2. Salt Of The Earth
No pizza is complete without salt. From the
earliest records, we know that Jews have used
salt both symbolically (as when it is sprinkled
on the Shabbat challah) and to enhance the
taste of food.
In ancient Israel, salt was obtained in one of
two ways: through mining and by evaporating
seawater. These raw forms of salt were then
cleaned in rainwater and crushed until they
became fine, looking much as we know salt
today.

Happy
National
Pizz
o th

ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM
AppleTree Editor

You can learn a lot by learning a little. In
"Fact-A-Day," AppleTree provides you with
fascinating tidbits about any Jewish subject,
past or present.
Here's a collection of 31 — one for each
day of the month — great facts about
Judaism and pizza, in honor of National
Pizza Month.
Do you have a suggestion for Fact-A-Day?
If so, please drop us a line at AppleTree Facts,
30301 Northwestern Highway, Suite 200,
Farmington Hills, MI 48334, fax (248) 539-
3075, call (248) 539-3001, ext. 269 (voice-
mail only), or send to an e-mail to
paljoey@earthlink.net

ome consider October the real begin-
ning of fall.
They opine on the remarkable
changing of the color of leaves, cool
breezes, that certain freshness and crispness in
the air.
Others recognize October primarily as the
month that marks one of the most important
occasions in the history of mankind: October
is, of course, National Pizza Month.
Whether you like yours topped with fish or
pineapple, vegetables or just plain cheese,
there's something tasty for you here as
AppleTree celebrates this most auspicious of
occasions: National Pizza Month.

1. Take A Bite Out Of This!
Want to thank an Israeli soldier for all his hard
work? Now you can do just that — with a
pizza.
The Web site www.pizzaidf. org allows any-
one to send kosher pizza and pop to a patrol
(five soldiers), a section (10 soldiers), a
platoon (30 soldiers) or a company
(90 soldiers) of the Israel Defense
Forces (IDF). Prices range from
$16.95 to $269.75, and the freshly (
madepizzas are delivered from near-
by Israeli pizzerias, helping the
economy, too.

3. Should Saddam Thank. Israel?
Daniel Rogov loves food and wine, and so he
created his own Web site just to write about
them. According to Rogov, "Historian Reay
Tannehil reports that in the 18th century, the
most famous chefs of Baghdad were Jews who
had traveled in Europe.
"Upon their return, they introduced French
and Italian influences to the diet of upper-class
Iraqi families. Even today, one of the most
popular dishes in Baghdad is lahma bi ajeen.
Composed of circles of yeast bread topped
with ground lamb that has been cooked in
herbed tomato sauce, the dish was devised by a
Jewish chef after he visited Italy. Many young
Iraqis prefer to call the dish by its popular
,,,
name — pizza.
You can find the recipe (which contains no
milk or milk products) at
wvvw.stratsplace.com/rogov/israel/
iraqi_jewish_pizza.html

4. Missing You
The Hebrew word for a key ingredient in pizza
sauce, garlic, is shum. It is mentioned once in
the Torah, in Numbers 11:5, where it is cited
as a vegetable the Israelites had loved as slaves
in Egypt, and which they missed while wan-
dering in the desert.

5. The Pyramids Spoke Of Onions
Another food the Torah says the Israelites
yearned for while in the desert is also often
found on pizza: onion. Onions grew
throughout Egypt (drawings of them
can be found on pyramids) and were
used by the Egyptians in idol wor-
ship.

6. Double Your Pleasure
An interesting and unusual feature
about pizza: It is one of the only foods

