Pasta Pizzaz Recipes

PIZZA PASTA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
• In a medium skillet over medium-high heat, cook beef with onion until beef is brown. Drain. Combine beef mixture with spaghetti sauce, pepperoni and cooked pasta and pour into a 9x13 inch baking dish. Top with mozzarella.
• Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, until cheese is melted and golden.

PIZZA PASTA BAKE

Steps:

• Pre-heat the oven to 200ºC/400ºF.
• To make the sauce, sweat the onions, garlic and oregano in a few tablespoons of olive oil until soft and translucent.
• Add the tomatoes, basil (I use a medium bunch that I can remove from the sauce once cooked) and seasoning and allow to simmer for 5 minutes until slightly reduced. Adjust seasoning if necessary.
• Slice 3/4 of the pepperoni/salami (reserving a few slices for presentation).
• Add the cooked pasta (and stir in some of the reserved pasta cooking water). Add the sliced salami to the pasta with the sliced basil.
• Transfer half of the pasta to an oven-proof dish, add half of the cheese then the remainder of the pasta and cheese. Top with the rest of the pepperoni/salami and place in the oven to bake for 10 minutes or until the cheese has melted.
• Remove from the oven, top with more basil and serve.

PIZZA PASTA CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. In a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in spaghetti sauce and pasta. , Transfer to 2 greased 13x9-in. baking dishes. Sprinkle with cheese. Arrange pepperoni over the top. , Bake, uncovered, 25-30 minutes or until heated through. Freeze option: Cool unbaked casseroles; cover and freeze up to 3 months. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Preheat oven to 350°. Bake as directed, increasing time to 35-40 minutes or until heated through and a thermometer inserted in center reads 165°.,

PASTA/PIZZA SAUCE

Steps:

• In large skillet, saute garlic in oil until golden. Add tomato paste, sugar, oregano, basil, water, cheese and wine. Season with salt and pepper and simmer 10 minutes over medium-low heat.

PIZZA PASTA

Steps:

• In a bowl, beat eggs with freshly grated cheese before tossing with leftover spaghetti. Make sure the spaghetti is fully covered with the egg. Add a dash or two of salt, to taste, noting that the leftover spaghetti is already seasoned with salt.
• Heat the olive oil in a saucepan. To test oil temperature, drop a piece of spaghetti into the pan. If it sizzles upon contact, the oil is ready.
• Pour the spaghetti mixture into the pan and flatten it out like a pancake. Fry for 2 minutes on high heat, or until golden brown.
• To flip the pasta, cover the pan with a plate larger than the pan, and hold it covered. Flip the pan and plate together to transfer the pasta onto the plate, then slide the uncooked portion back into pan and continue cooking for another 2 minutes, or until golden brown.
• Remove the pizza pasta from the pan and place it on a plate lined with a paper towel to absorb the excess oil. Serve warm or cold.