My daughter shared this history of the pizza pie with me. In 1889, King Umberto I and Queen Margherita di Savoia of Italy, were vacationing in Naples, Italy (our family is from Naples) and had heard about the excellent pizzas made by a pizzaiolo (pizza maker) named Raffaele Esposito, of Pizzeria Brandi. Peter Reinhard tells in his book, American Pie, “Esposito was invited to prepare the pizza and made, or so it goes, a marinara pizza with anchovies; a bianca, or white pizza, with lard, provolone or creamy caciocavallo cheese, and basil; and a pizza with tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil — red, white, and green in honor of the Italian flag. The queen flipped for the latter, and when Esposito received a note of thanks from the monarch, he dedicated the pizza to her, calling it pizza Margherita.” And there you have the history of the Classic Pizza Margherita.”

I named my twist of the classic pizza margherita after my daughter and call it Margaretta Pizza. It is a mouthwatering pizza that is just as beautiful as it is delicious. Another interesting fact about pizza, is that depending upon which region of Italy you visit, the pizza is different. I have eaten pizza in Florence, Venice, Rome, Milan and Sorrento and they are all different. The pizza in Venice is at room temperature, the pizza we had in Rome came out piping hot and the cheese was perfectly melted, more like the pizza pie we are familiar with in America today. Mange! Here is the link to my recipe Margaretta Pizza