There’s an old saying that money doesn’t buy happiness. But with a few bucks in your pocket, you can score a pizza, and isn’t that a ridiculously close second?
Whether you’re 2 or 92, pizza is one of our favorite foods, a perfect combo of the tastes and sensations we crave. No wonder it’s ubiquitous. In the United States alone, there are an estimated 75,000 pizzerias, not counting other types of restaurants that feature it on their menus, convenience stores that sell it to on-the-go consumers, airport food courts, sports-arena concessions, frozen selections in grocery stores and – well – you get the picture. Researchers at University of Michigan even think pizza might have addictive properties, which is hardly surprising to anyone who has ever bit into what can only be described as a little slice of heaven.
We have artisan, deep dish, thin crust, double cheese, sweet sauce and more toppings than you can shake a peel at. We have pizza nights, pizza festivals, pizza parties, and in Las Vegas, the world’s largest gathering of pizza people. Indeed, each year the International Pizza Expo & Conference lures vendors, restaurateurs, chefs, pizzaiolos, business planners and more to dish on the only food John Lennon was willing to suspend his macrobiotic diet for. Evidently all you need is love – and a pizza.
But back to the expo. Once again, this year, Hormel Foods team members are headed to Las Vegas. It’s practically a given, considering the company’s No. 1 selling Hormel® pepperoni, not to mention a host of other toppings available at retail and behind the scenes to foodservice and restaurant operators. In fact, the global company even has Anthony Panichelli, resident pizza expert, on the team. As is the case each year, he’s putting a spotlight on what’s piping hot in the pizza world.
