Garlicky Patty Melts With Provolone Food

GREEK PATTY MELTS WITH KASSERI CHEESE AND MUHAMMARA

Steps:

• Preheat a grill over indirect medium-high heat.
• In a large bowl, combine the parsley, yogurt, garlic, coriander, salt, cumin, paprika, and allspice. Add the lamb and mix gently by hand until evenly combined. Shape the meat into 4 patties, each about 4 by 6-inches by 1/2-inch.
• Oil 1 side of the pizza dough very lightly. Grill, oiled side down, over medium-high heat until the bottom side is blistered. Lightly oil the top and flip over. Scatter the cheese over the dough and cook until the underside is blistered. Move to indirect heat, cover, and cook until the cheese is melted and the dough is cooked through, about 3 to 5 minutes. Cut the dough into rough rectangles about the size of the patties and keep warm while you grill the burgers.
• Lightly oil the patties and arrange them on the hot side of the grill. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, flip, and cook another 2 to 3 minutes for medium-rare to medium. Transfer the burgers to the bread, top with some Muhamarra and grilled onions and top with another piece of the grilled pizza dough. Put them back on the grill over low or indirect heat for a few seconds per side. Remove them from the grill, halve the sandwiches on a long diagonal, and serve immediately.
• Put all of the ingredients, except the lemon zest, in a food processor and process until a smooth paste forms. (Start with 1 hot pepper, taste, and then add more if you want it hotter.) If the mixture is too thick, drizzle in a little more olive oil. Stir in the lemon zest by hand. Taste and add more salt and hot pepper, if desired.

MINI SANDWICH BUFFET: MINI GRILLED CHEESE AND TOMATO, MINI RACHAEL'S AND MINI SPICY PATTY MELTS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to warm, 250 degrees F.
• Preheat large griddle or large nonstick skillet over medium heat.
• To a small pot over medium low heat add 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, eyeball it. To warm oil, add butter and melt it into the oil. Keep a pastry brush on a spoon rest or small plate on hand.
• Lay out 8 slices of rye bread. Dot bread with teaspoonfuls of red pepper relish. Top with even amounts of smoked turkey, sauerkraut and thinly sliced cheese. Top cheese with remaining slices of bread. Brush griddle or skillet with oil and butter mixture. Grill and toast sandwiches 2 or 3 minutes on each side. Transfer sandwiches to cookie sheet and place in oven to keep warm. Wipe off griddle or skillet.
• Lay out 8 slices of mini pumpernickel bread. Cut sliced Swiss cheese into pieces that will fit bread. Layer cheese and sliced tomatoes on bread. Season with salt, pepper, chives and place another layer of cheese on tomatoes. Top sandwiches with another slice of bread. Brush griddle or skillet liberally with oil and butter. Grill and toast sandwiches 2 or 3 minutes on each side. Transfer grilled cheese and tomato sandwiches to warm oven. Wipe griddle or skillet clean.
• Mix beef, Worcestershire, onion and seasoning or salt and pepper. Form 8 small patties. Raise heat to medium high. Fry patties in 1 tablespoon vegetable oil on griddle or skillet 2 or 3 minutes on each side. Place patties on rye bread bottoms and wipe griddle or skillet clean. Top patties with cheese and another slice of bread. Reduce heat on griddle or skillet back to medium and brush with oil and butter. Grill sandwiches 2 or 3 minutes on each side until toasted.
• Remove mini Rachael's and grilled cheese and tomato sandwiches from the warm oven. Pass trays of sandwiches with mini pickles, mini pretzels. Mini candies and cookies treat your sweet tooth.

STEAK ROULADE WITH PROVOLONE

Steps:

• Combine 2 cups hot water and the tomato paste in a 6-quart slow cooker. Add the crushed tomatoes, red pepper flakes, sugar and basil and stir to combine. Cover and cook on high while you prepare the meat.
• Butterfly the steak: Slice in half horizontally, leaving 1 long side attached so you can open the steak like a book. Place between 2 pieces of plastic wrap and pound until about 1/4 inch thick. Remove the plastic; season the steak with salt and pepper. Scatter the provolone evenly over the steak, then top with the garlic, breadcrumbs, pecorino, raisins, pine nuts and parsley.
• Starting with a long side, tightly roll up the steak like a jelly roll. Secure with twine in several spots. Transfer to the slow cooker; reduce the heat to low, cover and cook 7 hours.
• Remove the meat to a cutting board and let rest 5 minutes. Remove the twine, then slice 1 inch thick. Serve with polenta; top with more sauce from the slow cooker.

CREAMY TOMATO SOUP AND ITALIAN PATTY MELTS

Steps:

• Heat the milk over moderate heat in a medium pot. Put tomatoes, tomato paste, onions, salt and pepper, sugar, flour, butter, celery into a food processor and grind until smooth. Pour mixture into milk and raise heat to bring soup to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes. While soup cooks, make pesto and sammies.
• Fill the food processor with watercress, loosely packed. Add hazelnuts, 1/2 of the oil and garlic cloves to the watercress in the processor. Add nutmeg, salt and pepper to the processor bowl, set lid in place and pulse grind the mixture into a thick paste. Add any remaining watercress to the processor and grind into the paste by pulsing the processor again. Transfer watercress paste to a bowl. Stir in the remaining oil and the cheese. Taste pesto sauce and adjust seasonings.
• Heat a griddle over medium high heat. Drizzle the pan with extra-virgin olive oil and add the patties and cook 5 minutes on each side. Remove from the griddle and add another tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil and the peppers and onions. Season the peppers and onions and cook until just tender, 5 minutes. Remove them from the griddle. Wipe the griddle clean and reduce heat to medium low. Assemble sandwiches: place 4 slices of bread down, top with 1/4 each of the peppers onions, then a slice of cheese, a cooked sausage patty, another slice of cheese and then place bread on top. Add butter to griddle and cook sammy melts 2 or 3 minutes on each side until golden and cheese is melted. Press with spatula as sammies cook or set another heavy skillet on sammies to weigh them down.
• Pour soup into shallow bowls and add a couple of rounded spoonfuls of pesto to each dish and stir it into the soup. Cut the patty melts corner to corner and dip in the soup as you eat.

OPEN FACED SAUSAGE, 3 PEPPER AND ONION SANDWICHES WITH PROVOLONE

Steps:

• If you are cooking a make-ahead meal with bread that will not be used for a couple of days, place it in the freezer in an airtight bag or wrap well. Unwrap to defrost at room temperature and then crust in a warm oven.
• Meanwhile, heat a couple of tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and saute until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the onions, cubanelle peppers, chile pepper, and garlic to tender-crisp, 5 minutes more.
• Cool and store the mushroom mixture. To reheat the mushroom mixture: Add a splash of stock or water over medium heat and season with salt and pepper.
• To reheat the sausages: Add a splash of stock or water to the sausages to loosen the sauce. Add a ladle of sauce to the mushroom pan.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Split the bread horizontally then halve into 4 large pieces. Arrange the bread pieces on cooling racks set over baking sheets to allow the heat to circulate all around the bread. Halve the sausages lengthwise. Dot the bread with sauce, top with the sausages cut-side-down, dot with more sauce and top with peppers and cheese. Bake the bread 12 to 15 minutes, or until melted and brown at the edges. Garnish with parsley and serve.
• For the braciole: Defrost, drain, and wring the frozen organic spinach dry in a clean kitchen towel and separate with your fingertips while adding to a mixing bowl. Season the spinach with salt, black pepper, and a little nutmeg. Add the chopped hard-boiled eggs, currants, pine nuts, finely chopped garlic, and cheese to the bowl and gently combine. Season the meat with salt and pepper and arrange each steak with one of the narrow ends near you. Divide the filling evenly among the meat slices. Scatter the filling over the meat leaving a 1/2-inch edge or border on the sides. Fold the edge over the filling and tuck in the edges as you roll each bundle to secure the filling. Wrap and roll the remaining bundles and secure with kitchen twine to cover the ends and middle, like wrapping a package.
• Heat a large Dutch oven with 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil a couple of turns of the pan over medium-high heat. Brown the meat bundles 6 to 8 minutes to evenly caramelize the meat all over.
• For the sauce: Remove the bundles from the pan and add 1 tablespoon more olive oil, give a turn of the pan to coat. Add the chopped carrots, onions, sliced garlic, bay leaf and season with salt and pepper. Let the vegetables cook 5 minutes to soften, then stir in the chopped rosemary and sage for 1 minute. Add the tomato paste and stir to develop the fragrance, then add the white wine and scrape up the pan drippings. Stir in the chicken stock and tomatoes. Break up the tomatoes with a spoon or potato masher. Bring the sauce to a bubble, add the meat back to the pot and reduce the heat to a simmer, cover and cook 2 hours more, stirring occasionally.
• After 2 hours, brown the sausages in a frying pan with a tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil, a turn of the pan. Add the browned links to the sauce and gently submerge them, nestling them in with the meat bundles. Simmer the mixture 30 minutes more to cook the sausages through and combine their flavor into the sauce.
• Bring a pot of water to a boil for pasta. Salt the water and cook the pasta to al dente. Reserve a cup of starchy cooking liquid just before draining.
• Remove the meat bundles to a platter and cover with foil to keep warm. Remove the sausages to a separate plate to cool.
• Drain the pasta and return to a hot pot. Add 1 tablespoon butter, cut into pieces, and half of the sauce, toss to combine, adding a little starchy cooking water to make it all come together for you.
• Cut the string from the meat and serve the meat dotted with more sauce and sprinkled with fresh parsley on large dinner plates with hot pappardelle pasta topped with fresh basil and some shaved Parm alongside.

MINI MEATBALL MINESTRA AND GRILLED PROVOLONE

Steps:

• In a heavy bottomed soup pot heat olive oil over medium to medium-high heat. Add pancetta and cook until crisp, 2 to 3 minutes. Add onions and 2 cloves of garlic and saute 4 to 5 minutes then add the escarole and wilt. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Stir in beans, add stock and water and bring to boil.
• While stock comes to a boil, combine meat, egg, bread crumbs, milk, a handful of cheese, fennel, allspice, parsley, salt and pepper. Combine and roll into 1-inch balls, and add to the soup. Cook 2 minutes then add in pasta and cook 6 minutes more. Turn off the heat, garnish with lemon zest and serve with cheese passed at the table.