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 ITALIAN PIZZA
In its basic form, a pizza (occasionally, pizza pie) is an oven-baked, flat, usually circular bread covered with tomato sauce and cheese with optional garnishes.
The cheese is usually mozzarella or "pizza cheese". Various other foodstuffs can be added to this design as garnishes, most typically ground meats and sausages, such as salami, pepperoni, ham, bacon and ground beef; fruits such as pineapple and olives; vegetable-like fruits such as chili peppers, sweet bell peppers and tomatoes; and vegetables such as onions. Mushrooms are also a popular topping. The crust is traditionally plain but can be flavoured with butter, garlic, herbs, or sesame. Pizza is normally eaten hot (typically at lunch or dinner), but leftovers are often eaten cold, typically at breakfast or on a picnic.
Pizza is eaten in restaurants sometimes called pizzerias or pizza parlors. It can also be purchased in grocery stores or supermarkets; in many countries, pizza can also be ordered by phone (or, increasingly, via the Web) to be delivered, hot and ready for eating, to the home.
The word "pizza" is from the Italian word pizza, originally meaning "cake, tart, pie".
AUTHENTIC NEAPOLITAN PIZZA ('A PIZZA NAPOLETANA)
According to the Associazione vera pizza napoletana, genuine Neapolitan pizza dough consists of wheat flour, natural yeast or brewer's yeast, and water. For proper results, strong flour with high protein content (as used for bread-making rather than cakes) must be used. The dough must be kneaded by hand or with an approved mixer. After the rising process, the dough must be formed by hand without the help of a rolling pin or any other mechanical device, and may be no more than 0.3 cm thick. Baking the pizza must take place in a wood-fired, stone oven at 485°C (905°F) for 60-90 seconds. When cooked, it should be soft and fragrant.
The classic types and their respective toppings include:
• Marinara or Napoletana: tomato, olive oil, oregano, and garlic.
• Margherita: tomato, olive oil, fresh basil leaves, and fior-di-latte (mozzarella made from cow's milk) or mozzarella di bufala.
• Formaggio e Pomodoro: tomato, olive oil, and grated parmesan cheese. Basil leaves are optional.
Turnovers in the pizza family:
• Ripieno or Calzone: fior-di-latte or mozzarella di bufala, sometimes also ricotta cheese, olive oil, and salami, other meats, vegetables, etc.
• Stromboli: mozzarella, meat, vegetables, etc.
HISTORY OF PIZZA
Flat breads are an ancient tradition round the Mediterranean. Perhaps of ancient Persian origin, such bread was introduced to Magna Graecia (southern Italy) by its earliest Greek colonists.
Pizza arguably has its first literary mention in Book VII of Virgil's Aeneid: 'Their homely fare dispatch’d, the hungry band/Invade their trenchers next, and soon devour,/To mend the scanty meal, their cakes of flour./Ascanius this observ’d, and smiling said:/“See, we devour the plates on which we fed.”' In the 3rd century B.C., the first history of Rome, written by Marcus Porcius Cato, mentions a "flat round of dough dressed with olive oil, herbs, and honey baked on stones". Further evidence is found in 79 A.D. from the remains of Pompeii; archeologists excavated shops that closely resemble a present day pizzeria.
The tomato was first believed to be poisonous (as most other fruits of the nightshade family are), when it came to Europe in the 16th century. However, by the late 18th century even the poor of the area around Naples added it as an ingredient to their yeast-based flat bread, and the dish gained in popularity. Pizza became a tourist attraction, and visitors to Naples ventured into the poorer areas of the city to try the local specialty.
The earliest pizzeria opened in 1830 at Via Port'Alba 18 in Naples and is still in business today. Pizza was still considered "poor man's food" in 1889 when Rafaele Esposito, the most famous pizzaiolo of Naples, was summoned before King Umberto I and Queen Margherita of Savoy to prepare the local specialty. It is said that he made two traditional ones and additionally created one in the colours of the Italian flag with red tomato sauce, white mozzarella cheese, and green basil leaves. The Queen was delighted and "pizza Margherita" was born.
An Italian immigrant to the US in 1897 named Gennaro Lombardi opened a small grocery store in New York's Little Italy. An employee of his, Antonio Totonno Pero (also an Italian immigrant) began making pizza for the store to sell. Their pizza became so popular, Lombardi opened the first US pizzeria in 1905, naming it simply Lombardi's. In 1924, Totonno left Lombardi's to open his own pizzeria on Coney Island called Totonno's. At this point in time in the U.S., pizza consumption was still limited mostly to the Italian immigrant crowd.
The international breakthrough came after World War II. Although the birthplace of modern day pizza is Naples, local bakers were at a loss to satisfy the demand from American soldiers. While the American troops involved in the Italian campaign took their appreciation for the dish back home, the millions of Italians called to help rebuild the damaged economy introduced their cuisine to the rest of Europe.
With the rising popularity in the 1950s, especially in the US, pizza became a component of the growing chain-restaurant industry. Because pizzas can be made quickly and are easily transported, most pizza restaurants in the United States offer call-in pizza delivery services. The lack of such delivery services at the time in England was the focus of an extended passage in the Douglas Adams novel The Long Dark Teatime of the Soul.
In most developed countries, pizza is also found in supermarkets as a frozen food. Considerable amounts of food technology has gone into the creation of palatable frozen pizzas. The main challenges include preventing the sauce from combining with the dough and producing a crust that can be frozen and reheated without becoming rigid. Modified corn starch is commonly used as a moisture barrier between the sauce and crust; traditionally the dough is somewhat pre-baked and other ingredients are also sometimes pre-cooked; lately, frozen pizzas with completely raw ingredients have also begun to appear.
Retrieved from Wikipedia.org
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Images of Italy - Italian Pizza
THE FIRST PIZZERIA:
The earliest pizzeria opened in 1830 at Via Port'Alba 18 in Naples and is still in business today.
Pizza was still considered "poor man's food" in 1889 when Rafaele Esposito, the most famous pizzaiolo of Naples, was summoned before King Umberto I and Queen Margherita of Savoy to prepare the local specialty.
It is said that he made two traditional ones and additionally created one in the colours of the Italian flag with red tomato sauce, white mozzarella cheese, and green basil leaves. The Queen was delighted and "pizza Margherita" was born.
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Vino
Stong, Michel
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Trattoria
Stong, Michel
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