E-book · Vol. I · 2026 edition
Pizza Architecture, Vol. I
The Science of Dough and Fire. 131 pages, PDF.
Scientific monograph · Srđan Mihailović · 2026 edition
pizzaARCHITECTUREvol. I
The Science of Dough and Fire — the dough, the fire, and what holds up when you check.
131pages, PDF
10chapters in four parts
4parts, material to application
2Excel tools
Contents
Ten chapters. Four parts.
From flour to the baked base: material, time, energy and structure, application. Every claim says where it comes from — a measurement, a regulation, or the craft — and five types of marked block keep them apart: Measured, Regulation says, No source, From the craft and What to measure.
| No. | Chapter | Part | Inside |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Flour: what the regulation governs, and what is retold | I · Material | What “tipo 00” really means · protein and the legal minimum · the W value, and why it is not one number · wholemeal: measured, but misexplained |
| 02 | Water, salt, and fat: three underestimated ingredients | I · Material | Hardness and pH are not the same · water temperature is calculated, not seasonal · salt and gluten · salt and yeast · fat and oil, measured versus merely cited |
| 03 | Hydration: a number without a standard | I · Material | It is all in the denominator · prescribed doses · the 66–70% Neapolitan standard · hydration is not absorption · salt changes the meaning of the number |
| 04 | Yeast: biology and dose | II · Time | S. cerevisiae · three products, not one ingredient · the foam test · why no dose table is internally consistent · a working dose table |
| 05 | Fermentation: temperature, time, and what is actually measured | II · Time | What the rheofermentometer measures · temperature: direction known, coefficient not · the target dough temperature · autolyse · time, on the wrong scale |
| 06 | Cold dough: what is gained and what is lost | II · Time | What “cold” is · aroma gained, gluten lost · the fridge produces acidity · the 72-hour limit · safety: two regulations |
| 07 | Rheology: gluten from powder to network | III · Energy & structure | Two ingredients of one glue · the stages of kneading · over-kneading · windowpane, with its qualification · shaping, without measurement |
| 08 | The thermodynamics of baking | III · Energy & structure | Three mechanisms and one geometry · two base temperatures · stone, steel and the pan · what is measured on the pizza · Maillard without a temperature threshold |
| 09 | Style protocols | IV · Application | Neapolitan (AVPN), New York, Detroit, Roman and Chicago — each read as regulation, recipe or craft, every figure with its source |
| 10 | Diagnostics: from symptom to cause | IV · Application | A fault tree that runs from the baked result back to the decision that caused it |
10 chapters · four parts · 131 pagesFrom flour to the baked base
Look inside
A monograph that shows its sources.
Every claim carries its origin — measured, prescribed, or craft — and every temperature is given in °C and °F. Click a page to see it larger.
Price
One volume, one price.
The whole of Volume I and both Excel tools, bought once — yours to keep.
What you get
- The e-book Pizza Architecture, Vol. I — The Science of Dough and Fire, 2026 edition, PDF, 131 pages
- 10 chapters in four parts: material, time, energy and structure, application
- Five types of marked block: Measured, Regulation says, No source, From the craft, What to measure
- Every temperature in both °C and °F, and every figure with its source
- The style protocols — Neapolitan, New York, Detroit, Roman and Chicago — each read as regulation, recipe or craft
- Excel tool 1: the dough calculator (baker’s percentage)
- Excel tool 2: the fermentation log
- Linked contents: tap a chapter to jump straight to its page
- In Serbian: Pizza Architecture, Tom I — Nauka o testu i vatri, the same volume
Checkout runs through Gumroad. After payment the download link arrives straight away by e-mail.
Who it is for
For people who make pizza. And want to know what holds up.
This volume is for you if
- you make pizza and want the dough to come out the same every time
- you want to know which rules are measured, which are prescribed, and which are only retold
- you work with hydration, fermentation and cold dough and want the numbers with their conditions
- you want the physics of the bake — effusivity, Maillard, oven spring — with every figure sourced
This volume is not for you if
- you want a single recipe to follow — half of this book is measurements, sources and the limits of each
- you want the toppings: those are Volume II, The Chemistry of Flavor and Balance
About the author
Srđan Mihailović
More than thirty years in hospitality: in hotels, restaurants, resorts and catering across Europe, Scandinavia, the Mediterranean, the Middle East and the Caribbean.
He is the founder of Gostíno.ai and the builder of the gostino.app website, where the hospitality trade meets modern digital tools.
A pizza is not a recipe. It is a measurement with a tolerance.
Questions
Before you fire the oven
What format is the volume?
A 131-page PDF, 2026 edition. It reads on phone, tablet and computer; the contents links straight to every chapter. The two Excel tools arrive alongside it as separate files.
What language is it in?
English, with every temperature in both °C and °F. There is also a Serbian edition, Pizza Architecture, Tom I — Nauka o testu i vatri, the same volume.
Do I need both volumes?
No — each stands on its own. Volume I is the dough and the fire: flour, hydration, fermentation, rheology and the thermodynamics of baking. Volume II is the topping, read as chemistry. Together they make the complete monograph.
What are the marked blocks?
Five types — Measured, Regulation says, No source, From the craft and What to measure — so you always know whether a claim comes from a measurement, from a regulation, or from the craft, and which ones you may change.
What are the two Excel tools?
The dough calculator, which builds a recipe at any flour mass by baker’s percentage with a hydration check, and the fermentation log for temperature, time, observations and outcome. Both come with the book as plain Excel files.
How does the volume arrive?
Checkout runs through Gumroad. After payment the download link arrives straight away by e-mail.
From the same series
The Pizza Architecture monograph
Both volumes together make the complete monograph — Volume I the dough and the fire, Volume II the topping.
Pizza Architecture, Vol. IIThe Chemistry of Flavor and Balance: the topping read as chemistry.
Cult of FireFifty grill recipes — with the method behind every one.
Between the Burger BunsTwenty burgers, and what of kitchen practice holds up when you check.
Restaurant CodeTen mistakes that cost restaurants money — and the system that stops them.
HACCP CodeFood safety under EU and US rules: seven principles, one plan.
Weigh the flour. Read the source. Check the number.
What is measured, what is prescribed, and what is craft — kept apart.