Pizza Pasta

Tonight I'm making Pizza Pasta for dinner, and I am so excited to eat! Since this has been a family favorite for a long time on my mom's side, and it also happens to be the first meal I ever made for Allen, I thought I'd share the recipe.

1 box pasta, I used whole wheat rotini but penne is also really good
1 jar of pasta sauce
2 lbs ground beef (we're feeding four adults and two kids, 1lb is probably enough for a family of four)
1 bell pepper
1 onion
1/4 cup of red wine (optional)
about a 1/2 cup of mozzarella, shredded
pepperoni


I began by cooking the ground beef and then adding the onion and bell pepper slices to the pan. I used 83% lean mean, so the little bit of fat in it was enough to saute' the veggies in. This is also where I would add the wine and let the alcohol evaporate. But I didn't use wine because, sadly, we don't have any.

So, while I have the meat cooking, I also have the noodles boiling. I really try to multi-task. More on that later.

I use this particular sauce a lot because A. It's tasty but mostly
so my mom can sing, "Life is a Cabernet!!!"
I'm not sure you need the backstory, just know that we sing a lot.

Strain the noodles, then combine the meat-veggie mixture. Now turn the heat on low and mix in the sauce.

Now, and do not skip this, taste test. Because all the cooking shows will teach you to never serve something you haven't tasted.... Or maybe it's that us moms know that the main perk of cooking dinner is getting to sample. 

Then I threw the pepperoni in the skillet I used for the meat and veggies to heat them up a bit.

After everything is incorporated, cover the pasta with a layer of mozzarella, then top with pepperoni. I then put a lid on it and let it sit over low heat until the cheese got all melty and perfect.

Serve with a salad and dinners DONE!

Enjoy and let me know how it turns out-

Lindarella