Pizza Marengo

Pizza Marengo

Chicken Marengo was created by Napoleon’s cook, Dundand, at Marengo, a small town in the Piedmont region of Italy.  Napoléon had just defeated the Austrians on June 14, 1800, and, so the story goes, was famished. Dundand, however, had very little to work with, the commissary having been left behind because Napoléon was in hot pursuit. So he foraged around and came up with some chicken, tomatoes, garlic , and crayfish–some fried eggs got in the picture somewhere, too.

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Pizza Giambotta

This pizza features Italian sausage , sweet peppers, and onions.

Giambotta Pizza

THE DOUGH

Start dough at 4p for dinner between 7p and 8p
1 cup warm water (90 to 110 degrees F.)
2 tsp instant-rise yeast
3-1/4 cup bread flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup olive oil (extra virgin not necessary)
Combine ingredients and knead by hand for 10 minutes or machine
for two to five minutes. Coat dough ball in a thin film of olive oil or cooking spray, cover in plastic wrap, and let rise in warm place until doubled in size.

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Pizza Margherita

Pizza Margherita

I have nine pizza cookbooks, and seven of them have  a recipe for Pizza Margherita.  In part this is because it is a classic, and in part because the story of its creation is clearly known and iconic.  In 1889, the Italian royal couple King Umberto and Queen Margherita paid a visit to Naples.  While there, local pizzaiolo Raffaele Esposito made three types of pizza for them: a marinara pizza with anchovies; a bianca (white) pizza with lard, provolone or caciocavallo cheese, and basil; and a pizza with tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil, featuring the red, white, and green of the Italian flag.  The queen was particularly delighted by that last one, and when Esposito received a note of thanks from her, he dedicated the pizza to her.

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