Here in Columbus, the Capital City of Ohio the preparation for making the Columbus Italian festival pizza sauce has begun! At the helm of this endeavor is the “Godfather” (aka Pizza God) of festival pizza, Vince Militello and his team.
Vince and so many others have been involved with this tradition for many years. About 300 to 350 gallons of pizza sauce are made to support the festival pizza making operation. It’s estimated that given the amount of sauce made, it will yield about 1,750 square/round pizzas made over the festival weekend.
The pizza sauce (with its secret recipe) is made at the large manufacturing facility of Carfagna’s, a local, long-established Columbus Italian Market & Ristorante that have been around since 1937. At the festival, the main pizza stand is set up just outside the steps of historic St. John the Baptist Italian Catholic church.
Carrying on Carfagna’s family market legacy is Sal Carfagna, the 4th generation. The Carfagna family has had a long and deep involvement with the Columbus Italian Festival success. The use of their large manufacturing facility to make the pizza sauce is just one example of the integral part the Carfagna family has played. Besides the large quantity of pizza sauce made for the festival, Carfagna’s has other interesting stats. Sal mentioned that Carfagna’s pasta sauce is sold in 44 states, with over 500,000 jars sold annually. Along with pasta sauce, over one-million meatballs are made/sold.
Here in October, festivals along with pizza are a part of celebrating Italian American heritage month. The upcoming Columbus Italian Festival runs from Oct. 9 to 11.
