Deep Dish Pizza

The Husband went to grad school in Chicago so he has a thing for deep dish pizza. I was excited to try this recipe from Lidia Bastianich to make one right at home here in Jersey. While I'm not 100 percent sure it is as authentic as the real thing in the Windy City, The Husband and The Son overwhelmingly approved of my pizza. Yay!

I omitted the pepperoni listed in the ingredients, as both of my cohabitants requested it to be meat free. I think bell peppers and mushrooms would be a fab topping, or I guess filling, too. But I just went with the sauces and the cheeses for the first go-around. When I make it again, I will get experimental.

I used a baking dish since my cast-iron skillet is only 10 inches. 

The dough was so much fun to make. This was so crunchy and delish. I definitely recommend making it as the nights get cooler. I initially made this a few months ago during the Covid lockdown. Now that chillier weather is on its way, I thought now was a good time to share.

While you of course can use a jar or your fave marinara or pizza sauce, I am providing a link to my marinara sauce here and my pizza sauce here. Super delish and you can freeze both!

Chicago Deep-Dish Pizza

From "Lidia's Italy in America"

By Lidia Bastianich

Makes 1 pizza

For the dough:

1/2 tsp. sugar

1 packet instant dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp.)

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading the dough

1/2 cup fine cornmeal

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for bowl and pan

For the topping:

4 ounces provolone, sliced

4 ounces mozzarella, sliced

1 to 1 1/2 cups marinara sauce

2 ounces pepperoni, sliced

1/2 cup grated Grana Padano or Parmigiano-Reggiano

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

To make the dough:

Pour 1 cup plus 3 Tbsp. warm (90 to 110 degrees F) water into a bowl, then stir in the sugar and the yeast. Let sit until the yeast begins to bubble, about 5 minutes.

In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the flour, cornmeal, and salt on low to combine. Pour in the yeast mixture and the olive oil to combine while still mixing. Once the dough comes together, switch to the dough hook, and knead on medium-high speed to make a smooth dough, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add a little more water or flour as needed to make a soft dough. Put the dough in an oiled bowl, cover and let rise until doubled in size, from 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Punch down the dough, and press into a 14-by-10-inch oiled baking pan or an oiled 12-inch cast iron skillet, gently pressing the dough up the sides to make a shell. Fill the shell with an even layer of the provolone and mozzarella, then spread the sauce to cover the cheese completely. Top with the pepperoni, and sprinkle with the grated cheese and oregano. Cover with foil and bake 45 minutes. Then uncover and bake until the crust is deep golden brown and pizza is bubbly, about 20 minutes more. Let sit about 5 to 10 minutes before cutting into wedges and serving. 

Grilled Eggplant Parm

Eggplant Parmesan is one of my fave dishes. Vegetarian. Comforting. I love it.

Oftentimes when ordering the dish out on the restaurant scene, the eggplant is breaded and fried. My way cuts all of that out. The eggplant is brushed with olive oil, seasoned with salt and pepper and grilled on my trusty grill pan.

Because the eggplant is prepared in this way, the true flavor of the vegetable shines through the layers of marinara and cheese. In the traditional way, the breading and frying can mask the texture and the yumminess of the star of the show.

I'm pretty certain grilling the eggplants and eliminating the egg wash and breading cuts calories in some fashion. I'm no nutritionist, but I mean common sense, right?

My recipe for marinara is listed below as well. I served my eggplant parm with some cavatelli in marinara. A perfect duo.

Warning to all of my cooking friends who are looking for a rush job on this: It takes time. From making the sauce, to grilling the eggplant and waiting for things to cool. Bank on a few hours when all is said and done. But it is worth it!

Grilled Eggplant Parm
Makes 8 servings

2 large eggplants, cut into 1/4-inch thick slices (16-20)
48 ounces marinara, warmed (recipe below)
2 cups shredded mozzarella, divided
1/2 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Drizzle olive oil into a 13 by 9 Pyrex glass baking dish. Coat the bottom and sides with the oil using a paper towel.

Line up eggplant slices on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and lightly season with salt and pepper on both sides. You will need to do this in batches or use multiple baking sheets.

Meanwhile, heat a grill pan over high heat. Grill eggplant on both sides, about 4-5 minutes per side, in batches. Don't overcrowd the pan. Four to five fit on my pan at a time.

 Remove from grill pan and let cool on another baking sheet.

Spread about a cup of marinara sauce over the bottom of the glass baking dish. Layer half of the eggplant slices on top.

Spread about another cup or so of sauce on top. Sprinkle evenly with a cup of mozzarella and 1/4 cup of Parmigiano-Reggiano. Layer the remaining eggplant on top of the cheese, followed by more sauce and the remaining cheese.

Cover the entire pan with aluminum foil. Poke about 8 to 10 slits throughout the foil to ventilate the dish while it is in the oven.

Bake covered dish in a preheated 375 degree oven for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 15 minutes uncovered. Remove from oven. Cover with foil again and let set for about 20 minutes.

Serve with your favorite pasta and remaining marinara.

Here's my traditional marinara recipe:

Susan's Marinara
2 Tbsp. olive oil
8 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 small onion, minced
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 can Cento pureed tomatoes (28. oz)
1 can Cento crushed tomatoes (28 oz.)
A little bit of water – probably half a cup
20 fresh basil leaves
Salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the garlic, onion and red pepper flakes. Cook for about five minutes, until fragrant.

Add the pureed and crushed tomatoes. Use a little bit of water to rinse off the tomato on the sides of the cans and pour into pot.The water should measure to a half cup.

Add salt and pepper to taste. I did 20 grinds of my pepper mill and a scant 1/4 tsp. salt.

Snip basil leaves into pot with cooking shears.

Turn your heat down to low. Simmer partially covered for 45 minutes. Make sure you stir every 5 to 10 minutes.

Eggplant Rollatini

Tis the season of eggplant.

My Eggplant Rollatini is a great main dish for vegetarians or if you just feel like going meatless for a night.

I prefer this over Eggplant Parm - not that there's anything wrong with a little Eggplant Parm now and again. But in this recipe, because the veg is grilled not fried. And there is no need for dipping and dabbling in eggs and breadcrumbs.

Nonetheless, preparing the rollatini is a bit time consuming. This isn't a 30-minute meal. So crack open some wine and put on some tunes. Enjoy the process.

You of course could take a shortcut and use jarred marinara, but The Jersey Girl just so happened to have a batch of homemade sauce chilling out in the freezer. This is a great time of year to rock out some marinara with the abundance of fresh basil everywhere. And jarred sauces don't exist in my house. Once a snob, always a snob. Here's my marinara recipe, in case you are inspired to rock some out.

And onto the main event: Eggplant.

Eggplant Rollatini
Makes 8 to 10 rolls

2 large eggplants, sliced lengthwise 1/2 inchwide. Each eggplant should yield 4 to 5 slices
Salt
16 ounces ricotta cheese
1 egg, lightly beaten
3/4 cup fresh mozzarella, diced
3 Tbsp.grated parmigiano
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh basil
2 cups marinara
Olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Lay eggplant slices on two baking sheets. Sprinkle each with a pinch of salt on both sides. Let rest for 15 minutes. This process will extract extra water.

Once the 15 minutes is up, rinse each piece under water and dry on kitchen towels.

Line up eggplant on baking sheets, and brush each side with olive oil.

Heat a grill pan over medium high heat. Working in batches, grill eggplant for about five minutes per side. Eggplant should have gorgeous grill marks and should be pliable, as we see here:

Remove from pan and let cool on baking sheets. Repeat until all are cooked.

Meanwhile, in a bowl combine ricotta cheese and egg gently with a whisk. Using a rubber spatula, fold in mozzarella, parmigiano and basil. Set aside.

One the eggplant slices are cooled, sprinkle each with salt and fresh pepper. Lightly oil a 13 by 9 inch glass baking dish.

Evenly divide ricotta filling among the 8 to 10 slices of eggplant starting on the narrow end of each slice. The filling should not go up about 1/4 of the length of each slice.

 Gently wrap each eggplant into a roll over the filling and line up each roll in the prepared baking dish. So orderly!

Top each roll with a generous spoonful of marinara sauce. Now we're talking.

Bake for 15 minutes uncovered in a preheated 375 degree oven. And enjoy, all you wild and crazy vegetarians!

Sticks Stack Up

Stick-form vegetables dipped in egg and coated in bread crumb and cheese?

Why yes, your little one will eat these delishly awesome zucchini fingers.

Or maybe he'll throw them dart-style at your ruffled brow. Or sneak them to the dog.

But give them a whirl all of  you fabulous mommas and poppas out there. What do you have to lose besides patience, self respect and the will to have a calm and peaceful dinner?

I've realized when feeding my 2-year-old King of the Castle that what he was loving yesterday during Bubble Guppies is not what he may be feeling tomorrow during that never-ending Thomas and Friends marathon.

At least it's not Dora, people. That screech-mouth is on the banned-TV list in this house. I need to maintain my sanity during non-wine-drinking hours.

The recipe for Parmesan Crusted Baked Zucchini Sticks comes from a really dope cooking blog called Closet Cooking.  This is the type of blog I run in my dreams - the ones uninterrupted by insomnia, a screaming toddler, a snoring husband and a really weak bladder.

I rocked out my zucchini sticks when The Husband was away on work or at work, which let's be honest - same thing. I had made a fab pot of marinara with some gorgeous basil, so I thought let's give these zucchini fingers a go during nap time.  They use panko bread crumbs. If you don't have them in your pantry, snap to it momma, and get some!! This is a great dish to serve as an appie, especially if there are vegetarians roaming around your world. I set them up and then baked them about an hour later

Evan ate three sticks. He actually requested more after his first one. Yay! He was probably hypnotized by my marinara. Or the whole dipping aspect of it all.

Whatevs. What do I care? He ate it.

For my marinara recipe, click here.

And for the zucchini sticks, please see below:

Parmesan Crusted Baked Zucchini Sticks
From Closet Cooking
By Kevin Lynch

• 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup parmigiano reggiano (parmesan), grated
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 pound zucchini, sliced into sticks and patted dry
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 
  
• Mix the bread crumbs, parmigiano reggiano and oregano in a bowl.
• 
  
• Season the zucchini with salt and pepper.
• 
  
• Dip the zucchini in the egg and then dredge in the bread crumb mixture.
• 
  
• Place the zucchini on a baking sheet in a single layer with the skin side down.
• 
  
• Bake in a preheated 425F oven until golden brown, about 20-25 minutes.

Hey Paisano

Bust out the red-and-white checkered table cloth, because you’re getting a recipe for Chicken Parm, kiddies.

Yes, this is unquestionably kitschy kitschy ya ya Italian-American food.

But, sometimes all a girl wants is some chicken slathered in bread crumbs, mozzarella and marinara with a side of spaghettini, thank you very much.

If that’s wrong, I don’t want to be right.

Anyhoo, you may be under the assumption that you can only get chicken parm at some old-timey Italiano restaurant where Sinatra or Dean Martin is on in the background and the wine is a nameless house red. Or, perhaps you order it at those awful Italian-wannabe chains that shall remain nameless to uphold the sanctity of my blog. But you are way, off dear readers.

So, let me steer you in the right direction:

You can make the Chicken Parm at home in your little old kitchen. Yay!

And you’ll love every minute of it. Plus, it’s not deep fried. And you can use fresh mozzarella and make your own marinara. Cause that’s the way, un huh un huh, I like it.

And yes, you can still play Sinatra and Dean Martin on your Ipod or your stereo. I loves me some Sinatra and Dean Martin.

Chicken Parmesan
(Makes 6 servings)

6 chicken cutlets, thin-cut
1 cup, or a little more of Cento Italian-style breadcrumbs
2 extra large eggs, lightly beaten
Salt and pepper to taste
3 Tbsp. olive oil
Mean Marinara (See recipe here), or your fav marinara, warmed
1 cup to 1 ½ cups mozzarella, grated

Season both sides of chicken cutlets with salt and pepper.

Place breadcrumbs in a wide dish.

Place eggs in a wide bowl. Beat them lightly with a fork or whisk.

To prepare cutlets, dip 1 cutlet in egg mixture. Transfer to breadcrumbs and dredge until both sides are lightly coated. Set aside. Repeat with five remaining cutlets.

In a large pan, heat 1 Tbsp. olive oil. Once heated, place 2 cutlets in the pan. Cook for about five minutes on each side. Repeat 2 more times with the remaining olive oil and 4 remaining cutlets.

Remove cooked chicken from pan, and place on a baking sheet lined with paper towels.

Coat the bottom of a large baking pan with warm marinara.

Place chicken side-by-side in the pan. Top with a spoonful or two of marinara. Top with grated mozzarella.

Bake in a pre-heated 400 degree Fahrenheit oven for about 20 minutes, or until mozzarella is bubbly and lightly browned.

Serve with your favorite pasta and the remaining marinara as well as your favorite salad. And garlic bread, wouldn’t be a bad idea either.

Stuffed Pepper Awesomeness

So, I love stuffed peppers. They remind me of my childhood. My mom made stuffed peppers all the time.

My recipe is inspired by my mom, but I’ve added my own touches – and measurements. Mom just eyeballs everything.


The dish does require quite a few pots and pans. So having dishwash-ing help is always a plus. Unfortunately, my husband is working uber late tonight. Normally, when he’s home and I’m not teaching we stand side-by-side doing cleanup duty. He washes; I dry. Tonight, I did both, but I imagined his happiness when digging into my magical stuffed peppers.

They really are thing of beauty.

So have at it.

Stuffed Peppers – Suzie Style

6 green bell peppers, tops cut off, seeded and cleaned
Marinara sauce, warmed – enough to coat the bottom of a roasting pan and to top each stuffed pepper

Stuffing
1 cup your favorite rice, cooked
1 lb. ground beef
½ white onion
2-3 cloves garlic
¼ cup Italian style bread crumbs
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
1 Tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
1 Tbsp. olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add ground beef and break up with a flat-edged wooden spoon. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until browned.

Push ground beef to one side of pan. Add garlic and onion. Saute for a few minutes and mix well with ground beef. Remove pan from heat.

Add bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, parsley and cooked rice to the beef mixture. Mix well. Taste for seasonings. Re-season with salt and pepper, if you desire.

Coat the bottom of a roasting pan with a thin layer of marinara sauce. Stuff each pepper with filling and line up in roasting pan. Once each pepper is filled, top with marinara sauce. Cover and bake for 45 minutes.

I Make a Mean Marinara

I’d rather starve than eat jarred marinara sauce.

I guess that’s not exactly a PC declaration, but sometimes the truth hurts.

Listen, I don’t judge those who groove on Prego or Ragu. Or eat at McDonald’s. Or go to Dunkin’ Donuts every day. Or buy all of their groceries in the frozen food aisle. Or think “homemade” is a “can of this” mixed with a “package of that.”

That’s just not how I roll.

OK. Maybe I do judge you.

I’m kidding! Calm down.

In my opinion, even the time-strapped have time to make a fabulous marinara. Prep and cleanup is about 10 minutes. The only attention you need to give marinara, besides some love, is occasional stirring as it simmers over majorly low heat so that it doesn’t burn.

And hello those 10 minutes and occasional stirs have a great payoff: You can just pop the finished product in the freezer for those nights when you’re way busy and would perhaps rather go for a frozen dinner (gag) or the drive-thru (ick nast).

And next time you buy a jar of marinara, read the label, particularly the sodium count.

Those numbers are pretty high, aren’t they?

I have a batch of marinara sauce simmering away as we speak. I’m using it for my fabulous stuffed bell peppers tomorrow night. OMG. I can’t wait.

Anyway, I guess you could say I make a Mean Marinara. That’s because it’s super spicy and garlicky. Those are my husband Mark’s two favorite flavors – next to chocolate and beer.

My recipe has a large dose of garlic and hot pepper flakes. It is not for those seeking mild flavors. Of course, you can cut back on those two ingredients if you please and are a major lightweight.

The uses for marinara are endless: Pasta, baked pastas, meat dishes like chicken parmesan, chili, stews, soups, vegetarian dishes like eggplant rolatini, dips for bread sticks and other appies like toasted ravioli. Yum, toasted ravioli.

So check out my recipe. And ditch the jar.



Mean Marinara

2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 small onion or half a medium/large onion, finely chopped
8 (yes 8) cloves of garlic, finely chopped
¾ tsp. red pepper flakes (you can cut back this)
1 can Cento pureed tomatoes (28. oz)
1 can Cento crushed tomatoes (28 oz.)
A little bit of water – probably half a cup
20 fresh basil leaves
Salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and onion. Sweat the garlic and onion for five minutes. They should be very fragrant.

Push the garlic and onion to one side of the pan and toast the red pepper flakes for a minute. Mix into the garlic and onion.

Add the pureed and crushed tomatoes. Use a little bit of water to rinse off the tomato on the sides of the cans and pour into pot. (We Italians don’t like to waste food!) The water should measure to a half cup.

Add salt and pepper to taste. I did 20 grinds of my pepper mill and a scant 1/4 tsp. salt.

Snip basil leaves into pot with cooking shears.

Turn your heat down to low. Simmer partially covered for 45 minutes. Make sure you stir every 5 to 10 minutes.

Enjoy now or tomorrow or freeze for later on in your life.