Cooking Lesson #77— Pizza Rolls—Jeno’s Style... a hack from the past

How you doin’? I was surfing the internet the other evening and found a post for Stan Freberg and his commercials. When TV was still very young (and I was, too) Stan was one of the voices and puppeteer for Bob Clampett’s, Time for Beany. Stan was an original thinker who, in his 88 years, mastered being an author, actor, recording artist, voice over artist, comedian, radio personality, puppeteer and advertising creative director.

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And, that’s where I met Stan. He hired me as the art director on several of his cutting edge— more like biting edge— award winning commercials—Jeno’s Pizza Rolls and Banquet Frozen TV Dinners. In some cases, not only did Stan create the advertising, but there were rumors that he was the creative force in developing the products themselves. Pillsbury bought the Geno’s business in 1989 and dropped the name and the satirical commercials which disappeared from the air—but somewhere in the frozen food section you can still find frozen pizza rolls.
 
Pizza Rolls are the perfect answer when you’re hit with a bout of the munchies. When fried correctly, they're crispy on the outside and sweet and savory on the inside. They're almost too easy to pop in your mouth and it's not uncommon to find yourself eating way more than you originally intended—that’s called the “crave factor.”
 
Although there were several non-Italian “come-back” pizza roll flavors in the Jeno’s line I wanted to share what, at the time was my favorite—a basic pepperoni and cheese pizza roll.  See ChefSecret for ideas for other fillings.
 
Prep time:  20 minutes
Fry time:  20 minutes
Fun time: endless  
Yield:  20+ pizza rolls
 
Ingredients
2 quarts peanut oil for frying
1 large egg
4 tablespoons water
1 (13-ounce) jar pizza sauce (I prefer Rao’s Pizza Sauce)
8-ounce package sliced pepperoni (I prefer Boar’s Head)
1 cup shredded mozzarella or jack cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1 package egg roll wrappers (with at least 20 wrappers)
 
Directions

1. Heat oil in a deep-fryer or large saucepan to 325⁰ F.
2.  Whisk egg and water together in a small bowl to be used for sealing the wrappers.
3. Put the pepperoni and the pizza sauce in a food processor. Process in bursts to combine ingredients and cut the pepperoni a bit but leave it a little chunky. The sauce will thicken. Do not over-process.
4. Transfer filling mixture to a large bowl and fold in the two cheeses.
5. Working on a clean work surface, roll out one eggroll wrapper and scoop a heaping tablespoon of the pepperoni and cheese filling mixture at the bottom center of the wrapper, leaving 1/2-inch border on each side.
6. Lightly brush the wrapper edges with the egg mixture. Fold over both sides; roll up to encase filling in wrapper. Make sure the roll is sealed so you don’t lose filling during frying.
7. Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling.
8. Deep fry pizza rolls in batches until crisp and golden brown, 5-9 minutes. Drain on paper towels and enjoy!

ChefSecret:  This is just a basic recipe for pepperoni and cheese. Think about rolls that include ham and Swiss cheese, crab and cream cheese, Italian roast beef and provolone cheese—you get the point.
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