Stromboli and Strombolini

Note: Since writing this chapter on pizza, I have since published an entire book on pizza and my worldwide search for pizza greatness. It was a fabulous adventure with only one sad note: Mama’s Pizzeria, described below with such gusto and bravado, no longer sits at the top of my pizza pantheon (though it still wears the crown for cheesesteak greatness). For more developed thoughts and recipes on pizza, see American Pie: My Search for the Perfect Pizza.

Stromboli is an island off the coast of Sicily on which there is an active volcano, also called Stromboli. Having never been there, I do not know whether they even make the rolled up, filled breads that we call “stromboli” but “volcano food” is definitely a way of understanding them.