TOMS RIVER – Home chef Sean Duffield of Toms River was recently named the winner of Francis Ford Coppola Winery’s Perfect Your Pizza competition.
Sean was awarded a grand prize of $25,000 for his thin-crust pie topped with three cheeses, apples, caramelized onion and fennel, paired with Coppola’s Diamond Collection Prosecco.
The competition was held at the Francis Ford Coppola Winery in Sonoma County, CA, where contestants create the ultimate pizza recipe to complement the brand’s Diamond Collection wines.
The contest was judged by New Jersey Pizza expert and New York Times bestselling author of “The Joy of Pizza,” Dan Richer, along with a panel of food and wine experts.
“I was surprised and totally won over by (his) original and delicious pizza. It was incredibly well conceived and well executed: From the perfectly caramelized crust to the tart, crunchy green apples and the richness of the three cheeses, it was a perfect bite in every way,” Richer said. “The pizza paired fantastically with the crisp apple notes of the Coppola Prosecco, whose effervescence cut through the richness of the cheeses to make a perfect pairing.”
