MEITUS: Papa John has us seeing pie from the sky

By Marty Meitus, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published August 5, 2008 at 3 p.m.

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Look, it's a bird, it's a plane - it's a pizza?

That's right, it's a pizza. If you're flying in or out of Denver International Airport, look out the window and you'll see a pizza cut into a wheat field near West 128th Avenue and Pena Boulevard. The crop circle, designed by artist Stan Herd, is a promotional vehicle for Papa John's Pizza.

The third-biggest pizza chain just had to try a little harder to get a slice of the Democratic National Convention pie.

"It's hard to get in on the election coverage," says Tish Muldoon, director of public relations for Papa John's. "It's a crowded market, and every brand will be chasing their space to promote their product. This was a way to have fun with it. Pizza always brings something to the party."

The crop circle, which lies below two flight patterns, is about the size of six football fields. The design promotes Papa John's new whole-wheat-crust pizza made from Colorado wheat and extolling its slogan, "America's Choice."

"It's a play on the DNC, that people get to choose, and it's what we are (based on customer satisfaction rating)," says Brian Mills, the Colorado Papa John's franchise owner.

The pizza's "pepperoni" is made of cedar mulch, with cornstalks standing in for green pepper, black mulch for olives, and flattened wheat stalk for cheese. It will be completed in time for the convention and will remain in place until the first snowfall.

Mills also owns the Papa John's franchise in Minnesota. He can't reveal what trick's up his marketing sleeve for the Republican National Convention in the Twin Cities, although it won't be a crop circle.

Happy-hour dining . . . At a recent media dinner, Panzano in the Hotel Monaco introduced its new happy-hour and dinner menu. Happy hour, 3 to 6 p.m. every day, features generous-size plates of dishes such as Calamari Fritti and Fettuccine al Ragu priced at $3 and $4, a limited selection of beers and wines for $3 and $4 and specialty cocktails for $5.

As for the dinner, chef Elise Wiggins outdid herself. It's worth noting that on Sundays, the restaurant has a three-course prix-fixe dinner made with Colorado ingredients. The Coleman Ranch Strip Steak Salad was a nice summer dish, and you'll find the recipe below.

Bistecca

Serves 4

1 pound russet potatoes

3 tablespoons sweet butter

1/4 cup warm whole milk

4 4-ounce portions skirt steak

1/2 cup basil pesto (see recipe below)

6 ounces baby arugula

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 tablespoon 15-year-old balsamic di Modena vinegar

2 ounces Gorgonzola, crumbled

* Steam potatoes until done.

* Using a food mill, rice the potatoes. Add butter and milk.

* Season with salt and pepper.

* Combine thoroughly, but don't overmix. Set aside.

* Grill steak to desired temperature. Allow to rest.

* Spread pesto on the bottom of a plate.

* Toss arugula with extra-virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. Place a scoop of potatoes on each plate.

* Slice steak into bite-size pieces. Place on top of potatoes with pesto. Top with arugula. Garnish with Gorgonzola.

Note: Panzano uses Coleman organic beef.

Nutritional information per serving, not including Basil Pesto: 500 cal., 31 g fat (15 g sat.), 105 mg chol., 23 g carb., 30 g pro., 2 g fiber, 289 mg sodium

Basil Pesto

Serves 8

2 cups packed fresh basil leaves

2 cloves garlic

1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted

2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

* Combine the basil, garlic and pine nuts in a food processor. Pulse until coarsely chopped.

* Add 1/2 cup of oil and process until fully incorporated and smooth. Fold in cheese and whole toasted pine nuts. You can either leave them whole or you can process them.

* If you aren't using the pesto immediately, cover with a thin film of olive oil and plastic wrap pressed down on the surface.

Nutritional information per serving: 202 cal., 21 g fat (3 g sat.), 4 mg chol., 1 g carb., 2 g pro., 0 fiber, 77 mg sodium

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