Palpettoni Food

POLPETTONE TWO WAYS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the bread with 1/2 cup of the milk and break apart with your fingers. Mix well and allow the bread to soak for 5 minutes. Add the shallots, garlic, egg, prosciutto, Parmesan and 1/4 teaspoon salt and mix with a wooden spoon to evenly distribute the prosciutto. Add the turkey and parsley and mix well. Divide the mixture into 2 even oblong loaves.
• Heat 2 medium skillets over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter to each pan. Add a loaf to each pan and cook on all sides until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Divide the white wine between the two pans and cook until reduced by half. Add the remaining 2 cups milk and 1/4 teaspoon salt to one of the pans and bring to a simmer. Add the marinara to the other pan and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat under each pan to medium low and cover the pans. Braise until an instant-read thermometer registers 160 degrees in the center of each loaf, about 25 minutes, carefully flipping the loaves about halfway through.
• Remove the loaves from the pan and allow them to rest 10 minutes before slicing. Remove the marinara from the heat and stir with a wooden spoon. Simmer the remaining milk, uncovered, until it reduces by half. It will be slightly brown and look broken. Using an immersion blender, blend the milk until fully emulsified and creamy. Serve each polpettone with its respective sauce.

ITALIAN MEATLOAF (POLPETTONE)

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• In a small pot of boiling water, boil the zucchini and potatoes. The zucchini will be finished before the other vegetables. Remove the zucchini when it's tender and set aside in a small bowl.
• In a medium sized bowl, stir together the ground meat, parsley, rosemary, breadcrumbs, chopped onion. Add in the zucchini and one of the potatoes. Add in the eggs, cheese, salt, pepper and rosemary and stir until combined.
• Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Scoop out 1/2 of the meatloaf mixture and pat it into a rectangle about 9 inches long by 4 inches wide.
• Line the hard-boiled eggs in the center of the meatloaf. Line up one of the carrots cut into slivers next to the eggs. With your hands add on the rest of the meatloaf mixture and pat it on top covering the eggs. Make sure no parts of the eggs are peaking out.
• Place the rest of the potatoes, carrots and onions around the meat loaf in the pan. Add the wine around the pan and drizzle the olive oil on the meatloaf and around the vegetables.
• Bake for 35-40 minutes in the center rack of the oven (until internal temperature is 150 degrees), basting occasionally with the pan juices.
• Remove the dish from the oven. Transfer the meat loaf to a cutting board, and let it rest for at least 15 minutes.
• Puree with an immersion blender (or in your blender)the vegetables that were in the pan and the juices. I had just made pumpkin soup that day and a added about a 1/4 cup of the soup to the juices from the pan to blend all together. If you don't have any pumpkin soup on hand, you could add broth or even a little water. Heat the sauce on medium-low before serving.
• Cut into thick slices. Arrange on a serving plate with the sauce on the bottom and serve with mashed potatoes.

POLPETTINI

Steps:

• Coat a large skillet with olive oil and heat over medium heat. Add 3 diced onions, season with salt and cook until soft, 8 to 10 minutes. Add 3 finely chopped garlic cloves and cook 2 to 3 more minutes. Let cool.
• Mix 1/2 pound each ground beef, veal and pork with the onion mixture, 3/4 cup Parmigiano, 1/2 cup breadcrumbs, 1/4 cup water, 3 eggs and 3 tablespoons finely chopped rosemary; season with salt. The mixture should be pretty loosey-goosey; add 1 to 2 tablespoons more water if needed. Roll into 1-inch balls.
• Working in four batches, cook the polpettini in olive oil in a large skillet over high heat, turning, until browned. Add 1/2 cup chicken stock to each batch; cook until reduced by half, 2 to 3 minutes. Serve on rosemary sprig "toothpicks."

POLPETTINI

Steps:

• Coat a large saute pan with olive oil and put the pan over medium heat. Add the onions, season with salt, to taste, and saute until they are translucent and aromatic but have no color, about 5 to 6 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 2 to 3 more minutes. Remove from the heat and cool.
• In a large bowl, combine the meats, rosemary, Parmesan, water, bread crumbs, and eggs. Season generously with salt and add the cooked onions and garlic. Combine until well mixed. (Squish with your hands, it's fun!)
• Make a small patty of the meat mixture. Cook it and eat it. This is a tester patty to check and see if the seasoning is correct (it will probably need salt). Adjust the seasoning, if needed.
• Roll the meat mixture into 3/4-inch meatballs. Coat a large saute pan with olive oil and put over high heat. Working in batches, cook the polpettini until they are brown on all sides. Add half a cup of chicken stock and cook until the stock has reduced by half. Remove to serving platters. Repeat this process until all the polpettini are cooked and serve immediately. Buonissimo!

PALPETTONI

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375ºF.
• Cook bacon until crisp, then remove from pan, drain on paper towels and crumble. Set aside.
• Cook rice as directed on package until tender and drain if necessary. Set aside.
• In large bowl, combined cooked and crumbled bacon, ground beef, egg yolk and pepper and mix gently.
• On waxed paper, divide beef mixture into 4 4x6" rectangles, patting gently to form into shape.
• In small bowl, combine cooked rice with onion dip.
• Divide rice mixture over ground beef rectangles, spreading evenly.
• Roll up the rectangles, starting with 4" side, to enclose rice mixture, using waxed paper to help roll (be sure to not roll the waxed paper into the meatloaves!).
• Place rolls in a 10" baking dish.
• Pour tomato sauce over each roll, then top with cheeses and oregano.
• Bake for 25-30 minutes until beef is thoroughly cooked and rolls are browned.

POLPETTONE RIPIENO

Steps:

• Make meat:
• Line 18 x 12-inch baking sheet with foil. Moisten foil with water. Mix bread and milk in medium bowl. Mash bread with fingers until soaked. Squeeze out excess moisture from bread. Place bread in large bowl; discard milk. Add beef, sausages, eggs, salt and pepper to bread and mix well. Place meat in center of foil. Using moistened fingers, pat meat into 12 x 14-inch rectangle, about 1/2 inch thick. Cover; chill while preparing filling.
• Make filling:
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Bring 1/4 cup water to simmer in large pot. Add spinach; cover and cook until just wilted, tossing often, about 3 minutes. Drain well; pat dry. Cool. Arrange spinach over meat, covering completely. Cover with prosciutto. Arrange cheese atop prosciutto, spacing apart. Place eggs end to end in line down long side of roll. Arrange parsley along both sides of eggs. Starting at long side near eggs and using foil as aid, roll up meat jelly roll style. Pinch ends and seams together, enclosing filling completely. Fold down foil from around meat roll. Brush meat with 1 tablespoon oil.
• Bake meat roll until thermometer inserted into center registers 160°F, about 1 hour. Let stand 15 minutes. Serve hot or at room temperature; cut into slices.