Appliance to cook pizza

A cooking appliance configured to cook pizza, the cooking appliance including:

• a body providing a floor, a ceiling and an intermediate wall locating between the floor and ceiling, the floor, ceiling, and wall at least partly surrounding a cooking cavity, the body having an opening via which a pizza to be cooked can be moved relative to the cavity;
• at least one upper heating element located in an upper portion of the cavity;
• and
• at least one annular shield circumferentially extending around the ceiling with respect to an axis that is located centrally of the ceiling and extends perpendicularly between the floor and the ceiling, the shield being configured to reduce the radiant energy from the at least one upper heating element reaching a centre portion of the pizza,
• wherein the shield has a height extending from the ceiling in a downwardly direction,
• wherein an annular channel-like region is formed between the ceiling and the shield within which the at least one upper heating element is located, the at least one upper heating element being located radially outwards relative to the shield, and
• wherein a recess is disposed radially inward of the shield, the recess being downwardly open to the cooking cavity towards the floor.