'True' pizza a Neopolitan invention

We were gastro-tourists, making our way through the south of Italy on a quest to eat a variety of Italian foods at their source, the "typical" dishes of the regions we traveled.

The Italians even have a word for this, tipicita, the "typicality" of a dish. Local identity is truly invested in the foods of Italy. It is said a typical Italian is her region first — Milanese or Bolognesi, for example — and Italian second.

We certainly experienced this firsthand on our trip.

Our destination today takes us to Naples, the home of pizza.

Ray Schipani

Iris restaurant in Naples, Italy, offers an authentic "VPN" pizza, which specifies ingredients for the dough, type of tomato, cheese and oil.

Naples, a city with a garbage strike whose black bags of trash were beginning to rival the volcanic ash of Vesuvius. Naples, whose scooter drivers wind their way in the opposite direction of one-way streets. Naples, whose city squares are Towers of Babel, a cacophony of languages in a city where the streets are paved in pizza.

Eating pizza always has been a way of life in Naples. From its ancient Greek roots, the city Neapolis embraced the flattened pita. Pizza, though, was an entirely different baked good. It was a sweet tart made with almonds, raisins and pine nuts. Sweet, not savory.

That all changed in the 19th century. In the 1830s, French author Alexandre Dumas ("The Three Musketeers" and "The Count of Monte Cristo") wrote that the "lazzeroni were all eating pizza, a dough made from bread topped with lard, cheese and little fish."

The 1889 pizza made by Raffaele Esposito for Queen Margherita of Italy is the pie that has gone around the world. Pizzaioli (pizzamaker) Esposito showed his national pride by using the colors of the Italian flag on his pizza: red tomatoes, white mozzarella and green basil.

There are few foods that have been so universally embraced as pizza. I wonder if that's why Italy drafted a law defining a classic Neapolitan pizza.

Were they fed up with Hawaiian pizza topped with pineapple and Canadian bacon that they call a "cake"? Was it too much to learn that their beloved pizza was now made in China? Or was it a combination of the Slow Food movement and the European Union that resulted in the formation of the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana?

The emblem of integrity of the associazione, whose names translates as "original pizza association," is the VPN designation.

The clownlike character, Pulcinella (in English, "Punch" and the name of my favorite pizzeria in Minneapolis) was adopted by the associazione as the symbol for authentic Naples-style pizza.

Neopolitan pizza also earned the prestigious "STG" status from the European Union in 2004, standing for "Guaranteed Traditional Specialty."

To stake your "true" pizza claim, VPN rules require the dough be made from only flour, salt and yeast and kneaded and shaped by hand. The shape must be round and 35 centimeters (13.8 inches). The tomatoes must be the San Marzano variety grown in the fertile soil at Mount Vesuvius' base. The oil, extra virgin and the cheese, mozzarella di bufala. All the ingredients must be from the Campania region. The oven must be wood-fired, and the pizza must cook in less than two minutes.

And there are only two kinds of pizza, marinara and Margherita.

Our quest was to eat pizza at da Michele, a pizzeria in Spaccanapoli (old Naples) in the Tribunali district. Its austere exterior has a sign for pizzeria and Coca-Cola. Its interior is equally sparse with the menu posted on the walls. You get plastic cups for your beverage, either Italian beer, Coke, water or Fanta.

The Pizza Margherita comes in two sizes, "normale" and "media." Extra cheese is "doppio." The marinara comes in "normale," "media" and "maxi." The cost? Four, 4.5 or 5 euros, or roughly $6 to $8.

The biggest surprise is that this shrine to Neapolitan pizza does not meet the criteria established by the VPN; da Michele uses seed oil and its mozzarella is not water buffalo mozzarella.

That being said, it is a marvel of simplicity and a mastery of flavor combinations. The crust is thin and tender, a supplicant to the concentrated tomato topping. The cheese is a milky melt of silky mozzarella. On the top, there's a scattering of fresh basil. Its aniselike flavor trickles into the pizza, transported by a splash of oil when the pizza comes out of the oven.

Our pizza-eating neighbors were a local and a Milanese, two friends who make an annual pilgrimage to eat at da Michele. They were about to order pizza No. 4.

Near the Naples train station we discovered Iris, which bears the true VPN symbol, and quickly polished off two pizzas there (not on the same day!). The crust was crisped and taut with a tender crumb. And although the test of pizza's greatness is in its crust, the tomatoes on this pie were outstanding. Unfortunately, I did not command enough Italian to learn the brand, but they are in the taste memory of exceptional.

The pizza in Rome generally was more crackerlike, the thin dough stretched to the limits and baked to a snappy finish. However, shops were filled with premade squares of pizza by the slice and this was more focaccialike. Toppings ranged from bitter greens to eggs, anchovies to ricotta.

What was once a regional food has been embraced by Italians from north to south, although it is the Neapolitan pizza that is the standard-bearer around the world.

For more information on the true Napoletana pizza, visit the VPN Web site at verapizzanapoletana.org.

What we discovered, like many foods both here and abroad, the flavor of the ingredients tastes better at the source.

From its humble beginnings as a flat hearth bread, to its regal nomenclature in honor of the queen, to the many interpretations of "good pie," our appetite for pizza continues. As Peter Reinhart says in his book, "American Pie," "It's all about the adventure. The pizza is just grace." And for that we are thankful.

House of Schipani pizza

This particular recipe is not in the style of true Neapolitan pizza as the crust is crisper, and the overall dough is not as soft and tender due to the protein percentage of the flour.

It is a great all-purpose dough that can be used for thin- or thick-crusted pizzas, flat bread or calzones.

Friday pizza became a tradition during my high school years. Never homemade, but purchased at many of the pizzerias in Philadelphia. It continued through college.

Then became a regular pattern for my weekend eating because my husband shares similar passion for "pie." It has been one of my favorite birthday "cakes"!

It became a Friday ritual when our daughters were growing up. Homemade pizza and a movie — at home. The ritual is now more than 25 years old.

It was hard to nail down the dough. What I found was you want slow rising. You control the rising by temperature — that is why you slow down the yeast by refrigerating the dough. All the best doughs seem to respond to this process (Julia Child's French bread recipe, for example).

You also do not want the dough to form a crust. That is why you oil it and place it in a zipper-type storage bag. In the past, I sealed the dough with clear plastic wrap and then a damp towel on top. The "baggie" simplifies that.

You do not add the salt in the beginning because the salt also slows the yeast.

The slow rising makes for a tender dough. Pizza requires patience.

I made the original recipe in a Cuisinart, but found a stand mixer outfitted with a dough hook (Kitchen-Aid) was the cook's tool for successful pizza-making. Without one, you do all the work by hand and the initial kneading takes at least 30 minutes. What you look for in the dough is one that is smooth, shiny and elastic. It takes time.

Pizza-making is affected by the moisture content of your flour: Drier flour needs more water; humid, moist flour will use less water. When the dough is wet, the bottom crisps better and we prefer that texture.

The pizza oven stone (brick, quarry tiles) pulls the moisture from the dough, and that helps in the crisping.

Friday Pizza

Makes 8 servings

For dough:

5 cups bread flour

1 teaspoon instant yeast

1 teaspoon sugar

1 3/4 cup water, warmed to 72 degrees (could require more)

2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for coating dough

3 teaspoons sea salt

Flour

Olive oil

For sauce:

1/2 cup crushed Italian San Marzano tomatoes (see ingredients box)

Salt and pepper

1 teaspoon dried Mediterranean oregano

For topping:

4 ounces fior di latte mozzarella cheese (see ingredients box)

8 fresh basil leaves

Seasoned olive oil (see ingredients box)

Freshly grated parmesan cheese (pecorino or grana Padano can be substituted)

For the dough: Place the flour into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook.

Combine the yeast, sugar and water. Stir until dissolved. Set aside 5 minutes in a warm location and be sure the yeast is alive, indicated by a layer of foamy bubbles on top of the liquid.

Add water mixture to the flour. Mix on very low speed for 5 minutes. Let your dough rest 5 minutes.

Add the salt to the oil and add to your dough. Mix 5 minutes.

Note: If the dough is not forming a ball, add more warm water.

Continue to mix on low speed until the dough forms a soft, sticky ball. This is a slightly wet dough. Knead by hand 15 minutes or until smooth, shiny and elastic.

Divide in half. Shape each half into a ball. Coat with olive oil. Place in a food storage bag and refrigerate overnight.

Two hours before you plan to make the pizza, remove from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature.

To make the pizza:

Ideally you have a pizza stone or pizza brick. An economical substitute is quarry tiles that can be used to line the bottom of your oven.

Place the cold stone, brick or tiles in the oven. Preheat oven to 550 degrees for 1 hour.

Lightly flour the countertop or working surface. Place the ball of dough on the surface and gently stretch to a 12-inch round. Place on pizza peel or pan. If using a pan, oil to prevent sticking. Allow a crown to form at the edges.

Spread the crushed tomatoes over the surface. Season with salt, pepper and oregano.

Top with the cheese and cook 6-8 minutes or until the crust has crisped and browned and the cheese has melted.

Remove from the oven, rip the basil leaves and scatter on the pizza. Drizzle the seasoned olive oil on top. Add grated cheese. Cut into 8 portions and serve.