My friend who is a Coachella veteran raved about the food options at the music festival, especially a delectable dish known simply as "spicy pie." "Why Raul, what's spicy pie?" you ask? I had the same question myself. A spicy pie is a pizza with a spicy kick from jalapeños. It's available in a couple variations, from the basic spicy pie (with pepperoni, sliced jalapeños and dried chili flakes) to a spicy Hawaiian (basically a Hawaiian pizza with ham and pineapple but with, you guessed it, jalapeños too).
It wasn't until the second night of the festival that I actually had a chance to try spicy pie myself. By golly, it's a stroke of pure genius! I would never have thought about adding jalapeños to pizza, but the combination is devilishly simple and devilishly delicious. The spicy kick from the jalapeños adds a little bit more depth to the pizza. And baking the pizza with the dried chilies brings out their heat, making a far spicier pizza than simply adding dried chile flakes before serving. And the dough--thin New York-style pizza--really makes the perfect canvas for spicy pie.
The staff working the booth were friendly and quick to serve up pizza--spicy or otherwise. They didn't break a sweat, even when the line got long with hipsters wanting their spicy pie.
Spicy Pie takes their pizza on the road with the tour circuit. More recently, I got my spicy pie fix at San Francisco's Treasure Island Music Festival in October. Strolling the food vendors, I came spotted the Spicy Pie banner from afar and made an immediate beeline over to get a slice--or three! As soon as I had that pizza in my hand, I dug in, polishing off a slice in mere minutes. It took all my willpower not to devour slice after slice of this spicy concoction. I definitely made a couple more stops at their booth before the end of the evening--and even contemplated getting a slice for the road at the end of the night before I realized they'd already closed up shop.
The only complaint I have about spicy pie? That I can't get any spicy pie here in Monterey! I've managed to get my favorite local pizza shop, Pizza My Way in Pacific Grove, to make me a ghetto spicy pie--adding sliced jalapeños and dried chile flakes to their usual pepperoni pizza. It's good--and a decent substitute for true spicy pie--but I have to admit, it's no substitute for the real deal. read more