Pizza, Apparently.
After asking a few friends, I was told I should write my first post about pizza. Just for kicks and curiosity, I decided to google "pizza".
The results were very disappointing. I had to scroll through over a dozen pizza restaurant websites, just to reach three to four different recipe websites for different types of pizza. In none of the links of the first page were there links to information on health, history, or criticism.
If that isn't an interesting, then I will continue to describe my search for information on pizza.
After searching "pizza" I clicked a follow-up link that said "history of pizza". Sadly, that lead to the sadly short wikipedia page on "Pizza" which does have an extension page on the "History of Pizza". I would go on to tell you the interesting things I have learned about the history of pizza, but that is not the subject I wanted to talk about. So, what I learned from this wikipedia page on pizza is that pizza:
-(has a) History
-(contains) Cooking Ingredients
-(includes) Toppings
-(May have) Varieties
-(there is) Consumption (of it)
-(There are) Records (related to it)
-(There are) Health Issues (that come with eating it. Surprise, surprise)
and, of course, there are "Similar Dishes".
I was particularly interested in the varieties of pizzas, so I decided to scroll down the that section of the article.
To my disappointment, but not surprise, there was not much to the "Varieties" section. There was summary of different types of Italian pizzas and then a couple facts about the consumption of pizza in a couple different countries.
So I scoured the page for more about different types of pizzas. That is when I found out that the main page was part of a series of pages on pizza. I looked, and voila, there were several pages on pizza varieties, starting from California Style (which is actually the type of pizza I eat most) to Neapolitan style (which is insanely complicated) to Pizza al taglio (pizza for SQUARES. Ha. I made a funny) to Tomato pie (inverted pizza toppings).
After some research on Varieties, I thought I'd browse the pizza tools, since I was on this pizza research kick, anyways.
There is the beloved Pizza Cutter, of course. This handy-dandy tool is either shaped as a wheel or a crescent-moon shape. Those are called Mezzuluna. Mezzulunas are also used for cutting herbs and have special cutting boards that come along with them. These cutting boards have indentations that the blades can cut into.
There is the (dun dun dun duuuun ~these are heroic "dun"s~) Pizza Saver! The pizza saver is also known as a "pizza table". (I can hear the "Aaaaahhh"s, now) These keep pizzas from being ruined in the box if the cardboard want a taste of your delicious meal, also.
There are pizza baking stones. (My father uses one of these, though it is unfortunately not all together anymore.)
There is the Peel, which i just found out the name, even though we own one of these. These are the big board things that look like a flattened wooden spoon. They are used to...get this..peel the pizza off of the baking stone.
Then there is the Masonry, which is basically the big fire oven.
So after learning all this I decided that I would check out the short article on the World Pizza Championship. This is an even that people have to compete for best pizza maker in several different categories and ways. From fastest to pretties, these pizza makers come from all over the world to show people they have dedicated their lives to the life of pie. (Speaking of, next post will, in fact, be about pie, the desert.)
After some good factual learning from the oh-so-virtuous wikipedia, I decided it was high time I talked about my feelings about pizza.
I grew up with pizza. My grandparents, my siblings, and I once went on a hunt to find the best tasting and quality pizza around the area. We decided that Casey's gestation pizza was the best, and the second was Pizza Hut's pizza. Later, I learned that Shakespeare's pizza was the reigning champion of pizza making. They also sell ridiculously large soda cups that you get to take home. My opinion since then has not changed, though my tastes in pizza has varied since then. My absolute favorite is green pepper and mushroom pizza, though my family and friends think I'm gross for liking it. Some meats are good on pizza, but I am strictly against pepperoni. I have a sensitivity to spicy foods, which my family and friends also do not get.
One of my absolute idols, John Green, is completely obsessed with pizza. He, in fact, has a shirt that is a picture of him with a mustache and the word "Pizza" under it in large, bold letters.
One could say I have been influenced by pizza my entire life.
This brings me to my final topic: Is Pizza Trying To Take Over The World?
Honestly? I do not think so. I think pizza is a wonderful food that can be used to bring people together. No one can eat a large pizza alone without feeling the need to share.
We all want to share our pizza and time with people.
It's a way of bringing people together through the power of food.
It's not world domination.
It's world congregation.
Have a wonderful day, and smile! <3
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pizza