Meet Mazzamurru.......

For my final installation of  my weekly Pantry Challenge Reviews.......I thought I'd rock your socks off with a dish that I had never, ever, ever heard of.....I mean never, ever. 
Could there be an amazing Italian dish that I never knew existed?  That I never tasted?  That I never cooked?
Clearly, my Italian relatives and my Italian in-laws have been keeping this from me.
Although, I sort of suspect that I don't know about mazzamurru because it hails from the Isle of Sicily. 
Sicily is a place the up-standing Italians don't speak of.....
Well, I don't give a hoot-a if this recipe comes from the Mafia-infested streets of Sicily or if this recipe is made in the kitchens of known criminals.....I do not discriminate when it comes to good food.....especially if there's cheese.....
Plus, this recipe was made for a PANTRY CHALLENGE from its inception! By making it, I felt like I was saluting a time-honored Italian tradition.  It is a recipe that was developed during a desolate and poor time thus it was specifically created with the goal to use everything edible you had in your house.  It was borne out of necessity but beloved due to the joy it brought to the table.....
As an aside note.....although I never heard of this recipe before....as in mazzamurru was never a word I ever heard....as I was putting it together, I was transported back to my mother's little kitchen on Dwight Avenue where she would make her Sunday sauce each week while my father took us to Mass.  Sometimes, when we would come back from Mass and she didn't have the time or inclination to make a big bacon and eggs breakfast...she would treat us to big chunks of Italian bread smothered in sauce and dusted with freshly grated parmesean or romano cheese.   For me, it was a delicious tease of what was to come......a Sunday at the table with a big bowl of my mother's pasta....
  

I love you Mazzamurru for bringing me back to that little kitchen of my childhood where my mother in her apron would cook with love..... 
And, I love you because you taste so good!
 
My friends.....let me introduce you to the one and only......Mazzamurru.... 

This is so yummy......

 Note:  You can use your own sauce recipe or your favorite jarred sauce if you would like....

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus more to trickle
1 small onion, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

 I large can of  plum tomatoes
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper 

Pinch of sugar 

1 loaf of slightly stale Italian or other crusty bread
1/2 log of Fresh Mozarella---cut into cubes
Freshly grated parmesan or romano cheese (or, a combination)

Heat the oil in a large frying pan, add the onion and sweat gently for 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for a couple of minutes more.
Crush the tomatoes and tip into the pan. Season, and add a pinch of sugar. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Don't cook it any more because you want the sauce to stay quite wet and juicy. Taste and add more salt, pepper or sugar as needed to produce a nice, savory sauce.
Meanwhile, cut the bread into 1-1.5cm thick slices. Tip a little less than half the tomato sauce --into a lasagna dish or deep pie dish. Arrange half the bread pieces over the tomato, tearing them to fit into a roughly even layer and pressing them down lightly into the sauce. Trickle with a little olive oil and scatter with salt and pepper.  Arrange half the mozzarella over the bread, then top with a good grating of cheese. Spread the remaining sauce over the bread and top with the remaining bread pieces, pushing them down a little. Trickle with more oil, scatter over the remaining mozzarella and finish with a grating of cheese. Bake for about 25 minutes on 400 degrees, until golden and bubbling. Leave to settle for 10 minutes or so, and serve.   Then, sit back and wait for the compliments!
 
 
END OF PANTRY CHALLENGE.
But, not the end of my PANTRY.......