I'm a bit of a pizza purist - I rarely indulge in non-traditional toppings. Typically, I want red sauce, cheese, and cured meats on my pizza. Nonetheless, I was intrigued when a colleague brought me a novelty slice of pizza from Biaggio Pizzeria, in Allentown PA. This huge slice was adorned with a few big quarters of deep-fried pickles.
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![Biaggio's Pizzeria & Family Restaurant on Urbanspoon]()
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Now, it's hardly fair to judge a pizzeria by one slice of re-heated novelty pie, so this is more of a "quick hit" first impression. And, to my general surprise, I enjoyed this slice.
Underneath, it was a fairly standard (albeit oversized) slice of white pizza. The crust seemed to have been well crafted and properly baked, but the dough was not distinctive. Biaggio uses the wonderful Licscio's rolls for its hoagies and cheese steak sandwiches, so one might perhaps hope that artisan dough would be the source of its pizza crusts, but this seemed pretty generic.
However, the cheese or cheese blend on top was tastier than the average bland white pie. Sprinkled over the pie were little cubes of pickle and some slivers of purple onion. Both added welcome flavor and texture to the pie.
The star, of course, was the big hunks of deep fried (bread-coated) pickle riding on top. Have you had a fried pickle? If you like them, you may well enjoy them on a pizza - I certainly did. It was salty, of course, but it retained a snappy crunch even after my at-home oven re-heat. A white pizza needs an interesting topping, and this fulfilled that with some flair.
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| Underside of the crust |
I do think that such novelty pie is better by the slice than as a whole pie; I can't imagine eating more than one slice of this funky creation. Still, it's a WIN for Biaggio. Barely-above-average crust, but good white cheese and a tasty oddball topping. I'm glad I got to try this pickle pizza.
