DENVER — Live Basil Pizza, a new authentic Neapolitan fast casual pizza concept, today announced the launch of its newest ‘Chef’s Pick’ pizza – topped with locally-sourced organic asparagus from Salinas Valley in Monterey County – supplied by 4Earth Farms and available from the Nunes Company under the Foxy label brand.
"Asparagus to me is the first sign that Spring has arrived," said Jason Dowd, Executive Chef of Live Basil Pizza. "I knew I had to create a pizza recipe that featured this ingredient as a celebration of the season."
The new Organic Asparagus Pizza begins with hand stretched dough and is topped with mascarpone cream sauce, Salinas Valley organic asparagus, goat cheese, imported white truffle oil, sea salt and black pepper. It will be available at Live Basil Pizza’s L.A. LIVE restaurant location now through April 30.
On a recent trip to Salinas Valley where the organic asparagus is grown, Chef Dowd walked the fields with fifth generation farm owner Tom Nunes, and added, "Having an appreciation for how farmers grow our food is the best inspiration for creating recipes. They work so hard preparing the soil, seeding the plants and nurturing them until just the right time to harvest, I take great pleasure in being able to use these fresh, wholesome ingredients in a way that brings full enjoyment to people who eat them."
"We are one of the largest growers for organic asparagus in the United States," said Tom Nunes V, President of the Nunes Company, Inc. "It's a long term commitment, as there are many diligent steps that are done to ensure the organic standard is met. For instance, the soil needs to transition for three years with no treatment of conventional applications before we can even begin harvesting. There are no short-cuts with the growing of organic fresh produce, and without the use of conventional methods to protect the crop we need to put a lot of energy into finding natural solutions."
Introduced in Denver in 2013, Live Basil Pizza serves handcrafted pizzas that combine the best parts of a traditional Neapolitan pizza with a quick and customized service platform for the way Americans like to eat. In keeping with the Neapolitan tradition, a combination of authentic, natural, imported and organic ingredients are used. Imported organic San Marzano tomatoes make up the red sauce. Fresh, shredded mozzarella, aged provolone, goat or ricotta cheese and a variety of all-natural meats serve as choices for toppings. In a nod to its namesake, basil plants are grown inside the restaurant so that the leaves can be picked and placed on top of each pizza that calls for it right before serving.
Every Live Basil pizza is made to order, either from Live Basil’s selection of pies on its Favorites and Signature menus or created to order based on the guest’s specifications. Guests can watch as their pie is carefully tailored to their liking and cooked in a state of the art, 650 degree open flame hearth oven and ready in only 150 seconds, allowing for a five minute turnaround time between when the guest creates their pizza to the time it is delivered to their table.
Each market also has a locally-inspired pizza that can only be found at restaurants in that region. The Los Angeles pizza is a white pizza with an Italian cheese blend, shaved Parmesan cheese, marinated wild mushrooms, fresh wild arugula, and imported truffle oil. In its Colorado locations, Live Basil Pizza features the Colorado with Bison Sausage + Green Chile with roasted corn, green Hatch chilies, locally sourced goat cheese and Bison sausage.
About Live Basil Pizza
Live Basil Pizza is the place for fast, fresh, great tasting hearth-baked pizza with an engaging made in front of you guest experience for take-out, lunch and dinner. Each pizza is hand crafted, made with only the finest ingredients including organic San Marzano tomatoes and all natural meats and cheeses. For more information and locations, please visit www.livebasilpizza.com.
About 4Earth Farms
Founded 21 years ago in Los Angeles, California, 4EARTH FARMS is one of the largest vertically integrated Conventional, Organic, and Specialty grower-packer-shippers in the nation. 4EARTH FARMS supplies wholesale, private label, and foodservice produce to some of the largest retail and wholesale customers around the globe. With incredibly efficient cross-dock, consolidation, and logistics, as well as state-of-the-art facilities and unparalleled food storage and safety standards, 4EARTH FARMS offers a 99.4% fulfillment rate on a bounty of produce made up of more than 150 year-round organic SKUs, 250 specialty products, and conventional fruits and vegetables, with its core items being Brussels Sprouts, Sugar Snap Peas, Snow Peas, and Green Beans. With many farm-direct programs, and strong grower relationships, 4Earth Farms cultivates more than 2,000 acres in Baja Mexico, mainland Mexico, Northern California, central California, Oregon, and Texas, and has direct relationships with growers in Chile, Taiwan, Thailand, China, and South Africa. For more information, please visit www.4earthfarms.com
About Chef Jason Dowd
Executive Chef Jason Dowd is a seasoned research and development chef with the unique combination of fine dining culinary experience and fast casual operations background. As the Corporate Executive Chef for Consumer Concept Group (CCG) he oversees the culinary vision for Tom’s Urban and Live Basil Pizza. Jason has a keen interest in discovering great flavors and ingredients at local farms and farmers markets across the country.
Source: Live Basil Pizza
