THAT'S ITALIAN!

Until the world went crazy, Columbus Day was a national holiday that commemorated the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the Americas. It was celebrated every second Monday of October and became a federal holiday in 1937. Okay, so we all know now that he never made it to the Good Old US of A, but he sure had a lot of 1492 type fun in the Caribbean. Since I always got that day off school, I’m good with giving Chris a meal to celebrate his day.

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Pizza Casserole

Orange Granite

Dry Red Wine – Chianti

Photo by Anna Guerrero from Pexels

Pizza Casserole
1 lb. (500g) bulk Italian sausage
Cooking spray
1 tube refrigerated pizza dough
1 6 oz. (170g) can tomato paste
6 oz. (200ml) water
1 tbsp. (15ml) garlic powder
2 tbsp. (30ml) oregano, divided
1 tbsp. (15ml) basil
1 tsp. (5ml) sugar
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1½ cups (170g) mozzarella cheese, grated
Parmesan cheese, grated, to taste

Preheat oven to 425° F (220°C).

Break sausage into chunks. Sauté over medium heat until the meat is no longer pink, about 15 minutes.

Lightly coat a 9 x 13-inch (22 x 33cm) pan with cooking spray. Spread pizza dough into pan.

Combine tomato paste, water, garlic powder, oregano, basil, sugar, and pepper in a small bowl. Stir well. Pour onto dough, spread to pan edges.

Lay sausage on sauce. Bake 12 minutes.

Remove pan from oven. Scatter mozzarella cheese over casserole, and then sprinkle with remaining oregano. Cast Parmesan across the top. Bake 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Cut into squares to serve.

Orange Granite – Flavored Ice
2 cups (450ml) water
¾ cup (90g) sugar
1 cup (225) orange juice
3 tbsp. (45ml) lemon juice

In a medium-sized saucepan, bring water and sugar to a boil over medium heat. Stir only until sugar dissolves. Timing from the moment the sugar water begins to boil, cook mixture for exactly 5 minutes. With this method you have created a simple syrup. Remove pan from heat and allow syrup to cool to room temperature.

Once cooled, stir orange and lemon juices into syrup. Pour mix-ture into a shallow metal pan.

Freeze granite for 3 to 4 hours. Every 30 minutes, stir and scrape in the ice particles that form on the sides and bottom of pan. The granite should be a fine, snowy texture. For a coarser texture, which I prefer, freeze flavored syrup in ice cube trays until solid, then drop cubes into a plastic bag and smash with a heavy spoon or mallet.

It's Wednesday. So What's Cooking?

Let’s go Italian with a fast and easy menu perfect for busy weekends. This is fun to make and sure to please every member of your family.

Pizza Casserole
Salad with Creamy Garlic Dressing
Orange Granite – Flavored Ice
Dry White Wine – Pinot Grigio
or
Cold Peroni Beer

Pizza Casserole
1 lb. Italian sausage
1 tube Pillsbury pizza dough
1 6oz. can tomato paste
6 oz. water
1 tbsp. garlic powder
2 tbsp. oregano divided
1 tbsp. basil
1 tsp. sugar
Freshly ground pepper to taste
6 oz. mozzarella cheese grated
Olive oil to drizzle

Preheat oven to 425°.

Discard casing. Break sausage into chunks. Sauté over medium high heat until the meat is no longer pink, about 15 minutes.

Spray a 9x13 pan with Pam. Spread the pizza dough into the pan.

Combine tomato paste, water, garlic powder, oregano, basil, and sugar in a small bowl. Stir well. Pour onto the dough and spread to the edges.

Place sausage on sauce. Drizzle with olive oil. Bake for 12 minutes.

Remove pan from oven. Scatter mozzarella cheese over casserole, then sprinkle with oregano. Bake 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Cut in squares and serve.

Salad with Creamy Garlic Dressing
Red leaf lettuce
Romaine lettuce
Head lettuce
Tomato chunks

Plan two leaves of each type lettuce and half a tomato per person. Combine in a bowl. Cover with a damp paper and store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Creamy Garlic Dressing
1 ½ cups mayonnaise – it must be real mayo, not Miracle Whip
½ cup vegetable oil
Scant ¼ cup white vinegar
3 tbsp. chopped onion
¾ tsp. sugar
¼ tsp. salt
4 big gloves garlic pressed

Combine all ingredients into a blender or food processor. Mix on high until smooth.

Keeps two week in refrigerator. Store on bottom shelf.

To serve either toss with your salad or arrange the salad on individual chilled plates and ladle a dollop on top.

Orange Granite – Flavored Ice
2 cups water
¾ cup sugar
1 cup orange juice
3 tbsp. lemon juice

In a 2-quart saucepan, bring the water and sugar to a boil over medium heat. Stir only until the sugar dissolves. Timing from the moment the sugar water begins to boil, cook the mixture for exactly 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and allow the syrup to cool to room temperature.

Once cooled, stir the orange and lemon juices into the syrup. Pour mixture into a shallow metal pan.

Freeze the granite for 3 to 4 hours. Every 30 minutes, stir and scrape in the ice particles that form on the sides of the pan. The granite should be a fine, snowy texture. For a coarser texture, which I prefer, freeze the flavored syrup in ice cube trays until solid, then drop cubes into a plastic bag and smash with a heavy wooden spoon or mallet.

I'll be back Friday with new writing tips. Until then...

Mangiar Bene!

Sloane Taylor