Pasta Pizza —rsquo; A Tomato-Red Pan Full of Home

Alexis called from Denver this week. Patricia's youngest, the travel nurse, the one who FaceTimes me from wherever she is in the country with a new city in the background and the same concern on her face: "Are you eating, Granny?" She asks me this every time. Every single time. As if I — Dorothy Henderson, the woman who has cooked every day of her life since age ten — might somehow forget to eat. "Yes, Alexis, I am eating." "What are you eating?" "What are YOU eating?" She pauses. The pause tells me everything. "Alexis Marie Morris, are you eating gas station food again?" Another pause. "Granny, the Wawa in Philadelphia had really good—" "Alexis. Wawa is not food. Wawa is a building with food-shaped items inside it."

I worry about that girl. She's thirty-six, single, brilliant, brave — she goes where the hospitals need her and she works until they don't need her anymore and then she goes somewhere else. She has seen every state. She has treated patients in ICUs from Maine to California. She is the most competent, capable young woman I know, and she eats like a college student who has given up on the concept of a kitchen. I have offered to teach her to cook. She says she doesn't have a kitchen that stays the same long enough to learn. I said, "Alexis, you don't need a kitchen. You need a hot plate and a cast iron skillet and the will of God." She laughed. She did not get a hot plate.

I sent her a care package. Via USPS, not Greyhound, because Denver is too far for the bus. The package contained: a jar of my hot sauce (Sapelo peppers, sixth generation), a bag of stone-ground grits from Sapelo Island, a printed copy of my shrimp and grits recipe (laminated, because I know this girl and anything not laminated will end up in a puddle of something), and a note that said, "Alexis, feed yourself the way you feed your patients — with care and attention. Love, Granny Dot."

Made red rice tonight. The Gullah dish — rice cooked in tomato paste and stock with sausage and onion and bell pepper. The rice turns red from the tomato, and the red is the color of the Lowcountry, the color of the clay, the color of the blood that connects every person in this family to every person who came before. Red rice is not fancy. Red rice is not on any restaurant menu in Savannah. Red rice is what you make when you want to remember where you came from.

Now go on and feed somebody.

Red rice was supper. But while the pot was still warm and Alexis was still on my mind, I thought about something I could actually ship — something that travels well in spirit if not in a USPS flat-rate box. This Pasta Pizza is that dish: it starts with tomato, it ends with something golden and bubbling out of the oven, and it has the same stubborn insistence on feeding people right that I put into every pot I touch. You can make it on a hot plate if you have to, Alexis. I mean that.

Pasta Pizza

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 30 min | Total Time: 45 min | Servings: 6

Ingredients

• 12 oz penne or rigatoni pasta
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1 lb ground Italian sausage (mild or hot)
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 can (15 oz) crushed tomatoes
• 1 can (6 oz) tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup sliced black olives (optional)
• 1/2 cup mini pepperoni slices

Instructions

1. Cook the pasta. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package directions until just al dente — do not overcook, as it will finish in the oven. Drain and set aside.
2. Brown the sausage. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add sausage and cook, breaking it up with a spoon, until browned through, about 6–8 minutes. Remove sausage with a slotted spoon and set aside. Drain excess fat, leaving about 1 tablespoon in the pan.
3. Build the sauce. In the same skillet over medium heat, add onion and bell pepper. Cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more. Stir in crushed tomatoes and tomato paste. Add oregano, basil, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Return sausage to the skillet and stir to combine.
4. Combine with pasta. Remove skillet from heat. Add drained pasta to the tomato-sausage mixture and stir to coat. Let cool for 5 minutes, then stir in beaten eggs and 3/4 cup of the mozzarella until evenly mixed.
5. Assemble and bake. Preheat oven to 375°F. Brush a 9x13-inch baking dish with remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Transfer pasta mixture to the dish and spread evenly. Top with remaining 3/4 cup mozzarella, Parmesan, pepperoni slices, and olives if using.
6. Bake until golden. Bake uncovered for 25–30 minutes, until cheese is melted, bubbling, and lightly golden at the edges. Let rest 5 minutes before slicing and serving.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 520 | Protein: 28g | Fat: 24g | Carbs: 48g | Fiber: 4g | Sodium: 820mg