Posted on 09/06/2024 12:22:31 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Connecticut has a new way to welcome drivers as they enter the state — which may elicit strong reactions from other parts of the tri-state.
The new "Welcome to Connecticut" signs are meant to highlight aspects of the state that are near and dear to Nutmeggers, but also may get some passionate responses from New York and New Jersey residents.
A sign reading "Welcome to Connecticut, Home of the Pizza Capital of the United States" has been placed on I-95 and I-84 entering Connecticut from New York.
“These new signs are not just markers on our highways, they are a reflection of what makes Connecticut special,” Gov. Ned Lamont said in a release. “We want everyone entering our state to immediately feel proud of what we do well here, whether it’s making the nation’s best pizza, world class meals, national championships, or the most complex machines in the world. Each sign is an invitation to experience all that we have to offer as one of the best states to live, work, and play.”
Needless to say, the proclamations did not go over well with at least one of Gov. Lamont's counterparts. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy responded on X, replying to Lamont's announcement tweet by saying "You're not even the pizza capital of the tri-state area."
You’re not even the pizza capital of the tri-state area. https://t.co/Ve0LiExEAW
— Governor Phil Murphy (@GovMurphy) September 4, 2024 Murphy continued his tongue-in-cheek criticism of the self-anointed title, saying Thursday on X "We’re from the pizza capital of the world, and you’re not. Especially you, Connecticut."
U.S. & World Stories that affect your life across the U.S. and around the world.
Climate change 2 hours ago Summer 2024 was the Earth's hottest on record, European climate agency says
Immigration 3 hours ago Police deny Venezuela gang has taken over rundown apartment complex in Denver suburb But it's not just pizza that the state is looking to lay claim to being the best at.
"Welcome to Connecticut, Home of the Basketball Capital of the World" will now greet drivers on I-91, I-84, and I-395 entering Connecticut from Massachusetts.
Along the shoreline, drivers entering Connecticut from Rhode Island will now see a sign reading "Welcome to Connecticut, Home of the Submarine Capital of the World."
Drivers entering Connecticut from Rhode Island will be greeted by a sign reading "Welcome to Connecticut, Stop for a bite in the Foodie Capital of New England."
“These new signs are not just markers on our highways, they are a reflection of what makes Connecticut special,” Governor Lamont said. “We want everyone entering our state to immediately feel proud of what we do well here, whether it’s making the nation’s best pizza, world class meals, national championships, or the most complex machines in the world. Each sign is an invitation to experience all that we have to offer as one of the best states to live, work, and play.”
Grew up in Jersey. Went to college in Connecticut. CT is not the pizza capitol of America....
Capital....
What is the pizza capital of the US?
Grew up mostly in CT and moved to NJ, and apizza in New Haven and surrounding areas is far superior to NJ. 😁
What a dumb idea. While the New Haven “a-beetz” is a good pizza, the reference standards are the Neopolitan and New York styles, from New York City.
Betcha New Hampshire’s signs for Tax-Free Alcohol on I-95 get more attention.
Amateurs!!! Old Forge, PA; is the ‘Pizza Capital of the World’. I know because I have the t-shirt. And their pizza is pretty tasty. Especially Salerno’s and Arcaro & Genell’s.
Yes, it depends what people are comparing.
People in Chicago enjoy their deep dish pizza. Is deep dish directly comparable to the New Haven pizza? Are each tasty in their own way?
Maybe these discussions come down to what people are used to, or what they grew up with.
Good pizza is made by Italian-American owned shops that have been in the family for three generations and use a family recipe sauce, high quality cheeze and people who know what they are doing. Those family owned shops are rapidly disappearing as are distinctive Italian-American real neighborhoods. When Dominos, Pizza Hut Little Caesar and the other abdominable corporate chains open in Little Italy, you know it will be over.
I guess nobody ever heard of Naples, Italy.
Connecticut is much more deserving of the title of “Surfing Capital of the U.S.” than the pizza capital…which is to say, they don’t come even close to deserving it.
Valley Forge pizza is disgusting and should not be allowed to be called pizza. It’s made with ketchup and kraft singles.
Ever had Modern, Sally’s, Pepe’s or Zuppardi’s I guess.
Try the white clam.
Staten Island!! Otherwise known as Staten Italy!
For some reason, despite the fact that there’s lots of Italian Americans in Nassau and Suffolk county on Long Island, there aren’t any notable great pizzerias out there.
Plenty of great ones in Brooklyn and Queens. And some good ones in Manhattan too, but pricier there. Little Italy in the Bronx is not even Italian anymore.
At one point, Staten Island was 60% Italian American. So the competition there is very stiff. So you’re just more likely to get a good slice at any random place you go into.
If New Yawkers don’t like the fact that CT has superior pizza, then maybe they should have thought about that before they were born.
My first taste of a Pizza was in Connecticut. An Italian Restaurant in Norwalk had Pizza that was delicious. A full sized pie cost $3.00 and the restaurant was always very busy. I don’t remember the name of the place because it was in the Summer of 1958. (Hence the low cost)
Is any Freeper from CT able to come up with the name? It was a man’s name and it did not sound Italian.
Phil Baker?
I don't know what is, but I know what isn't.......Chicago.
I ordered pizza in Italy one time when I was there (back in the Seventies) and I got a pizza with a fried egg on it! I have had it once or twice over there since then, and it was okay.
America makes the best Pizza in the world.
Connecticut? Don’t know, but I have been here for the past week on vacation, and I went to a place called Pizza 101. Excellent pizza. Very, very good. Oddly, it didn’t taste as good as I hoped reheated, but fresh, it was excellent.
I love pizza, and consider myself a pizza aficionado, but I can enjoy a huge range of pizza quality and still enjoy it, but...my drop-off begins when the pizza is greasy and/or the crust begins to get soggy on the base. When I say greasy, you fold the wedge because the dough on the bottom is limp (and will flop if you don’t fold it!) and the red-tinted grease begins to drop out the folded tip of the wedge. I can eat a piece or two for “pizza subsistence” alone.
I am also sensitive to red sauce as I get older, and my stomach doesn’t handle it well. The best pizza with red sauce for me is from two places: Pizzeria Uno, and Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza. It is a fruitier sauce, with recognizable pieces of tomato still in it. I guess approaching a Marinara sauce.
However, I like my own pizza better than nearly anything I buy.
I prefer my pizza deadly simple, without a lot of toppings. Here is what I do. (I don’t make my own dough yet, but there is a store-bought artisan dough at Market Basket that is as good as anything (crust-wise) that I have ever eaten.)
Put a pizza stone into the middle of the oven and preheat as high as you can go. Mine goes up to 500. I usually let it pre-heat for an hour.
Shape dough into a disk on a floured surface then pick it up on your knuckles and move it into the classic shape.
Cornmeal the peel and lay the dough on.
In a bowl, whisk together olive oil, garlic (I use the paste, and the little frozen squares of it are even better!) black pepper and oregano, then brush the entire dough with it right out to the edge. I brush as far as I can go, and be sure that none will drip down onto the peel.
Take mixed Romano and Parmesan grated cheese and sprinkle liberally. Make EXTRA sure to get some of that on the very edge of the thicker crust where there will be no topping.
Take fresh mozzarella slice it into thin disks as thin as it will let you (which is not too thin) but it is no big deal if it breaks up into pieces-it is better if it does, and you spread the mozzarella a bit sparsely over the dough out to the thicker edge but not on it except for a few strands here and there to give it some appetizing texture and breaks up the crust visually..
The main purpose of the mozzarella at this stage here is to serve as a base to hold the pizza ingredients together when cutting and eating.
Get a lot of fresh basil-dried basil is absolutely worthless even as an emergency measure-I usually have at least 12 medium sized fresh leaves, stalks discarded, and I stack them into a stack with decreasing leaf size as you stack, then roll them lengthwise to make a thick rolled tube of lovely basil. I keep perhaps another 6-10 whole leaves for the very end.
I slice the basil just as thin as I can, slicing along the tube as if it were a jelly roll, then, I give a few slices through the pile of basil strips just to break them up a little.
I take half, and sprinkle it over the sparse layer of mozzarella.
Then I take two of the finest medium tomatoes I can find (not the biggest...the tastiest) I slice them very thin, and array them over the surface of the dough on top of the mozzarella. I put ground black pepper on the tomatoes here, but no salt. The Romano and Parmesan can be a bit salty, and adding salt here is too much, IMO.
I take half of the remaining chopped basil, and distribute it over the tomatoes.
I slice up the remaining ball of mozzarella into disks, and spread as many of them over the surface as I can to get this layer of cheese very thick.
I sprinkle the remaining chopped basil everywhere, then take the whole basil leaves and place them in an artistic way on the surface of it all.
Put it in the oven on the stone and bake for 11 minutes.
At 11 minutes, eyeball it closely, but don’t take it out unless it looks done. I have found that there is a wider range of crust consistency that is still “great” but crunchy crust-it is a disaster.
When it gets crunchy, you have ruined it, and it crosses that threshold quickly. At that point, you eat the pizza because you are probably hungry, not because it tastes brilliantly good.
If you do it right, you will see the flecks and strips of Romano and Parmesan that strayed onto the thicker outer crust, and they will be nicely darkened. And the crust will have that wonderful golden color with just a few places approaching brown.
Chewy inside. The outside has a hint of the olive oil/garlic/oregano flavor.
Chewy inside!
I move it onto a large cutting board, let it sit for 10 min (for my own self preservation, as I have no self control with blisteringly hot pizza) then I slice and serve.
I like mine with lots of crushed red pepper...:)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.