Travels with Brownie: Pizza Bianca and Pizza al Taglio from Forno Campo de' Fiori

After two years I still haven't figured out the algorithm of how my default screen saver pulls up the photos to flash across the screen. For some reason no matter how many new photos I take it seems quite heavily weighted to the trip to Italy that Lawman and I took in the summer of '09 which marked the first time I tried pizza bianca, so if you'll indulge me, here's a little screen saver inspired trip down memory lane...

Though my personal pizza preference lies with the Neapolitan style pie, when in Rome you do as the Romans do and that means pizza al taglio (by the slice) and pizza bianca. With our pre-trip research we heard nothing but good things about the Forno Campo de’ Fiori and when pizza maestro, Paulie Gee, tweeted that we should check out the pizza bianca there, we knew it had to be a sign.

The bakery is right on the Campo de’ Fiori square and with the famed Roman farmers market just steps away it’s the ideal spot to start your hunt for picnic fixings.

Forno does a brisk business and if you go at peak feeding times you might have to wait and/or elbow your way in to place your order. Don’t be deterred, the pizza bianca hot out of the oven is well worth it. The bakery makes pizza bianca and pizza al taglio fresh throughout the day closing briefly from 2:30pm until 4:30pm. Be careful not to arrive too close to their mid afternoon closing time, as there’s a less robust selection of pizza al taglio and the pizza bianca.

The pizza bianca had a crispy, olive oil kissed exterior while the insides were pleasantly chewy. It was lighter and a cut above the other pizza biancas we tried in Rome, which could be a little dry and tough.

While the pizza bianca was the standout, their pizza rossa and pizza al taglio were also quite good. Their crust is very thin and held up well under the tangy red sauce.

The crust on the pizza with funghi was a little thicker than the pizza rossa , but still very tasty.

We also tried a pizza bianco sandwich filled with mozzarella cheese and tomato. All the ingredients of a great sandwich were there, but honestly as my husband would say, “the moisture from the cheese and tomatoes undermined the structural integrity of the sandwich” especially if you didn’t eat it right away. I recommend getting some pizza bianca for munching and then a generous amount so you can make your own picnic with the cured meats and cheeses from the farmers market right on the square. Pizza Bianca + gorgonzola cheese + honey = to die for.

Forno Campo de' Fiori, www.fornocampodefiori.com
Campo de' Fiori 22, Rome