The record for the world's largest round pizza -- which also
happened to be a gluten-free pizza -- was shattered last week when
a team of five Italian chefs collaborated to bake a 131-foot dish,
according to a press release.
The team was headed by Dovilio Nardi, whose previous endeavors have
involved forming an Italian pizza chain that catered toward
customers with celiac disease. The event was organized by Dr.
Schar, a company that produces gluten-free food.
The pie 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 51,257 pounds.
The process of baking such a massive pizza is as arduous as it
sounds. The five chefs spent over 48 hours baking the dough in over
5,000 batches. Their efforts paid off when the team broke the
previous record, set in 1990 by Norwood Pick'n Pay hypermarket in
South Africa. The former record holders' pizza was made with
gluten, and measured 122 feet in diameter.
The newly-crowned largest pizza was named Ottavia, an homage to the
first Roman emperor Octavian Augustus. Too bad it won't fit into
the world's largest pizza box.