Recipes by Zola - Pizza Pasta Casserole

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Pizza Pasta Casserole

Zola Gorgon

Christmas Craziness

I'm about to embark on a new "adventure" this evening. I'm going to make marshmallows. Over 1800 marshmallows. I haven't even chosen a recipe yet. I haven't purchased the ingredients but I'm committed.

Here's why.

Each year we send gifts to several clients. This year it's going to be about 90 clients and friends who will receive gifts. For many years I've made different renditions of Zola nuts and they were sent to clients in some kind of cool box. This year I decided to go a different direction for a very special reason.

This past year our company was designated as a WBE. That's a Women's Business Enterprise. It means it's a minority-owned business run by a woman. So what's the big deal? What it means is potential for added business that can come from different directions. It can also mean an extra benefit to our clients; depending on how large they are.

Very large businesses that have a Board of Directors are often charged with doing a percentage of their business with minority-owned businesses so they seek out those kinds of companies. For us, this might mean being in contact with larger companies that might not normally consider doing business with us, but will now look at us because we are minority-owned and that serves the Board's goals.

For small companies it might mean that they can get a grant from the government so they can do training they might not otherwise have been able to afford. It's a win-win all the way around.

There are other WBE's around Chicago too. One of them is called Vosges Haut-Chocolat. They make...you guessed it...Chocolate confections of all sorts. I decided to purchase from a fellow WBE, Katrina Markoff who is a graduate of the Cordon Bleu School in Paris. Her chocolates are divine. Check the company out on line. You can buy things directly. http://www.vosgeschocolate.com/ or call at 1.888.301.YUMM(9866). I'm buying the triple pack of hot chocolate mixes. Then I'm packaging them with Zola Marshmallows. (That is after I figure out how to make them!).

So, if my mission comes to fruition, maybe next week I'll give you a yummy recipe for homemade marshmallows! After I write this I'm going to buzz to the grocery store to buy ingredients. That is after I finish my research and decide on my recipe. Wow, this season gets nuts, doesn't it?!

Speaking of Christmas Craziness, I thought you could use a recipe that you can make once, and depending on your family size, serve more than once. Maybe for dinner and then for lunch the next day. When we all have family coming into town we need things that are easy to mix up, toss in the oven and then just serve. This one works great with a simple salad.

My husband came home one night and could not decide what he wanted to eat. First he said pizza and then he said pasta. I decided to make something that would resemble both. Kids are going to love this dish and manly men too.

Pizza Pasta Casserole
Makes approximately 8 servings

12 oz of penne pasta
2 Tbl of butter
1/3 cup of grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup of egg substitute
8 oz of mascarpone (Italian cheese in a tub)
1 pound of ground beef (I use ground sirloin)
one cup of chopped onion
1 chopped green pepper
1 15 oz can of diced tomatoes (I use the one with Italian herbs mixed in)
1 15 oz. can of stewed tomatoes
2 tsp of Italian herb mix
1 tsp of garlic powder

3 oz of pepperoni slices

Cook pasta in boiling water according to directions on the box. While the pasta is cooking you can make the rest of the dish.

In a large saute pan brown the ground beef until half cooked, breaking it up into small chunks. Half way through cooking add the onion and the green pepper. Now saute all of this until the beef is cooked through and the veggies are heated through and partially cooked.

Add the diced and stewed tomatoes. No need to drain them. Add the Italian herbs, the garlic powder and heat until completely warmed.

When the pasta is cooked, drain it and put it back in the same pan. Add the butter and parmesan cheese and blend it with a wooden spoon. Now add the egg substitute and stir again. Then add the mascarpone and stir to mix thoroughly.

Take out a 9 X 13 pan. Put the pasta mixture on the bottom. Spread the ground beef/tomato mixture on the top. Then open the pepperoni slices and spread them across the top of the casserole in rows. They should meet end-to-end and cover the whole pasta dish.

Bake this at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Let stand on the counter for 10 minutes after baking to firm it up and then slice to serve.

Enjoy!
Cheers,
Zola

This news arrived on: 12/10/2007

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