food Companies (brands Fleischmann’s Yeast and Karo Syrup) developing recipes.

“I get satisfaction sharing my love of pizza with others and having them taste the real deal,” Churinetz said.

Jennifer Chandler is the Food & Dining reporter at The Commercial Appeal. She can be reached at jennifer.chandler@commercialappeal.com and you can follow her on Twitter and Instagram at @cookwjennifer.

At a glance

Gail’s Pizza Parties

Minimum order: Six pizzas, prices range from $28 to $33 each.

Phone: (901) 493-7464

Online:gailspizzaparties.com