Polpette (Torpedo Shaped Meatballs)

Gourmet | January 2009

by Gina Marie Miraglia Eriquez






yield: Serves 12 (antipasto) with remaining meat mixture for sunday ragù

active time: 40 min

total time: 40 min
This is a true Italian feast: Little meatballs served with the antipasti come just before big meatballs in the ragù. Miraglia Eriquez's grandmother... more ›
Ingredients

2 cups coarse fresh bread crumbs (from an Italian or a French loaf)
1/3 cup whole milk
3/4 pound ground beef chuck
3/4 pound ground veal
3/4 pound ground pork (not lean)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 3/4 cups grated Pecorino Romano (3 1/2 ounces)
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil

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Preparation

Stir together bread crumbs and milk in a large bowl and let stand 10 minutes.

Add meats, garlic, cheese, eggs, parsley, 1 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper to bread crumb mixture and blend with your hands until combined (do not overmix). Form 1 1/2 cups meat mixture into small torpedo-shaped meatballs (1 level tablespoon each). Reserve remaining 4 cups meat mixture for ragù .

Heat oil in a 10-inch heavy skillet over medium heat until it shimmers, then fry meatballs in 2 batches (do not crowd), turning occasionally, until browned well and cooked through, about 2 minutes per batch. Transfer to paper towels using a slotted spoon and reserve oil for frying meatballs for ragù.

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/-em-Polpette-em-Torpedo-Shaped-Meatballs-351154#ixzz1jwWTGCpq

Dutch Baby: sweet or savory

I made the savory one today and it was delish. halved it for dv and me; none left over.

Savory:
1 c whole milk
4 large eggs
1/4 t salt
1 c flour
2 T butter
1 med leek, diced (approx 1/2 c)
1/2 t dried tarragon
generous 1/2 c diced ham (3 oz)
1 c grated extra sharp cheddar

adj rack to middle position and heat oven to 425. whisk milk, eggs and salt in med bowl. vigorously whisk in flour till mostly smooth with a few lumps; let stand a few min and whisk again.

soak leeks in 2 changes of water to clean if necessary.

heat butter in cast iron skillet, add leeks and ham and cook till soft, 3-4 minutes. add tarragon, cook 1 min and add batter. bake till puffed and golden, 15-17 minutes. sprinkle with cheese in oven and broil till very puffy, couple of minutes. serve immediately.

Sweet:
instead of ham, leeks and cheese:
1/2 c orange marmalade, 1/4 c dried cranberries, 1 T sugar

Make batter, above, and bring marmalade, cranberries and 1/4 c water to simmer, till light syrup consistency. heat butter in skillet on stove, add batter and sprinkle with sugar instead of cheese. serve with sauce.

zucchini spinach gratin

http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/zucchini_and_spinach_gratin/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+elise%2Fsimplyrecipes+%28Simply+Recipes%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher

made this with pan grilled top round steak (on this blog...smeared with butter and mustard). then had it the next day with butter braised snapper on creamed corn with pepper coulis.

did i mention i love summer? all the ingredients were already here!

chicken divan healthier

i wanted broccoli and cheese and mushrooms, but no heavy sauce. so i did this:

browned 8 oz of sliced mushrooms
half a medium onion
in 1 T butter. well, or 2.
salt and peppered.
moved them to the side and added two skinless chicken breasts, sliced. browned them.

placed browned chicken in a pam sprayed baking dish with a lid.
cut up fresh broccoli and added that to the dish on top of the chicken.

to 4 oz of greek yogurt, added gorgonzola crumbles and shredded cheddar and mushrooms. poured this over the chicken and broccoli. topped with shredded parmesan. baked covered till bubbly, abt 30 min at 350. removed top and browned 15 minutes. the "sauce" was watery, so I drained that, reduced it and added a teaspoon of cornstarch, reduced more. poured this over the dish and heated another 5 minutes.

stuffed baked pumpkin

* 1 pumpkin, about 3 pounds
* Salt and freshly ground pepper
* 1/4 pound stale bread, thinly sliced and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
* 1/4 pound cheese, such as Gruyère, Emmenthal, cheddar, or a combination, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
* 2–4 garlic cloves (to taste), split, germ removed, and coarsely chopped
* 4 slices bacon, cooked until crisp, drained, and chopped (my addition)
* About 1/4 cup snipped fresh chives or sliced scallions (my addition)
* 1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme (my addition)
* About 1/3 cup heavy cream
* Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

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Preparation

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment, or find a Dutch oven with a diameter that's just a tiny bit larger than your pumpkin. If you bake the pumpkin in a casserole, it will keep its shape, but it might stick to the casserole, so you'll have to serve it from the pot—which is an appealingly homey way to serve it. If you bake it on a baking sheet, you can present it freestanding, but maneuvering a heavy stuffed pumpkin with a softened shell isn't so easy. However, since I love the way the unencumbered pumpkin looks in the center of the table, I've always taken my chances with the baked-on-a-sheet method, and so far, I've been lucky.

Using a very sturdy knife—and caution—cut a cap out of the top of the pumpkin (think Halloween Jack-o-Lantern). It's easiest to work your knife around the top of the pumpkin at a 45-degree angle. You want to cut off enough of the top to make it easy for you to work inside the pumpkin. Clear away the seeds and strings from the cap and from inside the pumpkin. Season the inside of the pumpkin generously with salt and pepper, and put it on the baking sheet or in the pot.

Toss the bread, cheese, garlic, bacon, and herbs together in a bowl. Season with pepper—you probably have enough salt from the bacon and cheese, but taste to be sure—and pack the mix into the pumpkin. The pumpkin should be well filled—you might have a little too much filling, or you might need to add to it. Stir the cream with the nutmeg and some salt and pepper and pour it into the pumpkin. Again, you might have too much or too little—you don’t want the ingredients to swim in cream, but you do want them nicely moistened. (It's hard to go wrong here.)

Put the cap in place and bake the pumpkin for about 2 hours—check after 90 minutes—or until everything inside the pumpkin is bubbling and the flesh of the pumpkin is tender enough to be pierced easily with the tip of a knife. Because the pumpkin will have exuded liquid, I like to remove the cap during the last 20 minutes or so, so that the liquid can bake away and the top of the stuffing can brown a little.

When the pumpkin is ready, carefully, very carefully—it's heavy, hot, and wobbly—bring it to the table or transfer it to a platter that you'll bring to the table.

Serving
You have a choice—you can either spoon out portions of the filling, making sure to get a generous amount of pumpkin into the spoonful, or you can dig into the pumpkin with a big spoon, pull the pumpkin meat into the filling, and then mix everything up. I'm a fan of the pull-and-mix option. Served in hearty portions followed by a salad, the pumpkin is a perfect cold-weather main course; served in generous spoonfuls, it's just right alongside the Thanksgiving turkey.

Storing
It's really best to eat this as soon as it's ready. However, if you’ve got leftovers, you can scoop them out of the pumpkin, mix them up, cover, and chill them; reheat them the next day.

Bonne Idée
There are many ways to vary this arts-and-crafts project. Instead of bread, I've filled the pumpkin with cooked rice—when it's baked, it's almost risotto-like. And, with either bread or rice, on different occasions I've added cooked spinach, kale, chard, or peas (the peas came straight from the freezer). I’ve made it without bacon (a wonderful vegetarian dish), and I’ve also made it and loved, loved, loved it with cooked sausage meat; cubes of ham are also a good idea. Nuts are a great addition, as are chunks of apple or pear or pieces of chestnut.


Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Pumpkin-Stuffed-with-Everything-Good-361169#ixzz13qvDjWr6

cheesy breadd

Cheesy Bread Recipe
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Ingredients

* 8 oz shredded Mozzarella cheese
* 1 lb shredded sharp cheddar cheese
* 1/2 to 1 cup chopped green onion (to taste)
* 1/2 cup mayonnaise
* 2 Tbsp sour cream (optional)
* 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
* 1 stick unsalted butter (1/2 cup, 4 ounces), softened to the point of being slightly melted

* 1 to 2 loaves of French or Italian bread (I used Ciabatta), depending on the size of the loaves

Method

1 In a large bowl, mix together the cheeses and the green onion. Stir in the mayonnaise and sour cream. In a separate small bowl blend the butter and garlic until smooth. Add the butter mixture to the cheese mixture.

2 Preheat broiler. Slice loaf of bread in half horizontally, lay crust side down. Spread cheese mixture over the bread. Place under the broiler until nicely browned, about 3 to 5 minutes.

3 Remove from broiler and let sit for 5 minutes until cool enough to handle. Slice the bread with a bread knife. Serve.

Makes 30 to 40 slices.

party food

thursday i had a party. i made some 'tizers and had some wine, but when we get together, this group, we bring stuff along as we can. so i have a fridge full of stuff, and i need to make an appetizer for dinner at a friend's tonight, at which the hostess is having no carbs and another guest is watching every calorie.

i guess i could bring celery sticks.

but i'm not. i'm making the kale chips just posted and bringing this:

leftover spinach-artichoke dip from the butcher shop
leftover crab artichoke dip from fresh market
enriched with:
crumbled bacon (2 slices thick cut leftover from breakfast thurs)
whole antipasto garlic cloves and red peppers, chopped from the publix deli
quartered grape tomatoes from my garden
chopped banana pepper
1 medium sized caramelized onion (yes this was in the fridge)
lemon juice
lemon zest
olive oil drizzed on top
salt and pepper if you need it but probably no salt required)
basil chiffonade artfully scattered atop

and i'm roasting a peach, sliced, with a banana pepper and onion slivers, and melting (leftover) brie on it to top olive bread with. this will be either lunch when david gets home, or another app for those not shy of certains foods like cheese and bread.

grilled ham and cheese with tapenade

Ingredients

1. 2 ounces Spanish green olives, pitted and coarsely chopped (1/4 cup)
2. 1 small garlic clove, minced
3. 1 tablespoon minced flat-leaf parsley
4. 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
5. Pinch of crushed red pepper
6. 1 1/2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more olive oil for brushing
7. Eight 1/2-inch-thick slices peasant bread from a 1-pound loaf
8. 6 ounces sliced young Mahón or other young, mildly tangy cow's-milk cheese, such as Edam or Gouda
9. 3 ounces thinly sliced lomo ham or thinly sliced Serrano ham trimmed of all fat

Directions

1. In a bowl, combine the olives with the garlic, parsley, lemon juice, crushed red pepper and 1 1/2 teaspoons of olive oil.
2. Preheat a grill pan or panini press. Arrange the bread slices on a work surface and brush one side of each slice with olive oil. Turn the oiled sides of the bread face down. Spread the olive tapenade on four slices of the bread. Top with the sliced Mahón cheese and lomo ham and close the sandwiches with the remaining slices of bread. Grill the sandwiches over moderate heat, turning once until the bread is lightly toasted and the cheese is melted, 5 to 6 minutes. Transfer the ham-and-cheese sandwiches to a cutting board, halve and serve at once.

cheddar "biscuits"

not true southern biscuits, but it looks pdg. pretty darned good.

Altered from the cookbook "How It All Vegan!" by Tanya Barnard & Sarah Kramer

"Fancy Biscuits"
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp vegetable oil -or- shortening
1 cup sour milk (milk + 1 tsp vinegar) (hey vegans- just use soy milk.)
1/2 cup green onions, chopped
1 tbsp dried dill (I didn't have any dill. I never have dried dill! I should get some.)
1/4 tsp pepper (I was very liberal with my pepper cracker, I wanted them to be peppery!)
A large handful of grated cheddar cheese.

Preheat oven to 450ºF. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Crack in some pepper, and toss the cheese and onions into the mixture until it's all evenly distributed. Add the oil and sour milk, and mix together gently until "just mixed." Spoon into lightly oiled muffin tins (Or just spoon onto a baking sheet. My husband claims that biscuits should be "rugged."). Bake for 12-18 minutes. Makes about 6 biscuits. (Or a random assortment of oddly sized biscuits, if you're me.)

Brussels Sprout Salad

Shredding the sprouts on a mandoline gives them a wispiness that is harder to achieve with a knife.

1 1/2 pound brussels sprouts, freshest you can find
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 - 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1/3 cup fresh chives, minced
2-3 big pinches of salt
1 1/3 cups hazelnuts, smashed just a bit and toasted
2 ounces hard, salty, aged cheese, shaved (pecorino, dry aged jack, Parmesan, etc)

Shred the brussels sprouts whisper thin using a mandoline, or alternately, a knife. Five minutes before serving, place the shredded sprouts in a large mixing bowl and toss gently with the olive oil, lemon juice, thyme, chives, salt, and hazelnuts. Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding more lemon juice if needed, keeping in mind the cheese will bring a salty element to the salad. Add the cheese and toss once or twice to distribute it evenly throughout the salad.

Serves 4 - 6.

Pimento Cheese Bisque

Savannah Sweet Potato Bisque
Moosewood Restaurant



The Savannah Sweet Potato Bisque is served at Moosewood Restaurant for $4.99. This recipe is for a serving size of two.

This is a collection of 2 recipes, one of which has 2 parts:
West Indian Red Beans
Coconut Rice
Savannah Sweet Potato Bisque

Moosewood Restaurant has served this soup in one version or another since the 1980’s. Moosewood called it "Pimiento Cheese Bisque" back then. In the restaurant kitchen, the bisque is sometimes made with pimientos and sometimes roasted red peppers. White potatoes can substitute but a deeply colored sweet potato makes it look beautiful.

Bisque Ingredients
1 celery stalk, chopped
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 cup diced sweet potato
1 cup diced white potato
2 cups vegetable stock or water
1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar
1 1/2 ounces cream cheese, cubed
1/2 of a 4 oz jar pimientos, chopped
salt and ground black pepper to taste

Steal This Recipe® step-by-step Instructions
1) In a saucepan, cook the celery and onions in the oil on medium heat, stirring occasionally
2) When the onions are translucent, add the sweet and white potatoes, stock or water, cover and simmer until the vegetables are soft, about 20 minutes
3) Remove the soup from the heat and stir in the cheeses, allow to soften a few minutes
4) Puree the soup in an immersion blender, blender or food processor with half of the pimientos
5) Add the rest of the pimientos and salt and pepper to taste, if the soup is too thick add milk, water or stock
6) Reheat gently but do not boil

Pimiento Cheese Bisque. Reprinted from Sundays At Moosewood Restaurant. Moosewood Collective. Publisher: Simon and Schuster, 1990.