I love pizza, especially Napoletana style

I'm a Roberta's Pizza advocate. There's no denying that. Anytime I hear their name brought up in conversation, I'm quick to vouch for them, their pizza, and all around experience.

I love pizza, and I've tried a lot, in a lot of countries. It is such an easy snack or meal, depending on where you are, and even a mediocre slice can still satisfy you. I don't know what it is about that, but perhaps it's eating dough with toppings that comforts us, no matter if it's a great or ok slice. I'm particular for the thin Napoletana (Neapolitan) style. I favor flat pizzas, over thick, but I never say no to pizza, so don't get that twisted either...This is essentially the other flat bread of Italy. Following it's brethren focaccia, which funnily enough, can be used as a pizza base if desired, the Napoletana style is essentially the flavored and layered flatbread of Naples. There is even an association for this type of pizza. It is the elite of pizza. If you want to be awarded and heralded from Naples all the way to the States, you can be certified via The Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (VPN), which was founded in 1984 in Naples, no less. The organization's goal is to certify pizzerias globally to ensure they are using the proper traditions of real Napoletana pizza. I don't much like the word authentic, and try not to use it, because what really is authentic. Tradition cements how it was made, and the true forms of a certain recipe, which can be replicated today just as much as when your grandma made it in her day. Authentic, to me, almost belittles the modern day variations. But 'real' helps classify and bring it back to what it should be like, whether you invented it in the 1800s, or today. There are only a few hundred certified pizzerias around the world, including Italy. Woah!

Going back to my love of Napoletana style and New York's best version, Roberta's has turned itself into an establishment, but when you look past that, it's an eclectic, simple vibe, and that's what I do love about the experience. Their setting is nothing complicated or overly sterile looking, rather it's a bunch of small or communal tables, a bar at the back, and some extended areas, because they started to outgrow themselves. Their art on display is characteristic to who they are, and where they're based. It's in the heart of Brooklyn's old time industrial zone, fast becoming a rich unaffordable hip, young family locale (sort of the other Williamsburg in a way), but that doesn't take away from how good their pizza is. It is a rich Napoletana style pizza, with adventurous toppings mixed with the classics, and most certainly without the certification, though it is pretty on point if I do say so myself.

My all time favorite is the Bee Sting. It was taken off the menu, and then added back (thankfully), but if you knew it and name dropped it, they would happily make it for you. It is what I order every time, even if I'm exploring another pizza of off their menu. The Bee Sting always features at my table, without a doubt. Ordering it in secret, when it was removed, was like a seal of approval when you name dropped an item no longer on a menu. It's a history for them. They're connected to this style of pizza, albeit it is very straightforward and can be made anywhere else, but Roberta's almost coined it as their own, so I'm glad it is back on their menu. The Bee Sting, which very much speaks to its name, is a classic Napoletana style Margherita topped with honey and spicy soppressata. As I said...really straightforward. But, it's heaven.

Napoletana dough is easy, but the shaping and technique is where the real lesson unfolds. You need to be nimble with your dough, but you never want to overstretch, and reaching that point is inevitable with a thin dough like this. You will probably repeat your shaping from scratch once or twice, and fume and vent in frustration. I certainly have. Trusting the process is what will get you to a perfect, or near perfect result. Again, shaping is laborious and difficult. I will say it is not easy, and if someone wants to argue with me, it's because they've either worked in pizzerias or been shaping pizzas for years. Now I'm talking about the whole knuckle action, toss the dough in the air type of shaping. Sure, you can easily just press the dough flat enough with your fingertips till it's thin and round enough, but you're not really giving it its full stretch and lightness. If you haven't ever challenged yourself for the knuckle and air spinning experience, you may notice a difference in crust and texture. The crust gets its shape as it is tossed in the air, whilst the flour and air helps keep the pizza tender in some spots and crispy in others, i.e. the crust. Tossing ain't just for show, it is actually the best way to 'extend' your pizza, without pushing your fingers through. It's all about the airflow. Those peeps you see spinning pizza in parlor windows have been practicing over time, and with that, anything becomes second nature. Once or twice in your kitchen for dinner is not practicing enough, but it's a start. I've made this dough several times now, and the shaping is still never easy, but I've picked up tips along the way for myself, to reduce over thinning or ripping my dough, and I've also gotten used to the size I need for my baking sheet so it doesn't fold over or misshapen. No, I don't own a pizza stone, and I really don't think it's the most necessary item in your kitchen, because you can make do with baking sheets just as well. If you do have the means to get a pizza stone, sure, it's nice to have, but don't panic if you don't.

The key to remember for a Napoletana pizza is the flour type. You can most certainly get away with All Purpose, but it is not nearly as ground enough as Type 00. It also has a lower gluten content than most flours, and is commonly used for pasta making, if you want that true Italian style. The lower the protein content, the lower the gluten content is, which makes for less elasticity. Think of how you're making breads and for some, you want higher gluten, higher protein, especially for that elasticity when you bite into a crusty loaf. Italian Caputa 00 (i.e. Type 00) is the Godfather of flours. The numbers in Italian flours indicate how finely ground it is. I mean, this one is finer than fine. That way you're able to get thin pizza, making sure that the only pillowy-ness is in the form of the crust. Napoletana pizza is supposed to have a fluffier, chewier crust, as the rest of the pizza remains very flat. New York style pizza has a thinner crust, with less chew, but it is a less complex base, which is better suited for heavier toppings and layers. There is more sauce and topping on a New York style pizza. It's counterpart; however, defines the 'less is more' concept. Less sauce, less cheese, no abundance of herbs, just basil. Though, you may notice that there is actually more sauce to cheese ratio on a Napoletana pizza, but it is still considerably less than any other pizzas made out there. You want your cheese to melt enough to cover most parts of the surface, without dampening, or over powering the base and sauce itself.

There is simply too much of a history to share for the pizza, and there are countless theories and stories of the beginning of this flatbread being transformed with toppings and the like. It is interesting to note though that tomatoes were first introduced to Europe in the 16th century. That's not as old as you may realize, considering what other vegetables were used in cooking well before then. Tomatoes, funnily enough, were thought to be poisonous, until poor peasants in Naples began to top their flatbreads with them in the late 18th century, according to a slice of history in The Spruce Eats. The Napoletana pizza is by way the maker of the Margherita style, which was named after Queen Margherita of Savoy, which baker Raffaele Esposito baked in honor of the queen whose colors mirrored the Italian flag (red: tomatoes, white: mozzarella, green: basil). This is what is known as the classic Napoletana pizza today.

It is also probably unknown to most, but there are only three Napoletana pizza variants - the marinara, the Margherita, and the Margherita extra (which replaces mozzarella with mozzarella di Bufala). Every other style, such as my all time favorite, the Bee Sting, are modern love affairs of the classic Napoletana pizza, and not part of the certification process. I love a modern twist to a classic, when it's right. The Bee Sting can never do no wrong, just like the Margherita.