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Cultural Phenomenon Of Pizza In America

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Roslyn Gray
Mrs. McLaughlin
Composition I
10/28/14
Cultural Phenomenon of Pizza America, the land of the free and the brave, and enough food to cause humanity to explode. Fries, hamburgers, tacos, fried rice, the brightly lit fast food stores beckon their costumers forward with the wafting smells of fat, carbs, and sugar. But one food above all is a staple to the average American diet. Pizza is a food that is represented in schools, sporting events, parties, and just for the average lounging day. Pizza is a large genre of food with many different toppings, recipes, and styles. But where did this widespread love for pizza come from? Did pizza just fall from the sky? Is it a secret weapon of the government? Actually pizza has a long and diverse history. …show more content…

The definition of pizza in relation to its beginnings is debated. For the purposes of this essay, pizza will be a food with bread and toppings. This definition rules out flatbreads produced by Mediterranean cultures that were toppingless and used to eat other foods. The earliest pizza like foods, if we are using the above definition, were made by Ancient Egyptian, Roman, and Greek cultures and it was flat bread with oil, and various spices. The biggest tie we see between flat bread and pizza is focaccia, which is flatbread that was seasoned with oil, spices, and vegetables. This food was and is still very popular and what makes this so different from pizza is the fact that the bread of Focaccia had yeast and is allowed to rise. The Middle Ages is when Focaccia became very prominent, and soldiers would bake it on their shields in hot days. The introduction of the Indian Water Buffalo revolutionized pizza with the addition of mozzarella

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