Don't forget the pizza box in the oven

[alli_wan]

I'd have to agree with the posters who state that nothing flammable should EVER go in the oven.  If you want the pizza away from pets, if you can't put it in the fridge, at least put it on an oven-safe dish.  (That being said, even if the oven isn't on, it's a lousy place to store food.)

My mom would drive me batty with storing stuff in the oven, (as there was no place ELSE to put it when the oven was needed) but at least the only thing in there was ovensafe bakeware.  I have a gas oven now (hate it!) and of course can't put anything in it (other than the oven thermometer of course).

[hobish]

When I bought a new stove, one of my 'must haves' was an oven which would turn itself off after X time.  I really wish the burners had that function too.  I briefly dated a man who burned down Two kitchens.  Yes, two.  One time involved a pizza.  I frequently turn the burner off when the food is almost done, because I forget so often. 

When G & i get a house that is going to be a must-have. We're in an apartment now, so there was no choice. He constantly leaves the oven on.

[adele]

My story about storing things in the oven:

Note: I live with my sister who is a) clueless and b) lazy.

Our oven was very bad. Uneven heating, 2 of 4 hotplates didn't work. We got a new one and while we waited for the tradesman to come and install it, it sat in the corner of the room in it's huge cardboard box.

My sister somehow thinks that doing a (bad job of) the washing up excuses her from all other household chores. So, she was washing the baking dish I used that weekend. This was late Sunday. I was out, got back too late to do anything but shower and fall into bed.

Monday, I trot off to work. While I'm at work, the new oven is installed and the old one taken away.

Later that week, I go looking for my baking dish. My good one, the one I bought out of MY money because I do all the cooking. No sign of it. Go through all the cupboards three times.

Then it hits me. My sister put it on the oven. The OLD oven. The oven that is now gone to the dump. ARRRGH. Then I check again. Not just the good baking dish but the not-so-good baking dish is missing. Sister put BOTH of them in the old oven. I now have NO baking dishes in the house. Double arrrgh!

I still haven't forgiven her but she honestly has no idea. Since then, I've told her not to wash any baking dishes, pots, trays or other cooking stuff. I've had to replace too much of it. (She can wash the plates, mugs and bowls that are heavy enough not to be fragile and the plastic glasses. The rest of it I do my best to get to first.)

[Gwywnnydd]

After that I only made cakes that would fit in the microwave, you have to open that before you turn it on.

Susan

We don't even call ours "the microwave" anymore; we call it "the kitty safe."  Learned this after the third or fourth batch of steaks I set on the counter to marinate "just for a minute" and ended up eating nothing but salad and pasta for dinner... 

     - saphie

The kitten I rescued a few weeks ago is why I put the pizza box in the oven.

That's why pizza goes in the oven in my house . If I don't put it in there, the cat pulls the box onto the floor and eats the rest of the pizza. Then it comes back up in my bedroom, and I step in it in the morning .
 

[Yarnspinner]

Another helpful tip from the sleepy librarian who just tried to burn her entire condo down:

I'm sitting here right now with windows open and fans running (on a fairly chilly april night) because I wanted a cup of tea.  A cup of green tea with anti oxidants to go with a few of the chocolate chip cookies I had just baked and was looking forward to. 

Except...I have these cute, painted tin covers that go over the burners on my stove.  And I carefully removed a cover from the back burner, filled the teapot with tea, put the pot on the back burner and...turned on the front burner which was still covered by a pretty painted lid.

And I went off to watch the opening of a DVD while the water boiled.  Instead, I became aware of peculiar stench and then the smoke alarm near my nedroom went off and I went running in time to see the burning paint from the burner lid.  It is ruined.  I used an oven mitt to put the fire out.  The oven mitt ain't happy.  Nor am I:  in putting the fire out I splashed burnt bits of paint all over the cookies that were cooling on the counter next to the stove.

Let's recap:  Green tea to relax.  Chocolate chip cookies.  All ruined. 

And it's getting cold in here (so much so that kitty such just pushed herself into a teeny corner by the radiator) but I don't want to shut the windows yet because of the smell.

When I screw up I make sure I screw up solidly all around.

[Alida]

ROFLOL!  I'm so glad I'm not the only one who has stood in another room and done the "sniff... sniff... what is.. PIZZA BOX!"

[Kiwichick]

Not quite the same thing but similar.

Kiwiguy and I sat chatting away to each other while the candle on the coffee table burnt through the lid of his open laptop.  It wasn't until we smelt it that we noticed  .  We were less than three feet away at the time.

At least I know I have his undivided attention .

[Mammavan]

All of your who never put a pizza box in the oven - how do you keep the rest of the slices warm while you eat the first ones?  Pizza stone?

I turn the oven on low and keep it in the box in the oven.  Or I mostly do that, except for the ONE time I left it on "Bake" (350) until the smoke wafted into the dining room.

[CosmicPossum]

I never put pizza boxes in the oven, but I have those cheap round metal burner covers to go over the heating elements on my 1950s electric stove.  I have to remember to take them OFF before I cook anything.  More than once I've turned on the wrong burner to preheat and come back to an awful smell, and the picture on the cover turning black and peeling off!

I've burned up so many of those nice burner covers that now my son buys two sets at a time.

[Sophia]

All of your who never put a pizza box in the oven - how do you keep the rest of the slices warm while you eat the first ones?  Pizza stone?

I turn the oven on low and keep it in the box in the oven.  Or I mostly do that, except for the ONE time I left it on "Bake" (350) until the smoke wafted into the dining room.

I always just close the lid while eating the rest.  Then the leftovers go in the fridge in a ziplock.  But, I don't care whether it is piping hot or not. 

[alli_wan]

All of your who never put a pizza box in the oven - how do you keep the rest of the slices warm while you eat the first ones?  Pizza stone?

It really doesn't take me that long to eat pizza, actually.  (It's not like they need rewarming in a restaurant.)  I suppose I could gently microwave it if it grew unpalatably warm.

[twinkletoes]

All of your who never put a pizza box in the oven - how do you keep the rest of the slices warm while you eat the first ones?  Pizza stone?

I turn the oven on low and keep it in the box in the oven.  Or I mostly do that, except for the ONE time I left it on "Bake" (350) until the smoke wafted into the dining room.

Well, in my house, pizza doesn't last long.  The Spouse can put away four, five, six good-sized slices before thinking "gee, this isn't piping hot anymore."  And by that point, he doesn't really care.

[HogwartsAlum]

All of your who never put a pizza box in the oven - how do you keep the rest of the slices warm while you eat the first ones?  Pizza stone?

It really doesn't take me that long to eat pizza, actually.  (It's not like they need rewarming in a restaurant.)  I suppose I could gently microwave it if it grew unpalatably warm.

Same here...I eat two or three slices and then put the rest in the fridge.  When I reheat it, I use the toaster oven, not the microwave.  It makes the crust nice and crunchy.   

[Mammavan]

Great tip for reheating pizza - from Q*u*e*e*r Eye for the St. Guy - saute pan.  Quicker than an oven and better tasting than microwave.

[Sibby]

All of your who never put a pizza box in the oven - how do you keep the rest of the slices warm while you eat the first ones?  Pizza stone?

I turn the oven on low and keep it in the box in the oven.  Or I mostly do that, except for the ONE time I left it on "Bake" (350) until the smoke wafted into the dining room.

I leave the box closed!  I can't stand when people prop open a pizza box top, all it does is cool the pizza - it's not like we need the box open to know whats in it - duh it's pizza!  With the top closed the pizza will stay hot/warm for about half an hour which is plenty of time to eat it or be done enough to put it away.

To all the people who are using ovens, etc to store things from cats... why are your cats jumping on kitchen counters to begin with!?!?!?!  Kinda gross IMO.  And easy to resolve - cats are very, very easily trained with a water gun.  So long as you are consistant, it doesn't take too many squirts to train them countertops & tables are not for cat feet.  (actually you train just about any animal - humans included - with a water gun.  Fish being hte only species water guns are totally unaffective against in my experience.)