Pizza Pie-From local place....Friday No cooking

We are having Pizza Pie...Which may have been invented by the phonecians...or the greeks? The origins are quite obscure. Early pizza was a bread, heated under hot stones and topped with whatever was available. It's purpose was to replace a plate. This makes sense. Pizza as a plate. It was part of the working man's diet, a cheaper way to feed a family. It still is.
In the  6th century: Ancient armies carried a crude pizza like bread around with them, good munchin's on a long journey.
In the 18th century, pizza made it's way to Italy, where the large round bread was served on the streets by vendors.  In 1889 Queen Magherita required a local chef to bake her a special pizza, befitiing a queen and not a peasent. The chef baked her a pizza of the finest topped with cheese, tomatos and fresh basil. This represented the colors of the Italian flag Red, Green ,and White.

There are approximately 61,269 pizzerias in the United States. (Source: American Business Lists, Omaha, Nebraska)
Men wearing muscle shirts when answering the door order pepperoni three times more than any other kind of pizza. (San Jose Mercury News, Food Section, 1/11/95 )
Italian food ranks as the most popular ethnic food in America. (National Restaurant Association)

There are over 9,000 pizzeria's in New York alone. (The Tony Modica Pizza Dance Foundation)
94% of the population of the U.S. eats pizza. (Source: Parade Magazine)
Approximately 3 BILLION pizzas are sold in the U.S. each year.
Americans eat approximately 100 acres of pizza EACH DAY, or about 350 slices per second.
October is National Pizza Month. It was first so designated in 1987.
Pizzerias represent 17% of all restaurants. (Source: Food Industry News)
93% of Americans eat AT LEAST one pizza per month. (Source: Bolla Wines)
Each man, woman and child in America eats and average of 46 slices, (23 pounds), of pizza per year. (Source: Packaged Facts, New York)
Saturday night is the biggest night of the week for eating pizza.
Three of the top 10 weeks of pizza consumption occur in January. More pizza is consumed during Super Bowl week than any other week of the year. (Source: Kraft Foods, Northfield, Ill.)
Information is courtesy of http://www.virgiliospizzeria.com/funfacts.htm
Pepperoni is America's favorite topping, (36% of all pizza orders). We eat approximately 251,770,000 pounds of Pepperoni per year. Other popular pizza toppings are, mushrooms, extra cheese, sausage, green pepper and onions.
Gourmet toppings are gaining ground in some areas of the country such as chicken, oysters, crayfish, dandelions, sprouts, eggplant, Cajun shrimp, artichoke hearts and tuna. More recent trends include game meats such as venison, duck and Canadian bacon.
Pizza makers have tried virtually every type of topping on pizza including peanut butter & jelly, bacon & eggs, and mashed potatoes.
Mozzarella cheese represents 30% of total cheese output. Production of Italian cheeses such as mozzarella, provolone, ricotta, parmesan and romano by U.S. cheese makers more than doubled between 1980 and 1992, (from 688.6 MILLION pounds per year to nearly 2 BILLION pounds per year. (Source: Cheese Market News)
Manufacturers' sales of pizza cheese should top $32 BILLION by 2004. U.S. per capita consumption of mozzarella cheese was 7.93 pounds in 1994 and is predicted to reach 12.51 pounds by 2004. (Source: Business Trend Analysts, BTA)
62% of Americans prefer meat toppings on their pizza, while 38% prefer vegetarian toppings. (Source: Bolla Wines)
Barbeque pizza emerged as one of the more popular pizza variations in a 1994 study by the National Restaurant Association. Nearly 33% of menus offered some form of this dish. Other popular variations were Mexican pizza, five-cheese combos, cheeseless pies and traditional Italian pizzas such as Margherita, Florentine and New Potato Pizzas. (Source: NRA)
Anchovies are Americans' least favorite topping.
Some of the more popular international toppings are pickled ginger, minced mutton and tofu in India; squid and Mayo Jaga (mayonnaise, potato and bacon) in Japan; and green peas in Brazil. In Russia, they serve pizza covered with mockba; a combination of sardines, tuna, mackerel, salmon and onions. In France, a popular combo is called the Flambee with bacon, onion, and fresh cream. (Source: Domino's)
Around the world, toppings vary greatly, reflecting regional tastes and preferences. In Japan, for instance, eel and squid are favorites. In Pakistan, curry is a big seller. In Russia, red herring is the topping of choice. Australians enjoy shrimp and pineapple as well as barbeque toppings on their pies. Costa Ricans favor coconut. (Source: Numero Uno Pizzeria)
Vegetables for pizza toppings in Iceland are grown in greenhouses because of the lava terrain there. (Source: Domino's)
In the Netherlands, the "Double Dutch" is a favorite pizza recipe: double cheese, double onions, and double beef. (Source: Domino's)
In Saudi Arabia, all meat toppings must be 100% beef. Pork products are not consumed in the country. (Source: Domino's)