Pizza

Pizza is a yeasted flatbread typically topped with tomato sauce and cheese and baked in an oven. It is commonly topped with a selection of meats, vegetables and condiments. The term pizza was first recorded in the 10th century, in a Latin manuscript from Gaeta in Southern Lazio on the border with Campania. Modern pizza was invented in Naples, Campania, Southern Italy, and the dish and its variants have since become popular and common in many areas of the world. In 2009, upon Italy's request, Neapolitan pizza was safeguarded in the European Union as a Traditional Speciality Guaranteed dish.[3][4] Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (True Neapolitan Pizza Association), a non-profit organization founded in 1984 with headquarters in Naples, aims to "promote and protect... the true Neapolitan pizza".[5] Pizza is sold fresh or frozen, either whole or in portions, and is a common fast food item in Europe and North America.[6] Various types of ovens are used to cook them and many varieties exist. Several similar dishes are prepared from ingredients commonly used in pizza preparation, such as calzone and stromboli.