The cornicione (COR-nich-ee-OH-nah) of a pizza is the end crust. The word is from the Italian and describes the “cornice” or “outer ledge” of a pizza.
 
“Cornicione” remains little-used in the United States, where most people just say “crust.” The term is most popular on the pizza blog Serious Eats—Slice, which explained the term and added a video pronunciation guide in January 2011.
 
     
13 May 2004, Philadelphia (PA) Inquirer, “Slices of Life: There’s a perfect pizza out there for every taste” by Peter Reinhart, pg. F1:
The dough is stretched thin for a crisp crust and puffy rim (called the cornicione), a feature he prizes highly.
 
eGullet Forums
slkinsey
Posted 15 June 2004 - 06:44 AM
(...)
I think a lot of the soft, pliable texture and fairly pale color (contrasting with the crisp, brown, blistered cornicione and great oven spring) has to do with their use of soft, hyper-refined 00 flour.
     
eGullet Forums
jmolinari
Posted 14 December 2004 - 12:42 PM
They are very different in that with a rolled pizza you have a completely level surface, with a hand stretched and tossed pizza you have what in italy they call a “cornicione” or a border. This is the outer edge of the pizza that is slightly thicker, and has more puff than the center area of the pizza.
 
PizzaMarketplace.com
The rising artisan pizza movement
December 8, 2004
When author Peter Reinhart set out to find the perfect pizza for his book, “American Pie,” he uncovered some unexpected treasures.
(...)
A scant 2 minutes to 3 minutes within the inferno is all that’s needed to produce a thin, crispy crust with a puffy “cornicione” or edge.
   
Google Books
Pizza: More Than 60 Recipes for Delicious Homemade Pizza
By Diane Morgan and Tony Gemignani
San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books LLC
2005
Pg. 27:
The slightly thicker edge of the pizza crust is called cornicione, a distinct characteristic of Neapolitan pizzas.
   
Serious Eats—Slice
Glossary: crust terminology
Adam Kuban
JAN 6, 2011
8:30 AM
cornicione
The edge or lip of a pizza. This is what most Americans refer to as the “crust.” While this might work for casual conversation, we have to be a little more technical at Slice, as we typically use crust to refer to the entire bread component of a pie. On Slice, we sometimes call the cornicione the “end crust.”
 
Serious Eats—Slice
How to Pronounce ‘Cornicione’
JAN 24, 2011
2:30 PM
Often times when the term cornicione* is written on Slice, we get folks asking how it’s pronounced. Here, certified Italian and Neapolitan-pizzamaker Roberto Caporuscio of Kesté Pizza & Vino gives us a short Italian lesson.
 
* The raised rim of the pizza — what most non-pizza-obsessed folks call the “crust.” But of course pizza freaks know that the entire bready base of the pizza is the “crust,” so we need a special term to talk about just the rim of the pizza.
   
ActiveRain
Do You Speak Pizza?
Posted by Kristin Johnston,Waukesha County Realtor Buyers Agent,Waukesha Cty WI Real Estate on 09/08/2011 09:52 AM
(...)
Cornicione:  The outermost lip of the pizza (and the Italian word for an architectural ledge).  Pros distinguish it from the word “crust” which they reserve only for the bottom of the slice.