Orlando, Fla.–For 2010, a new American pizza champion has been named. Cemal Ramusevic of Angelo’s pizza in Allentown, New Jersey, was named America’s Best Pizza Maker during the seventh annual American Pizza Championship (APC) on September 13 during the Orlando Pizza Show hosted by PMQ Pizza Magazine. In addition to the first place pizza peel trophy, Ramusevic also earned a spot on the U.S. Pizza Team and will now compete in this year’s America’s Plate

competition hosted every winter by PMQ in New York. Eighteen Pizziaolos from around the country traveled to the APC making the event the largest competition to date. Ramusevic’s winning pie, titled “Pizza a la Vodka,” featured a vodka cream sauce, fresh mushrooms, prosciutto, green peas, olive oil and aged Romano cheese. Coming in second was Damian “Dutch” Van Oostendorp, of Tribecca Allie Café in Sardis, Mississippi, who baked a pie dubbed “Pizza Bianco” topped with olive oil, baby arugula, pine nuts and four types of cheese including: feta, Romano, Parmesano Reggiano and whole milk mozzarella. The third place award went to Romano Ramusevic—brother of pizza champion Cemal Ramusevic—of Il Pomodoro in Staten Island, New York. The pizza maker nabbed the third award with a adriatic pizza covered in fresh mozzarella, baby lobster tail, shrimp, fresh scallops, lump crab meat and a lobster bisque sauce.

Judges for the event included 16-year-old chef and blogger Jeremy Salamon of JeremyCooks.com, Chef Michael Bersell from the Disney Animal Kingdom and master pizzaiolo Giulio Adriani, winner of the 2010 America’s Plate and owner of Olio Pizza y Piu in New York.