Pizza first arrived in the United States with Italian immigrants who settled in cities such as Chicago, New York, and Philadelphia in the late 19th century. It was nothing fancy: a crispy crust, tomato sauce, mozzarella, fresh basil, and olive oil. Later, folks added meats like sausage and pepperoni. As time went on, people began putting all kinds of toppings on pizza. Take Hawaiian pizza, for example. It's a pizza pie featuring bacon or ham and chunks of pineapple. Despite the name and tropical ingredients, Hawaiian pizza did not originate in Hawaii -- it was actually invented by a Greek immigrant who owned a casual restaurant in Ontario, Canada. Sam Panopoulos is credited with first putting pineapple on a pizza at the Satellite Restaurant in Chatham, Ontario, back in 1962. The mix of flavors, he says, was pretty radical at the time.
Pizza's humble beginnings:
- According to Wikipedia, the word "pizza" was first documented in 997 AD in Gaeta, Italy. The first pizza base was probably focaccia, a flat bread known to the Romans as panis focacius.
- Modern pizza is believed to have been developed in Naples, Italy, when tomato was added to the focaccia in the late 18th century.
- Purists say there are only two true pizzas: The marinara, with a topping of tomato, oregano, garlic, and extra virgin olive oil, and the margherita, topped with modest amounts of tomato sauce, mozzarella, and fresh basil.