I have been on the journey learning about the history of tomato pies and also trying to make tomato pies since I have been working on the boardwalk thread at
http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,9068.0.html The tomato pie that I was trying to recreate on that thread was a Mack's pizza and I was helped by many members on that thread in my journey.
I recently learned more about tomato pies after watching the Pizza Cuz show on the Cooking Channel and the Papa's tomato pies that were part of the second episode.
http://www.nj.com/mercer/index.ssf/2013/05/trentons_famed_papas_tomato_pi.html I really didn't know about Papa's tomato pies until that episode. I had no knowledge that Papa's Tomato Pies weathered the city's economic and social change for 100 years and lays claim to being the oldest family owned pizzeria in the country. Papa's main competitor for the title is New York City-based Lombardi's Pizzeria, closed for a decade in the 1980s and reopened under a new family's ownership. I really don't know if Papa's or Lombardi's is the oldest pizzeria in the US on record, but I did do some research about how pizzas started in the US at this thread
http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,14920.0.html As explained in the article above the “Trenton tomato pie” is recognized by enthusiasts as a special kind of pizza, prepared in reverse with cheese and toppings cooked underneath the tomato sauce.
Some articles say the best tomato pies are at Papa's pizzeria and some say the best tomato pies are at DeLorenzo's
http://www.goodfoodstories.com/2012/02/06/trentons-tomato-pies/ but that might be up for debate depending on each persons tastes.
I am posting the link to what other type of tomato pies there are so no one that reads this thread gets confused on what type of tomato pie I am trying to make.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomato_pie I did have the opportunity to taste those other types of Tomato Pies when Bob1 brought me one from Joseph Corropolese Bakery & Deli at
http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,19389.msg189708.html#msg189708 and when Steve and I went to Marchiano’s Bakery “Tomato Pies” Roxborough-Manayunk
at
http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,21096.msg211948.html#msg211948 This is another article about Papa's Tomato Pies at
http://www.papastomatopies.com/ There are different links in that article and this is one of them
http://www.papastomatopies.com/reviews.php Nick Azzaro explains in this video why a tomato pie is called the tomato pie.
http://www.viddler.com/v/23885b17 I wish I had a direct link to that video that Ed10s26 posted, but I don't. Nick Azzaro explains a lot about the olden days. Nick Azzaro says some funny things in the video and one that I though was funny was when he compared pizza to sex. The video is 8:27 minutes.
There is also a podcast about who is the oldest pizzeria in the US at
http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html? action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=139640932&m=139650507 The link was from this article.
http://www.npr.org/2011/08/15/139640932/for-slice-of-fame-pizzerias-spar-over-oldest-title In the podcast it mentions Ed Levine of book “A Slice of Heaven” and the two oldest pizzerias in the US.
This article also tells about tomato pies and what has changed.
http://hamiltonhigh1951.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/19752babie2bazzaro2bpapa2527s2btomato2bpies.jpg If interested, this article is about when DeLorenzo's Pizza decided to close up shop at their Hamilton location establishment due to the uptick in crime.
http://www.trentonian.com/article/20121128/FINANCE01/121129652/delorenzo-s-moving-from-trenton-to-hamilton My friend Bill and I tried to visit that DeLorenzo's location. That DeLorenzo's location in Hamilton was closed on April 13, 2013 as reported in this article.
http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/the-insider/End-of-a-tomato-pie-era-in-Trenton.html I didn't get to try a DeLorenzo's tomato pie when I was in Trenton, but might in the future. Bill and I did go to Risoldi's Market & Cafe
http://www.risoldimarket.com/ where DeLorenzo's was once located, but they were not there anymore.
There are also many other links about tomato pies on the web, but I won't bore anyone looking at this post with all of them now. I found some links to where it explains how the Mack's studied tomato pies in Trenton and then how they are related to this, but right now I can't find the link.
Bill and I went on the journey to find a good tomato pie at
http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,25251.0.html Bill and I liked Joey's tomato pie the best and that is what I am trying to create.
Peter set-forth a formulation for me to try at Reply 42
http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,25251.msg255411.html#msg255411 I mixed a dough yesterday with that formulation and used the mixing method of 1 minute mix time to hydrate the flour and other ingredients, but delayed the addition of oil until the one minute mark. The oil was then added and the dough was mixed for 8 more minutes. This is what the dough looked like after the first and second mix. The dough is drier than most of my doughs. The final dough temperature was 78.6 degrees F.
If any member has more to contribute about tomato pies I would appreciate knowing more.
Norma