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Pizza Facts

Pizza Facts
Pizza is a type of flatbread made with yeast, and topped with a variety of ingredients including cheese and sauce. The term 'pizza' was first used in 997 AD in Gaeta, Italy. Foods that resemble pizza have been around since the Neolithic period. Ancient Greeks added oil and cheese and herbs to the top of their bread, while flatbread with cheese and dates were baked on the top of soldier's shields in the armies of Persian King Darius I. The modern, flatbread pizzas of today originated in Naples, Italy, in the 1700s. Tomatoes may not have been an original topping, but cheese, garlic, salt, and lard were common toppings. Pizza came to the United States in the late 1800s in Italian neighborhoods. The first pizzeria in the United States was Lombardi's, which opened in 1905, in Manhattan, NYC.
Interesting Pizza Facts:
Although pizza in the U.S. was originally sold only as the whole pizza pie, in 1933 Patsy's Pizzeria in NYC started selling slices.
The Hawaiian pizza was invented in Canada in 1962 by a Greek pizzeria owner named Sam Panopoulos.
During WWII many soldiers from the U.S. and Europe began to taste pizza in Italy and came home craving the food. Pizza was already being sold in the U.S. but it became more popular after the war.
It is estimated that people in the United States spend $37 billion on pizza each year.
The most expensive pizza in the world is prepared by chef Renato Viola, in the customer's house, at a cost of $12,000. It includes lobster and caviar toppings and champagne on the side.
October is National Pizza Month in the United States, a tradition since 1987.
Super Bowl Sunday is the highest sale day for pizza in the United States.
In India, the most popular pizza toppings include pickled ginger, tofu, and minced mutton.
In the United States the most popular topping on pizza is pepperoni. Other popular toppings include mushrooms, onions, chicken, sausage and pineapple.
The most popular pizza crust worldwide is the thin crust.
The largest pizza on record in the world was 131 feet in diameter. It was made in Italy by Dovilio Nardi and named Ottavia after Rome's first emperor. It was made gluten-free to help bring awareness to celiac disease.
Mozzarella is one of the most popular cheeses used in making pizza as it has many good qualities including good elasticity, stretch-ability, and less free oil. The four main types of mozzarella are mozzarella di bufala, fior di latte, burrata, and pizza cheese.
A ball of pizza dough that has been stretched is referred to as skin.
Pepperoni are often referred to as 'flyers' because of the way they are tossed around like Frisbees.
Pizza makers refer to the pizza dough's internal cell structure as 'the crumb' and the ideal crust has large air pockets.
Pizza Hut delivered a six inch salami pizza to the International Space Station in 2001. This became the first pizza delivery in history to space.
Bill Murray and Stephen Baldwin both worked at pizzerias before becoming famous.


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