Latest news with #News34
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Pizza Week 2025: Factory by Beer Tree
JOHNSON CITY, N.Y. (WIVT/WBGH) – News 34 Pizza Week continues with a stop at the Oakdale Commons. Our Special Pizza Correspondent, Mike Tanzini, shows us how Factory by Beer Tree is brewing up the perfect pizza to partner with its craft beer. Shake, Shimmy, Pivot, Turn. Are these dance moves? Not quite. These are the moves you need to master if you're going to be a successful pizza maker at Factory by Beer Tree Brew, an anchor tenant located at the ever-improving Oakdale Commons. Known for its good vibes and wide selection of cold, crisp craft beer, Factory also offers both traditional and non-traditional pizza pies to keep people coming back. Server and Bartender Jackie Ryder says their location is always booming with new customers. 'It's brought in a lot of people as well. The new Dave and Busters is bringing in a lot of people from out of town. They don't have a whole lot of craft beer, so we have the craft beer that brings people in,' said Ryder. Those pizza patrons keep coming back once they've had a chance to try a Factory Pie – a recipe that prides itself on simplicity, quality, and flavor. The dough is a hybrid of a Neapolitan-style and a semolina dough. 'Both of those doughs are high in protein and gluten, which makes for an airier, softer, chewier, but crisp pizza crust on the outside as well,' said Pizza Maker Nick Aiken. The dough is lightly coated in flour on both sides, and all of the air is pressed out of it which is critical for even cooking. 'You want to push out any air bubbles you might feel because you want to eliminate as many air sockets as you possibly can, so once it's going into the oven, it's an even cook,' said Aiken. Nick also shows me the proper way to spread and expand the dough. 'This is my dominant hand so I want to move this.' 'It's repetition and muscle memory. You'll get a feel for it,' said Aiken. This prevents holes from forming, a lesson that I could've used earlier this week! It's a good way to keep from tearing or ripping or creating too much pressure to make this side of the pizza a little thinner. This helps with the balance and even cooking along with the integrity of the dough. I hate to say it, but we learned that through experience this week. Now, the moment of truth – can we transfer the dough onto the peel without ripping it? 'This is kind of like putting the baby to bed – nice and gentle – no tears.' Now it's time to lay on the sauce – no fancy gimmicks or tricks – just simple, quality, fresh ingredients. 'What we like to say is that simplicity is king. We let the ingredients, the dough, and cheese itself do a lot of the talking. This is really simple. We have a tomato and a roasted garlic base, and we add herbs and spices just to bring it to life a little bit, but that's as much as I can tell you,' said Aiken. Nick applies the sauce using a cross pattern, which is a first for News 34 Pizza Week! 'The cross method. I don't think I've ever seen that before.' 'That's something you just learn through the trade. Some people make a spiral, some make a cross, and that helps cover the surface area so all of the parts touch that sauce instead of starting at one end and trying to disperse it throughout the rest of the pizza. You end up running out of sauce at the end, and it helps provide an event coat,' said Aikan. The toppings are applied underneath the cheese which creates a unique flavor combination that complements and melds all of the ingredients together for that perfect bite. And don't think that they're just tossing down toppings willy-nilly. Nick wants each customer to have a consistent experience, so you'd better count your pepperoni. 'I don't want a single pepperoni under 23 or 24,' said Aikan. 'I think we're at like 22 and a half. I'm just trying to get creative here. Here's a half and three-quarters, and we're around the magic number. You can't take that out of Jim's pay. Sorry, Jim – the pizza business is tough.' We top the pies with a special trifecta of mozzarella, provolone, and cheddar cheeses, and we carefully place them into the 600-to-800-degree wood fire oven. We shimmy, shimmy, shake it in, and then swing and pivot when it's taken out,' said Aiken. 'Ok, now pivot and turn. The pivot is key.' Even with two left feet, I managed to land the pie safely on the dance floor. Time to celebrate our masterpiece and take a bit with my new Factory friends. 'Here we go, one bite, everyone knows the rules.' Cheers! You can watch Pizza Week episodes and vote in our favorite pizza poll here. BCSO Featured Warrant: Michael Pavlisak Undocumented man to be deported after raping, strangling woman in Delaware County Pizza Week 2025: Factory by Beer Tree 'Market Greens' addresses food insecurity in local community Fill the Bus Campaign raises money for local food bank Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
News 34 going off the air for maintenance
BINGHAMTON, N.Y. (WIVT/WBGH) – WIVT/WBGH will be going off the air at noon for tower and transmitter maintenance. We expect the outage to last approximately two hours. We apologize for the inconvenience. News 34 going off the air for maintenance Tioga County Names New District #5 Legislator SUNY Broome's 'Walk-in Wednesday' empowers adult learners High pressure returns sunshine and hazy skies today Pizza Week 2025: Mario's Pizza in Owego Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Pizza Week 2025: Mario's Pizza in Owego
OWEGO, N.Y. (WIVT/WBGH) – News 34 is excited to announce the return of Pizza Week. 34 alum and now special pizza correspondent Mike Tanzini is resuming his tour of local pizzerias. First, Mike takes us out to Owego to learn about a familiar family recipe. 'It's just an ongoing tradition and a family-run business,' said Mario's Owner Jerry Pettinato. A staple in Owego, Mario's Pizza has been in business for over 45 years. A lot can change in four and a half decades. But if you ask Jerry Pettinato, if something ain't broke, you don't fix it. 'It hasn't been tweaked, it has not been changed, it's been the same recipe,' said Pettinato. Jerry knows a thing or two about the pizza business. His father and family managed an Italian restaurant in the Scranton area that's been in operation since the 1920s. Meanwhile, Jerry's father-in-law opened Mario's Pizza in the late 1970s. It wasn't long before Jerry jumped into the pizza biz to continue the family tradition. 'Between my wife being in the business, me being familiar with that, it seemed like a natural progression with me to get into this,' said Pettinato. It's a full family effort as Jerry, Amanda, Vinny, and Gina all work together to make the signature Mario's pizza, which starts with dough made fresh each day using a blend of flour, water, sugar, salt, and a special yeast. 'Fresh yeast is extremely fragile. It can't sit for a long time, or it will lose its potency,' said Pettinato. The dough will ferment for 24 to 36 hours, which enhances its flavor and makes it light, airy, and easy to work with. 'You go all the way around. Give it a little tug and pull. Let gravity stretch it out. Give it a little tug and a little turn. Unfortunately, it took me a little while to really get the technique. It's not about speed…oh there it goes. I jinxed myself here. Is this fixable? This is the magic of television. When this comes out, you probably won't be able to tell there was a hole in it,' said Pettinato. Next, it's time to drop down the sauce. 'One scoop of sauce dead center – kind of like target practice here,' said Pettinato. Mario's utilizes fresh California tomatoes. 'You want the best that you can possibly get. It's been the same brand of tomato for 45 years. That company is strict with their tolerances, and everything is perfect' said Pettinato. Along with a special blend of Italian seasonings, which packs a punch of fresh flavor. As with any loyal family business, Jerry isn't budging on revealing the family recipe. 'There are some traditional Italian seasonings. A little bit of TLC, a little bit of love, and we'll… just leave it at that,' said Pettinato. Now, time for the 100% whole milk, full cream mozzarella cheese that's going to melt beautifully and blanket our pie. After spreading what I'd consider a perfect layer of cheese, I feel like it might be time for a promotion! 'I'm in charge. My first order of business is giving everyone a half day. Jim is going to stay and make pizza with me.' After several minutes in the oven, we take it out, cut it up, and get ready to enjoy a meal as a family – the same meal that Mario's has been serving to customers, both young and old. 'They've been with us for generations. It's more than 45 years that we've been here. We're on second and third generations now coming up and seeing their kids and grandkids come in and have that same smile on their face when they take that first bite of pizza,' said Pettinato. I want to thank everybody at Mario's for helping me be a part of the family and for creating their signature Mario's pizza. There are some places out there that say, 'When you're here, you're family.' I can tell you firsthand that when you're down at Mario's, you're part of La Famiglia. Mario's is located at 51 Fox Street in Owego, which is the only location owned by the Pettinato family. Next, Mike heads to Vestal to learn about another long-time pizza staple in our community. Meanwhile, you can vote for your favorite local pie in our pizza poll by clicking here. Pizza Week 2025: Mario's Pizza in Owego 'Hurlyburly' at KNOW Theatre Demolition of IBM Old Building Group nears completion Van Cott Jewelers announces official closing date Hanagan's Heroes monument to be relocated to Southside Veterans Park Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Riley supporting loan forgiveness for volunteer first responders
WASHINGTON, FC (WIVT/WBGH) — Congressman Josh Riley is making sure volunteer heroes receive the respect and support that they deserve. Riley announced his co-sponsorship of the Helping Emergency Responders Overcome Emergency Situations, or HEROES, Act. The initiative is a bipartisan bill that would extend eligibility for the federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness program to include volunteer firefighters and emergency medical responders. 'If you've put on the gear and answered the call, you shouldn't be buried in debt,' said Riley. 'The HEROES Act gives volunteer firefighters the respect they've earned by making their service count toward student loan forgiveness. They don't do it for the money—they do it because they love their communities and want to keep their neighbors safe.' According to Riley, the HEROES Act would amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to recognize the service of unpaid emergency responders as qualifying public service under the PSLF program, making them eligible for federal student loan forgiveness after ten years of service and qualifying payments. Riley supporting loan forgiveness for volunteer first responders P. East Trading Corp recalls Salted Smoked Split Herring 'It Ain't Necessarily So' discusses American Black history A mix of sun and showers today News 34 Pizza Week returns Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Make-A-Wish Open returns for 27th year
TOWN OF UNION, N.Y. (WIVT/WBGH) – A day on the golf course helped raise critical funding to make the wishes of some special children come true. The Nelcorp Electrical/Northeast Drilling Make-A-Wish Open took place on Monday at Traditions at the Glen. This is the 27th year that the tournament has raised money to grant wishes for children facing serious medical challenges. The money is generated through entry fees, auction items, raffles, and donations. The Make-A-Wish chapter in Central New York currently has a waiting list of 116 kids, with 21 of them in the Southern Tier. Tom Augostini is a board member whose brother, Vincent, received a wish when he was a child. 'This is a way to provide some relief, some hope, some inspiration, and just to be able to raise money and to grant a once-in-a-lifetime wish, it's a great cause,' said Augostini. The tournament has successfully granted 14 children from Broome, Otsego, Chenango, and Tioga counties' wishes within the past year. 298 have received wishes since the tournament began. For more information, visit News 34 Pizza Week returns 72-year-old biker travels U.S. to raise money for American Cancer Society Security Mutual Week begins in Binghamton Meldrim's Paint hosts grand opening celebration Business of the Week: Fahs Construction Group Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
