The popular Italian food, pizza, is one of the best foods ever! Everyone loves it, but nobody truly realizes the rich history it has! From its beginnings with the Egyptians and Greeks to its popularity in recent times makes it a fan favorite! Let’s learn more about this delicious food!

Pizza’s History:

Dating back thousands of years, pizza gained popularity with the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans. Initially, the food consisted of flatbread with various toppings of the time. As time passed, the pizza we know and love, with its cheeses and tomato sauces, was created in Naples, Italy. Street vendors and talented local cooks made amazing flatbreads topped with fresh tomatoes, creamy cheese, garlic, anchovies, and a drizzle of oil, bringing to life a dish that was not only accessible but delicious! This flatbread was called "pizzaiola" or "Pomodoro e Mozzarella," which truly laid the foundation for the pizza we know and love today!

In the late 1800s, a pizza maker named Raffaele Esposito made a special pizza for Queen Margherita of Savoy. He used red tomatoes, white mozzarella, and green basil to show the colors of the Italian flag. The pizza became very popular and was named Pizza Margherita to honor the queen.

In the United States, pizza originated from Italian immigrants who traveled to New York. Gennaro Lombardi, an Italian immigrant, opened the first pizzeria in the United States in 1905 in Little Italy. Lombardi used a coal oven and thin crust, creating the New York style. His trainees opened other famous pizzerias, such as Totonno’s (1924) and John’s of Bleecker Street (1929). Pizza soon became popular in Chicago, as after World War II, Ike Sewell invented deep-dish pizza at Pizzeria Uno. This Chicago-style pizza spread throughout the country and soon became a staple of the food scene. In the late 20th century, California developed its own style with unique toppings like goat cheese, artichokes, and truffles. Ed LaDou created this style while working for Wolfgang Puck at Spago. LaDou later joined California Pizza Kitchen and helped popularize the barbecue chicken pizza.

Quick Facts: Pizza Today

• Kids aged 3 to 11 say pizza is their top choice for lunch and dinner, according to a recent Gallup Poll.

• Americans consume around 350 slices of pizza every second (that’s about 100 acres of pizza a day)!

• Pepperoni is America’s favorite pizza topping, followed by extra cheese, sausage, mushrooms, green peppers, and onions. Anchovies come in last.

• The United States is home to roughly 61,269 pizzerias, serving up slices nationwide.

• About 3 billion pizzas are sold in the U.S. every year

• Pizza has an estimated value of $37 billion, making it super valuable to the American economy!

So, do you like pizza? What are your favorite toppings??