Pizza is an Italian dish consisting of a flat base of leavened wheat-based dough topped with tomato, cheese, and other ingredients, baked at a high temperature, traditionally in a wood-fired oven.
A calzone is an Italian oven-baked turnover, made with leavened dough. It originated in Naples in the 18th century. A typical calzone is made from salted bread dough, baked in an oven and stuffed with salami, ham or vegetables, mozzarella, ricotta and Parmesan or pecorino cheese, as well as an egg. Different regional variations in or on a calzone can often include other ingredients that are normally associated with pizza toppings. The term usually applies to an oven-baked turnover rather than a fried pastry, though calzoni and panzerotti are often mistaken for each other.
Raffaele Esposito was an Italian chef and owner of a tavern in Naples called Pizzeria di Pietro e basta così in the 19th century that had been founded in 1780 by Pietro Colicchio. Esposito is considered by some to be the father of modern pizza.
New York–style pizza is a pizza made with a characteristically large hand-tossed thin crust, often sold in wide slices to go. The crust is thick and crisp only along its edge, yet soft, thin, and pliable enough beneath its toppings to be folded in half to eat. Traditional toppings are simply tomato sauce and shredded mozzarella cheese. This was a popular meal amongst poor Italians due to the ratio of product from the limited produce.
New Haven–style pizza is a style of thin-crust, coal-fired Neapolitan pizza common in and around New Haven, Connecticut. Locally known as apizza, it originated in 1925 at the Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana and is now served in many other pizza restaurants in the area, most notably Sally's Apizza and Modern Apizza. This geographically limited pizza style has been favorably regarded by national critics.
The World Pizza Championship is an event held annually for three days in April since 1991 in Salsomaggiore Terme (Parma), Italy, although several other cities likewise claim to be the home of the ultimate international pizza games including Naples and Paris. Organized by Pizza E Pasta Italiana magazine, the 30th edition of the competition was held from April 18-20, 2023. More than 700 chefs from 52 countries compete in 12 categories. The World Pizza Championship includes six categories in the baking competition, three categories in the pizza game competition, the pizza team award, the Heinz Beck trophy awarded to pizzeria chefs, and the triathlon award given for the highest average score in 3 separate categories. All culinary scores are figured from 800 as perfect, with each contestant rated by cooking prowess, sanitation, presentation, taste, and knowledge of the pizza. It is the largest pizza show in the world with over 6,500 independent chain and franchise owners from all around the world attending. The winners are inducted into their Hall of Fame and are sometimes invited back to judge the next World Pizza Championship.
Sicilian pizza is a pizza prepared in a manner that originated in Sicily, Italy. Sicilian pizza is also known as sfincione or focaccia with toppings. This type of pizza became a popular dish in western Sicily by the mid-19th century and was the type of pizza usually consumed in Sicily until the 1860s. It eventually reached North America in a slightly altered form, with thicker crust and a rectangular shape.
The history of pizza begins in antiquity, as various ancient cultures produced flatbreads with several toppings.
Caprese salad is an Italian salad, made of sliced fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, and sweet basil, seasoned with salt, and olive oil. It is usually arranged on a plate in restaurant practice. Like pizza Margherita, it features the colours of the Italian flag: green, white, and red. In Italy, it is usually served as an antipasto (starter), not a contorno, and it may be eaten any time of day. The caprese salad is one form of a caprese dish; it may also be served as a caprese pizza, pasta, or sandwich.
A panzerotto, also known as panzarotto, is a savory turnover, that originated in central and southern Italian cuisine, which resembles a small calzone, both in shape and dough used for its preparation. The term usually applies to a fried turnover rather than an oven-baked pastry, though calzoni and panzerotti are often mistaken for each other.
Neapolitan cuisine has ancient historical roots that date back to the Greco-Roman period, which was enriched over the centuries by the influence of the different cultures that controlled Naples and its kingdoms, such as that of Aragon and France.
Neapolitan pizza, also known as Naples-style pizza, is a style of pizza made with tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. The tomatoes must be either San Marzano tomatoes or pomodorini del Piennolo del Vesuvio, which grow on the volcanic plains to the south of Mount Vesuvius. The cheese must be mozzarella di bufala campana, a protected designation of origin cheese made with the milk from water buffalo raised in the marshlands of Campania and Lazio in a semi-wild state, or fior di latte, a cow's milk mozzarella created according to the procedure for which it was registered as a traditional speciality guaranteed (TSG). Pizza napoletana is a TSG product in the European Union and the United Kingdom, and the art of its making is included on UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage.
Pizza arrived in the United States in the early 20th century along with waves of Italian immigrants who settled primarily in the larger cities of the Northeast, such as New York, Philadelphia, Boston and Baltimore. After American soldiers stationed in Italy returned from World War II, pizza and pizzerias rapidly grew in popularity.
Carne pizzaiola or carne alla pizzaiola, sometimes referred to just as pizzaiola, is a dish derived from the Neapolitan and Apulian tradition that features meat cooked with tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, and white wine long enough to tenderize the meat. Most versions also include tomato paste, oregano and basil.
Tutta Bella Neapolitan Pizzeria is an Italian restaurant chain with six locations in Washington, United States. The first location was founded in 2004. The restaurant specializes in "authentic" Neapolitan pizza and is certified by the non-profit Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana which certifies pizzerias that use traditional ingredients and processes. Tutta Bella was the first restaurant in the Pacific Northwest to receive such certification.
Pizza marinara, also known as pizza alla marinara, is a style of pizza in Neapolitan cuisine seasoned with only tomato sauce, extra virgin olive oil, oregano and garlic. It is supposedly the oldest tomato-topped pizza.
Casatiello is a leavened savory bread originating from Naples prepared during the Easter period.
Franco Pepe is an Italian award winning pizzaiolo, internationally recognized as one of the best in the world. He is the owner of Pepe In Grani restaurant in Caiazzo, Italy, and is featured in one of the episodes of Netflix's docu-series Chef's Table: Pizza.
