Once upon a time, in the peasant calendar of Cilento, Saturdays were dedicated to the preparation of bread and before baking it, the women prepared a dough that was an ancient pizza, known as pizzidda, rianata, dentata. This custom had a dual function: on one hand it was used to test the temperature of the bread oven, on the other it was a moment of sharing, bringing families together on a day of rest. Even today, the dough used for making bread is made of a few simple ingredients: mother yeast and durum wheat semolina mixed with soft wheat flour.

The tomato sauce is cooked in a separate pot with a sauté of garlic, onion and mountain oregano and after cooking the l’ammaccata is covered with grated goat cacioricotta cheese from Cilento instead of fiordilatte or buffalo mozzarella which is usually used on pizza here in Italy. In Cilento the ancient Cilento pizza is called in dialect "pizza re casa" and in the past eating it still hot, was almost a well-wishing rite for the success of the baked bread of the week ahead but also a complete meal for the whole family .

The Pizza Cilentana Ammaccata® is a registered trademark and since February 2020 has entered the National List of Traditional Agri-food Products.

The ammaccata is different from pizza, it is oval, has a low gluten content, is rich in fiber and mineral salts and the composition of the dough includes three grains: 30% saragolla durum wheat and a mix of soft wheat (risciola and carousel) for the remaining 70%. The processing must be done by hand on a beech wood board, the yeast must be sourdough and only the fingers are used to roll out the pizza.

The pasta must remain higher than the normal pizza and it is seasoned in the three traditional ways: the classic with cooked tomato sauce, abundant mountain oregano and grated mature cacioricotta cheese of Cilento; la schietta made with garlic, oil, oregano and anchovies from Menaica; con foglie, a calzone with herbs and field vegetables (borage, thistle, chicory ...) and according to the season Menaica anchovies, bruised Salella olives and goat cacioricotta are also added, all ingredients which are part of the Slow Food presidia.

The pizza is cooked at 320-330 degrees and for more than 2 minutes with rowan, heather or olive wood placed at the bottom of the oven and not next to it. The ancient flavors of the ammaccata tell the territory and local traditions more than a history book itself and the intent is precisely to demonstrate that Cilento has a strong link with tradition but also with the Mediterranean diet and with small local producers that ensure excellence.

Innovation can be done by maintaining contact with history, habits and the slowness that is needed to make good food.