Once Upon A Time in Naples
Flatbreads of sorts had been being eaten for centuries over much of the world but the lightbulb moment of topping these delicious dough creations with tomatoes and cheese happened in Naples. Many Europeans were initially untrustworthy of the tomato; believing them to be poisonous and throwing them out. But enterprising peasants on the streets of Naples (with no such qualms about the potential death these red fruits could potentially cause) began to devour them on flatbreads and soon enough these (and other differently topped ‘flatbreads’) were available throughout the city.
Word spread throughout Europe as writers and travellers of the late 19th century would look to seek out the poorest parts of the city in hopes of sampling this… this… bread thing! And by the end of the Second World War the secret was well and truly out and pizza was on its way to becoming a global sensation
By the 1980’s some in Naples began to worry that the quality of pizza’s bearing the Neapolitan pizza name weren’t quite up to the standards the city demanded. The US pizza scene formed when first generation Italian immigrants showed America the absolute joy of putting tasty stuff on some dough - before long they were running with it!
Pizza was a worldwide phenomenon and the eyes of Naples were scowling in the direction of the US, appalled at some of these… ‘pizzas’ they were seeing claiming to be Neapolitan!
|