| You trudge through the cafeteria line, not quite sure | | | | The pizza sitting on your plate came from Italian |
| what dubious culinary delight will await you further | | | | immigrants and was made popular by WWII soldiers, |
| down. The smells that saunter toward your nose are | | | | who couldn't forget that particular taste of Italy. Today |
| varied and difficult to dissect. Then suddenly you get a | | | | you can find pizza's cousins all over the United States |
| peek. Oh joy, it's pizza! But wait! Where exactly did it | | | | (and the world) - deep dish in Chicago, thin crust in |
| come from? No, don't try to look through the kitchen | | | | New York, and more! |
| doors. Let's peer into the depths of history to see | | | | Now that you know more about one of your favorite |
| where pizza was born. | | | | foods, go mark February 9th on your calendar. It's |
| The origin of pizza is a long and winding trail, and in | | | | International Pizza Pie day! |
| order to simplify it, we will look at it like a family tree. | | | | Fun Facts: |
| Where do you think pizza was born - Italy? Well, you | | | | -According to the Guinness World Records, the largest |
| are only half right. The great-grandparent of pizza is | | | | pizza ever baked was one measuring 37.4 m (122 ft 8 |
| the flat bread, and that can be traced back to the | | | | in) in diameter, made at Norwood Hypermarket, |
| Stone Age. This great-grandparent made its happy | | | | Norwood, South Africa on December 8, 1990. The |
| way all through the ancient world. | | | | Norwood pizza's diameter was 3.5 m (11.5 ft) larger |
| Then a version of this flat bread, pizza's grandparent, | | | | than the previous world record set by Pizza Hut, |
| was born. We can't be exactly sure where in the | | | | Singapore, in June, 1990. The ingredients included 4,500 |
| Mediterranean it began, but we do know it traveled | | | | kg (9920 lb) of flour, 90 kg (198 lb) of salt, 1,800 kg |
| through Babylonia, Greece, and Italy. Sometimes called | | | | (3,968 lb) of cheese, and 900 kg (1,984 lb) of tomato |
| focaccia, it is flat bread jazzed up with spices, herbs, | | | | puree. (Source: For more fun pizza records, click the |
| oils, cheese, and other regional, readily available items. | | | | source link and search "pizza". |
| Pizza's parent was born when some daredevil, suicidal | | | | -Milk from the water buffalo was made for the early |
| maniac or just one desperately hungry dude, in the | | | | (and currently considered best) mozzarella cheeses. |
| mid-1700s, decided to add a tomato. You laugh, but | | | | -The tomato was first discovered in Peru. |
| when the tomato plant was imported from the New | | | | -Pizza is only beat out by the hamburger as the most |
| World, people thought it was poisonous. Once they got | | | | popular fast food. I think that would change if pizza |
| over their poisoning fear, pizza took on a whole new | | | | places had drive-thrus! |
| look and dimension. Even though pizza's parent was | | | | -People in the US gobble up 350 slices of pizza a |
| still considered peasant food, it became fit for both | | | | second! |
| royalty and the common folk. In fact, in the late 1800s, | | | | -Weirdest topping I've personally come across in the |
| a very special pizza, called the Margherita, was | | | | world? (Which makes this point more "odd |
| created for Italy's king and queen and is still an Italian | | | | observation" than "fun fact.") It's a tie between peas |
| pizza classic. | | | | and tuna fish! |