Celeste (frozen pizza)

Celeste is a brand of frozen pizza owned by Pinnacle Foods. It is widely referred to by its former name Mama Celeste. The brand's slogan is "Abbondanza", which means "Abundance" in Italian.

Background

The product was named after Celeste Luise (1908-1988) who carried the nickname "Mama Celeste".She came to the United States from Italy with her husband, Anthony, in the 1920s. They settled on Chicago's West Side, where they opened their first restaurant in 1937. In 1962, the Luises closed the restaurant and began selling pizzas to other restaurants. The Quaker Oats Company acquired the product in 1969. Celeste frozen pizza was one of the top selling brands in the 1970s. The Celeste brand was later acquired by Aurora Foods, then Pinnacle Foods.

The process by which Celeste pizzas are made has remained largely the same since its introduction,^{[citation needed]} although the size of the original cheese pizza has decreased from 158g to 142g.

References in Popular Culture

In an episode of The Golden Girls, Sophia tells a story of having been childhood friends in Italy with the woman who would go on to become Mama Celeste.

External links

• Celeste Pizza website
• [1] New York Times obituary of Celeste Lizio
• Pinnacle Foods' Celeste page