Calzone vs. Stromboli

When I was younger, a pizzeria where I lived advertised its stuffed pizza. It was really, a Calzone, but we were not familiar with that name. The place was wonderful and the "stuffed pizza" gained a loyal following. Another place I lived had a bakery with the best Stromboli and it was on the weekly list of must have dinners. Sadly, miss them both.
One of the major differences between a Calzone and a Stromboli, beside shape is the sauce. In a Stromboli the sauce is baked in and with a Calzone it is served on the side like a dipping sauce.
Calzone origin: Naples, Italy
Tomato Sauce: On the side
How it is made: Baked or fried
Shape: Crescent moon (think of pizza folded in half)


Stromboli origin: Philadelphia, PA
Tomato sauce: Baked in
How it is made: Baked
Shape: Log
My mouth is watering just thinking about both of the pizza treats.

Pizza Tip

A large pizza is almost always a better deal than two mediums. When you increase the width of your pizza it actually adds to the total size exponentially. For example, a 16-inch large might seem twice as big as an 8 inch small, but it is actually four times as much pizza. A 12 inch pizza is 2.3 times as much as an 8 inch. Also, a single 18-inch pizza is better than ordering two 12-inch pizzas. (A 16 inch is not larger than two 12 inch pizzas.)

For the mathematically inclined, Area of two 12” pizzas: 12/2 = 6   6×6=36   36xπ = 113.1 in² x 2 = 226.2 in². Area of one 18” pizza: 18/2=9   9×9=81   81xπ = 254.5 in². Did you notice we use pi to measure pie?
It is also be the same if it was square. Two 12in square pizzas = 288 square inches, one 18in square pizza = 324 square inches.

A study of nearly 4,000 pizzerias confirms: if you buy based on price-per-square-inch, the large is always a better deal. There is even a web site that will do a pizza size calculation for you LINK .


Incidentally, number of slices does not matter, it is volume of pizza.

New Way to Slice Pizza

For those who have friends or family who love crust and some who do not, here is a novel way to satisfy both.

Make a few gently curved lines and join corners to middles. Six slices each, with crust and no crust.

Twelve Pizza Facts

Ancient Greeks and Egyptians covered flat-breads with toppings and are considered the real originators of the tasty dish.

Modern Pizza originated in 1738 in Naples, Italy when people covered focaccia (Italian bread with olive oil and herbs) with tomatoes. Cheese was added as a topping about a hundred years later.

Frozen pizzas were introduced during the 1950s.

The first online pizza purchase was from Pizza Hut in 1994.

Ninety-three percent of Americans eat pizza at least once a month.

Saturday night is the biggest night of the week for eating pizza worldwide.

More pizza is consumed during the week of the Super Bowl than any other time of the year.

In 2001, Pizza Hut paid the Russians one million US dollars to deliver a six inch pizza to the international space station.

Thin crust pizza remains the most popular crust across the world. More than 61 percent of all pizza orders are for thin crust.

Some popular pizza toppings in Japan are squid and Mayo Jaga (mayonnaise, potato, and bacon)

The world's largest pizza was constructed in Italy in 2012 in Italy. It contained 19,800 pounds of flour, 10,000 pounds of tomato sauce, 8,800 pounds of mozzarella cheese, 1,488 pounds of margarine, 551 pounds of rock salt, 220 pounds of lettuce and 55 pounds of vinegar"; it weighed in at 51,257 pounds, and took 48 hours to cook. (According to the World Record Academy)

Over five billion pizzas are sold worldwide each year.