If you trace pizza back to its origins, you have to go all the way to the distant past—the fifth century BCE.
They say people baked flat, broad bread with date palms, cheese, and the like on top.
And considering records like that have been discovered not just once or twice but practically everywhere,
it seems the destructive power of the combination of bread + cheese + simple toppings had been recognized since ancient times.
But the pizza we know—
the golden-brown food finished with tomato sauce and cheese on dough—has not been around nearly as long as one might think.
It was only in the late eighteenth century that it was first made in Naples, Italy, the home turf of pizza.
The concept of pizza had existed since long ago,
so why was the form of pizza familiar to us in the modern day created so late?
“Well... because they didn’t know.”
Europeans didn’t know whether tomatoes were tasty,
or even whether those things could be eaten in the first place.
They weren’t vegetables native to Europe to begin with...
and on top of that, there was even a poisonous plant called “belladonna” that looked similar to a tomato.
Looking at it that way, Noirudel might actually be better off.
At least here, they don’t shout, “It’s a devil’s plant!!” and trample every one they see.
They already know tomatoes are a delicious crop, so all I need to do is add the slightest touch.
There is no need to make a fuss while preaching about the greatness of food,
nor any need to denounce these elves with mutt-like palates.
“The dream of wanting to eat something delicious never ends.”
That is the same for elves.
What I have to do is simply show them the horizon of flavor.
Beyond that, there is a place filled with flavors far more delicious than this.
What will you do?
Having someone else break it open for you is meaningless.
Only when you open your eyes by your own choice do you truly awaken.
Then, shall we begin?
Before cooking, I exchanged for the ingredients I couldn’t obtain in Noirudel through the [Mana Market].
“[Mana Market].”
「Onion」
「Green Onion」
「Potato」
「Carrot」
▼
Various market goods appeared before my eyes.
I scrolled down to find what I wanted.
▲
「Flour (Bread Flour)」
「Flour (All-Purpose Flour)」
「Flour (Cake Flour)」
「Yeast」
「???」
▼
Making hardtack last time had helped.
In the process of making hardtack, I had handled the flour that had been stashed away in the knight order,
and I had skimmed off beer foam to use for fermenting the dough.
That was when the flours and yeast had been registered in the [Mana Market].
Flour is subdivided according to the protein content of the wheat,
and for a chewy texture like pizza dough or bread, bread flour had to be used.
Bread flour has the highest protein content, which is why it forms that chewy texture.
I hadn’t come all this way just to play quartermaster again,
and only Elioren, Iseria, Seiran, and Beilla would be eating with me, so I would keep it moderate.
“Exchange.”
I exchanged for 2 kilograms of bread flour and 20 grams of yeast.
Unlike American pizza, Italian pizza is one pie per person.
Or do Americans eat that whole pie by themselves?
In any case, I estimated 150 to 200 grams of flour per serving and prepared more than enough.
Honestly, even when I go to Italian pizza places, I sometimes feel the portion is a little lacking.
It will probably be everyone’s first time having pizza, so I should make sure they’re perfectly full if possible.
“I should start with the dough.”
The basics of cooking order always begin with what takes the longest.
If the dish uses stock, you put the stock on first,
and if you need to render oil, you start with the oil.
Including resting time, dough takes about two and a half hours, so it was better to do it first.
In a large bowl, I combined 1.5 kilograms of flour with salt, warm water, and yeast all at once.
I left some flour behind to adjust the dough’s consistency and to use as dusting flour.
The flour instantly absorbed the water and became sticky.
After mixing the dough in the bowl to some extent,
Splat—!
I turned the dough out onto the worktable I had dusted with flour.
If I kneaded it directly on the worktable from the start, the water might have run off,
so I had first given it shape in the bowl.
Squelch—
Sticky—!
“Ttyutta. Sensory play.”
This is why flour dough is fun.
The dough was still so sticky that it clung mercilessly to my fingers.
To adjust its consistency, I added flour little by little while kneading it.
Splat! Stretch—!
The added flour gradually absorbed the moisture, and the dough began to normalize.
Rolling around on the worktable, the dough grew smoother and smoother.
The core of pizza dough kneading was to lightly hold the dough with both hands
and knead it as if rubbing it against the surface in circles.
“I don’t know why.”
It’s just what some renowned old Italian chef told people to do.
If someone of that caliber says to do it this way, there must be a reason.
And so the dough reached the right consistency.
“This isn’t the end!”
I stretched the soft dough out vigorously, then folded it over itself.
By repeating this, layers form in the dough, making the texture even better.
Streeetch!! Pull—!
A sound effect that made me want to shout another syllable along with it and laugh indecently.
I resisted the temptation and finished the folding process.
Then, after dusting the surface with flour so it wouldn’t stick,
I cut it into round lumps.
Now it just had to rest somewhere warm for about two hours.
I set the dough aside and prepared the sauce.
Tomato sauce, too, can be subdivided depending on the ingredients used.
However, the sauce I would make today
was the most basic kind, using only onions, tomatoes, bay leaves, and basil.
Surprisingly, cheese could be obtained in Noirudel as well.
Among elves, quite a large portion ate eggs, milk, and even cheese.
Perhaps because of that, there were elves who domesticated goats and mountain goats to make cheese.
But as expected, meat could not be obtained.
If it came down to it, I could exchange for it through the [Mana Market], but I still hadn’t figured out all four elves’ dietary preferences.
There was no need to take a risk by adding an ingredient people might be divided over.
Sizzle—
I first began sautéing minced onion in a pan coated with olive oil.
There was also a vegetable oil containing various herbs that elves often used.
It wasn’t bad, but if possible, it was better to follow the original recipe.
The moment the scent of onion began to rise from the pan,
I threw in the tomatoes I had finished prepping.
Shwaaaak—!
A disastrous collaboration unfolded as the moisture from the tomatoes met the scorching oil.
“Kraaaak.”
Enduring the stinging pain exploding across my forearm, I sautéed the tomatoes.
The pan was quickly covered in tomato juices.
With a spatula, I crushed the tomatoes bit by bit, then seasoned them lightly with salt and pepper.
At this stage, I also added the bay leaves.
In a moistureless state, the fragrance of bay leaves would not infuse properly,
so I would steep them from now on while slowly evaporating the liquid.
Clatter—
Clatter—
And so, after thirty minutes of stirring with the spatula so the sauce wouldn’t burn,
the tomato juices had finally evaporated away for the most part, leaving only savoriness behind.
It wasn’t quite thick and heavy, but the tomato sauce had gained viscosity and was complete.
Pizza takes a long time to make the ingredients,
but once it comes to assembling and baking them, it is over in an instant.
You simply put on the ingredients in order, bake it in a preheated oven for about seven minutes, and that’s it.
There was about an hour of resting time left for the dough...
I should tell Beilla to come eat dinner a little later.
And while I’m at it, ask her to let the other elves know too.
***
“I will not criticize you for leaving home as you pleased. However, Iseria, you must not do anything that brings shame upon the face of elves.”
“I’m sorry...”
“Most elves live for long years inside the greenhouse called Noirudel. Because of that, when they taste stimulating human civilization—something that blooms brilliantly for but an instant—they frequently lose control. You must truly be careful from now on.”
“Yes...”
“It’s fortunate Jinwoo-nim is gentle, honestly...”
In the reception room, Elioren had heard various reports from Kang Jinwoo.
Since Iseria was her only daughter, even if her temperament was a bit unruly, Elioren had cared for her by coaxing and soothing her.
“My education was wrong.”
Though she had accumulated knowledge over some three hundred years of life,
Elioren rose from her seat, once again feeling that theory and practice were indeed different.
The discipline had continued ever since Kang Jinwoo had gone out to look around the city.
Before she knew it, the sun visible outside the window was sinking toward the horizon.
At this point, Iseria must have reflected sufficiently.
Iseria sat in her chair with her back ramrod straight, her clenched fists resting on her knees.
Her lips, like those fists, were pressed tightly shut.
Still, she was Elioren’s daughter, so she could tell at a glance whether it was true or false.
The current Iseria was sincerely reflecting on her actions.
“Rise, Iseria. It is nearly time for dinner.”
“Ugh, yes...”
“Mm?”
From Iseria’s perspective, it must have been a suffocating stretch of time.
Yet for some reason, she gave off an air of reluctance toward the meal.
She was originally a child who loved eating, so was she not very hungry?
Tonight’s dinner would probably be vegetable stew and Elskit, as usual.
The grassy scent of vegetables, the mild broth, and the mushy texture that made it easy to eat—
it was food through which one could clearly feel the grace of the World Tree.
And if one soaked the dry, slightly hard Elskit in it, it was quite filling as well.
Iseria’s mood was slightly puzzling, but Elioren did not go out of her way to ask.
After being scolded for several hours, it was possible she had no appetite.
And so the two left the reception room and were about to head toward the dining hall.
“My lady, my lady!”
Beilla came running urgently from the direction of the training grounds.
Though she looked haggard, her eyes and mouth were smiling,
making her look like a messenger who had run day and night to announce victory in battle.
Beilla belatedly noticed that Elioren was with her and said,
“Lady Elioren. You were together!”
“Yes. What is it, Beilla? Why such haste?”
“The meal, dinner is ready—I came to tell you!”
She came to tell them dinner was ready?
Originally, at the Sildiel estate, if one went to the dining hall at the fixed time, there was always food.
Since what they ate never changed anyway, it was kept prepared at all times.
There was no way Beilla didn’t know that, so Elioren was puzzled.
Before Elioren could voice the question that had surfaced in her mind, Iseria opened her mouth.
“Beilla, does that mean...?”
“Yes, my lady. It’s a dinner prepared by Jinwoo-nim!”
“Wow, finally...!”
“Jinwoo-nim prepared dinner?”
Elioren had thought he was out sightseeing in the city, yet he had been cooking.
He had been kidnapped because of his outstanding cooking skills, but...
Precisely because of that, Elioren had thought to make him restrain himself from cooking and provide him leisure instead.
After barely managing to seek forgiveness for the drugging and kidnapping, making him cook would make the whole picture rather strange.
“Beilla! How could you make a guest cook!”
“Hieek. Th-that is, Jinwoo-nim insisted that he absolutely would...”
At Elioren’s rebuke, Beilla flinched and explained.
According to Beilla,
Kang Jinwoo had volunteered to prepare the meal, saying, “You absolutely have to try my cooking.”
“Ahem... Then it cannot be helped. Shall we go?”
“Yes! Lady Elioren, I’m sure you’ll like it too!”
“Food Jinwoo made for me... Heheh.”
Leaving aside the two who seemed somewhat strange, they headed for the dining hall.
In the dining hall were Seiran and Kang Jinwoo, who had arrived first and were already seated.
Seiran looked as though she had just washed up and was clean in terms of hygiene,
but she wore the same expression as Beilla.
Drooping ears and dark circles, yet the corners of her mouth were lifted in a smile.
Looking closely, Iseria was the same.
She may have been worn out from being scolded, but that alone could not explain her condition.
On a face drained of vitality, only her eyes looked vividly at Kang Jinwoo.
“Lady Elioren, you’ve arrived.”
“Seiran, are you all right?”
“Ah... I believe I will be all right soon.”
What in the world did that mean?
The condition of the elves around her, as if each had a screw loose.
Elioren was gradually finding it difficult to grasp the situation.
Amid that, Kang Jinwoo, having confirmed that Elioren had arrived, said,
“Ah, Lady Elioren. Do you eat cheese, by any chance?”
“I do. Though I do not enjoy it often.”
“That’s a relief. Then please sit and wait just a little.”
“I, I apologize, Jinwoo-nim. You were brought here against your will, yet now you are even cooking for us...”
“It’s all right... Lady Elioren.”
After answering Kang Jinwoo’s question briefly, Elioren offered an apology.
Even if he had volunteered, discourtesy was still discourtesy.
It was better to say at least a word of formality.
However, Kang Jinwoo indicated that it was all right, leaving behind a slight lingering pause.
Then, as if making a declaration, he said,
“I will open your eyes.”
The intuition of Elioren, who had lived for three hundred years, activated powerfully.
Now, here—
something utterly new was beginning to stir.