50 States; 50 Meals: Connecticut

This is our first state that is close to our heart, as my husband is from Connecticut, but we still learned a lot about their "state food". This week we had New Haven Style Apizza (pronounced ə-beets). This is a Neapolitan pizza style pizza originated at the Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana. Mr. Pepe's original plain pizza (also called a tomato pie) was just crust, tomato sauce , oregano and pecorino romano cheese. If you wanted mozzarella you had to ask for it like we ask for toppings. The most popular New Haven Apizza is Mr. Pepe's White Clam pie. The white clam pie is crust, olive oil, oregano, grated cheese, chopped garlic, and fresh littleneck clams. So even though, to our family, the best pizza out of CT is Vito's Eggplant Pizza I obliged and made two apizzas.

I made one White Clam pie sans the clams (Sorry Frank) and one plain tomato pie with half mootz (mozzarella) for the kids.
You think pizza would have been simple but this was my most challenging meal so far. I did end up making my own crust and sauce. Here are my lessons learned.
DO combine all your recipes when using more than one to achieve one meal.
DO wear an apron to protect you from flour bombs.
DO use the Fleichman's pizza yeast to make your dough faster and not have to worry about proofing.
DO look up baking terms if you are not an avid baker.  Proofing is the final stage in making the dough rise where are letting the      dough sit for a certain amount of time.  Why didn't you just say that in the first place!
DO NOT go crazy with the corn meal.  Relax, it's not going to stick
DO NOT expect the same pizza that comes out of a pizza oven to be the same coming out of your builder's grade oven.  (I really want a new oven)

[caption id="attachment_621" align="aligncenter" width="112"] My first Pizza Dough[/caption]

So two homemade doughs, one homemade sauce , some grated cheese, chopped garlic and an hour and a half later I had two apizzas.  And darn it if the kids didn't like the white pizza better!!!  Hubby and I liked both.  Would I make it again? Yes, but next time I would order mootz on my "White Clam Pie sans the clams, Sorry Frank" APizza!

[caption id="attachment_622" align="alignleft" width="224"] White Clam Pizza sans Clams[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_623" align="aligncenter" width="224"] Tomato Pie: Half Plain, Half w/ Mootz[/caption]

Next Week:  We head to another family state: Delaware