The pizza history
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Baking pizzas has been considered a craft in Naples, since the 16th century. The first pizzas were produced and enjoyed by the common man. The topping was primarily olive oil, shredded cheese, lard, garlic and basil. Soon they became popular in all parts of society.
Around 1750, King Ferdinand the First of Bourbon and his Queen Carolina of Austria appointed the inn- |
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keeper Domenico Testa from Capodimonte to be Royal Pizzabaker at the Court of Naples. (Sounds like a joke, but it is not.)
1835. The French author, Alexandre Dumas (1802 - 1870) noted in his diary that he had seen "oilish
Bread with Tomatooes and Fish" being served in the Naplese inns.
After the unification of the Italy, Queen Margherita arranged a pizza competition in June 1889. Every single baker in Naples took part in the fierce race to impress the Queen. Eventually, the humble Esposito was victorious. His winning recipe indluded simple things like tomatoo, Mozarella cheese, olive oil and basil. He named it after the Queen, thus making pizza history by giving the world its first Margherita, perhaps today's most famous and bestselling pizza.
Though time, technology and taste have changed the world dramatically since the first breads were served for astonished Naplese men and women, pizzamaking is still a simple procedure of combining fresh raw materials with craftsmanship and keeping an eye on the oven.
Yet these rules are far from obeyed in all pizzarias - inside and outside Italy. Numerous strange pizzas have left electric ovens. At La Vecchia Signora, we honor the old traditions and make pizzas like it was part of the great competition of 1889.
