Apparently today is National Pizza Day – “Now, that’s not to be confused with National Cheese Pizza Day (September 5), National Pepperoni Pizza Day (September 20), National Pizza Month (October) and National Sausage Pizza Day (October 11).”  When first scanning this news, I retrieved a question I had always had about pizza. Where/why the name Margherita pizza?According to the National Day website: “Though flatbreads with toppings were consumed by ancient Egyptians, Romans, and Greeks, the modern birthplace of the pizza is southwestern Italy’s Campania region, home to Naples. Founded around 600 BC as a Greek settlement, Naples in the 1700s and early 1800s was a thriving waterfront city. Technically an independent kingdom, it was notorious for its throngs of working poor, or lazzaroni. These Neapolitans required inexpensive food that could be consumed quickly. Pizza — flatbreads with toppings that can be eaten for every meal — fulfilled this need. These early pizzas featured tasty toppings such as tomatoes, cheese, oil, anchovies, and garlic. More well off Italian authors judged Naples’ innovation, often calling their eating habits disgusting.”

“In 1861, Italy finally unified, and King Umberto I and Queen Margherita visited Naples in 1889. Legend says that the traveling pair became bored with their steady diet of French cuisine and asked for an assortment of pizzas from the city’s Pizzeria Brandi, founded in 1760. The variety the queen enjoyed the most was called pizza mozzarella, a pie topped with the soft white cheese, red tomatoes, and green basil — much resembling the Italian flag. Since then, this particular choice of toppings has been dubbed the Margherita pizza.”

Here closer to home, Nathan Myhrvold and Francisco Migoya, wrote the upcoming encyclopedic “Modernist Pizza.” At three volumes and almost 1,700 pages, it includes the history of pizza, more than 1,000 recipes, pizza-making techniques and tools plus tips on where to get the best pie.  In their expert opinion – sure to be challenged by many – the best city for pizza is not New York or Chicago, but Portland, OR. Go figure. Or celebrate and go have a slice at your favorite establishment.

Image credit: Pexels