Friday, December 2, 2016

Italy Blog #64: The Pantheon and Pizza Connection

Margherita Pizza
In this Italy blog of Rome, we're still focused on the famous Pantheon, but we'll explain how it's related to pizza.

Queen Margherita of Savoy is buried in the Pantheon with her husband King Umberto 1. While visiting, we were told the story about her contribution to the famous "Margherita Pizza." 

 WHAT IS PIZZA MARGHERITA?

ItalyMagazine said: According to popular tradition, in 1889, 28 years after the unification of Italy, during a visit to Naples of Queen Margherita of Savoy, wife of King Umberto I, chef Raffaele Esposito of Pizzeria Brandi and his wife created  a pizza resembling the colors of the Italian flag, red (tomato), white (mozzarella) and green (basil). They named it after the Queen - Pizza Margherita.


Legend has it that the queen, while staying in Naples' Capodimonte Palace, got sick of French gourmet food that was the royal standard across Europe at the time.
She summoned the most famous pizza-maker in Naples, Raffaele Esposito, and had him bake her three pizzas in the palace kitchen.
She did not like the one with garlic (pizza marinara) or anchovies (pizza Napoli), but she loved the pizza with tomato sauce, mozzarella and a sprig of basil. 
Esposito immediately named his invention after the queen - whose name was Margherita - and asked only to put the royal seal on his pizzeria.


ABOUT THE QUEEN -

Died: January 4, 1926, Bordighera, Italy
Spouse: Umberto I of Italy (m. 1868–1900)


 

 NEXT:THE GODS IN THE PANTHEON
- See more at: http://www.italymagazine.com/featured-story/pizza-margherita-history-and-recipe#sthash.oNUUfXJM.dpuf

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I'm a simple guy who enjoys the simple things in life, especially our dogs. I volunteer for dog rescues, enjoy exercising, blogging, politics, helping friends and neighbors, participating in ghost investigations, coffee, weather, superheroes, comic books, mystery novels, traveling, 70s and 80s music, classic country music,writing books on ghosts and spirits, cooking simply and keeping in shape. You'll find tidbits of all of these things on this blog and more. EMAIL me at Rgutro@gmail.com - Rob

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