If you are a pizza fan, you will be happy to know that the second Sunday this month begins National Pizza Week, from January 12th to 18th 2025. It was originally created in October 1984 by Gerry Durnell, publisher of Pizza Today magazine.
Almost all of us love pizza. Fresh from the oven or cold the next day. There are an estimated 63,000 pizzerias and 94% of Americans eat pizza at least once a month. The figures equal the consumption of about 45 slices of pizza per person in the U.S. each year and show that Americans love their pizza as evidenced by devouring 100 acres of pizza per day. The early Egyptians and the Greeks may have made the first pizza. For them, pizza was flatbread topped with olive oil and some herbs and spices. When the Roman armies entered Greece and Egypt, they adopted and adapted some of their cuisines. The early Romans made pizza their own. The recipe changed little until the second world war.
During the occupation of Italy by the Allied Forces, American soldiers stationed in Italy ate lots of Italian food, but the one they really loved was pizza. When the war ended, GIs brought the recipe home and American pizza was created. Before this, only the Italian immigrants in the U.S. used to eat pizza.
The 1950s saw a boom in pizza consumption as the pizza recipe spread to the masses. Now, statistics report that 350 slices of pizza are eaten every second. This means 40 pizzas are consumed every second. That is a lot of pizza! No wonder we have an entire week to celebrate it. National Pizza Week is celebrated every year in January.
There are some simple ingredients that you can keep on hand in the fridge or freezer to make it easy to have home-made pizza whenever you crave it.
- Dough: Make it yourself or buy premade pizza dough. Keep in the freezer and defrost and let rise.
- Sauce: Jar of Pizza or spaghetti sauce. Pesto Sauce, or Olive oil and Garlic.
- Toppings: Choose your favorite veggies, and meats
- Cheese: Choose mozzarella, feta or grated parmesan.