Roll Out the Pizza

All right, I confess. I don’t make my own pizza dough. I’ve always favored the fresh kind that’s sold at our local pizza place. You still get that great yeasty smell in the house with just a fraction of the work.

Rolling the pizza into a savory jellyroll makes it easy to serve, and because it rises and browns as it bakes, it’s impressive enough for company.

As with all my cooking these days, there must be kid-friendly tasks involved in the preparation. Amanda, my 3-year-old, scatters the shredded cheese over the pizza dough, helps toss the salad and, the most fun of all for her, crushes the amaretti cookies for the parfaits (after dinner has been eaten, of course).

The adults at your table may enjoy a touch of Amaretto drizzled on their ice cream, and for the kids who may not be fond of almond flavoring, substituting Oreos for the amaretti cookies works just great.

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Pizza Roll with Prosciutto, Red Peppers, Black Olive Tapenade and Mozzarella

Active Work Time: 10 minutes * Total Preparation Time: 30 minutes

1 (14-ounce) jar roasted sweet Italian peppers

1 large round of fresh pizza dough

Flour for rolling out dough

1/3 cup black olive tapenade

5 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto

1/2 pound shredded mozzarella

1 tablespoon cornmeal

1 tablespoon olive oil

* Drain peppers and cut into 2-inch strips.

* Stretch or roll pizza dough on lightly floured surface into 18x13-inch rectangle.

* Spread olive tapenade over dough, leaving bare 1 inch along 1 (13-inch) side and 1/2 inch along each 18-inch side. Layer prosciutto on tapenade. Place pepper strips on prosciutto. Sprinkle shredded mozzarella over peppers.

* Starting with 13-inch side spread with tapenade, roll up dough jellyroll-style, pressing bottom and sides together to seal.

* With hands or 2 spatulas, place pizza roll diagonally on lightly oiled 18x13-inch jellyroll pan sprinkled with cornmeal. Lightly brush top and sides with olive oil.

* Bake at 475 degrees until nicely browned and slightly raised, about 15 minutes. Remove from oven and let sit 5 minutes before cutting into 2-inch-thick slices.

4 servings. Each serving: 555 calories; 7,138 mg sodium; 61 mg cholesterol; 27 grams fat; 51 grams carbohydrates; 27 grams protein; 1.25 grams fiber.

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Green Salad With Artichoke Hearts

Active Work and Total Preparation Time: 5 minutes

1 (6 1/2-ounce) jar marinated artichoke hearts

Olive oil, optional

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 (5-ounce) package salad greens

1/2 cup shaved or grated Parmesan cheese, loosely packed

* Halve artichoke hearts. Pour marinade into measuring cup and add olive oil if needed to make 1/4 cup. Whisk balsamic vinegar into marinade.

* Put salad greens and artichoke hearts in large salad bowl. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Toss with dressing just before serving.

4 servings. Each serving: 182 calories; 236 mg sodium; 10 mg cholesterol; 17 grams fat; 6 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams protein; 0.25 gram fiber.

MENU

Pizza Roll With Prosciutto, Red Peppers, Black Olive Tapenade and Mozzarella

Green Salad With Marinated Artichoke Hearts and Parmesan

Amaretti Parfaits

GAME PLAN

30 minutes before: Preheat oven. Slice peppers. Roll out pizza dough.

25 minutes before: Assemble pizza roll.

20 minutes before: Begin baking pizza roll.

15 minutes before: Halve artichokes. Shave Parmesan. Make dressing.

10 minutes before: Crush cookies and put in parfait glasses.

5 minutes before: Remove pizza roll from oven and let sit.

3 minutes before: Toss salad.

After dinner: Scoop ice cream into parfait glasses and serve.

INGREDIENTS

Shopping List

1 large round of fresh pizza dough

1 (7 1/2-ounce) jar black olive tapenade

5 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto

1 (14-ounce) jar roasted sweet Italian peppers

1/2 pound shredded mozzarella

1 (5-ounce) package salad greens

1 (6 1/2-ounce) jar marinated artichoke hearts

1 (4.4-ounce) package amaretti cookies

Staples

Parmesan cheese

Cornmeal

Flour

Olive Oil

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Amaretti Parfaits

Active Work and Total Preparation Time: 5 minutes

8 amaretti cookies

1 pint vanilla ice cream

* Crumble cookies with hands into medium bowl. Divide evenly among 4 parfait glasses.

* Top crushed cookies with scoop of vanilla ice cream.

4 servings. Each serving: 170 calories; 62 mg sodium; 30 mg cholesterol; 8 grams fat; 22 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams protein; 0 gram fiber.