Sunday Sauce With Sausage And Braciole Food

SUNDAY SAUCE WITH BRACIOLE, MEATBALLS, AND SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Make the sauce:
• Purée onions and garlic in a food processor until very finely chopped.
• Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy ovenproof pot over medium-high. Cook onion mixture and 1/2 tsp. salt, stirring often, until liquid is evaporated and bits on bottom of pot are beginning to brown, 10-12 minutes. Add tomato paste, oregano, and red pepper flakes; cook, stirring, until slightly darker in color, about 2 minutes more. Add 1/2 cup water and cook, scraping up browned bits from bottom of pot. Add tomatoes and their juices and 1 cup water; stir to combine. Stir in basil, season with pepper and remaining 1 tsp. salt, and bring to a simmer. Keep warm, stirring occasionally, until ready to use.
• Make the breadcrumb mixture:
• Combine cheese, parsley, breadcrumbs, and garlic in a medium bowl.
• Prepare the braciole:
• Preheat oven to 300°F. Lay beef flat on a work surface; season with 3/4 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper. Sprinkle evenly with 1/2 cup breadcrumb mixture. Working one at a time and starting at the short end, roll up beef, then tie in a few places with butcher's twine to secure. Season braciole with remaining 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper.
• Heat 1 Tbsp. oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Working in batches and adding remaining 1 Tbsp. oil to skillet as needed, cook braciole, turning occasionally, until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes per batch.
• Transfer braciole to pot with sauce, cover, and bake 1 1/2 hours. Wipe out skillet and reserve.
• Prepare the meatballs and sausage:
• Mix ground beef, eggs, milk, salt, pepper, and remaining 1 1/4 cups breadcrumb mixture with a fork in a medium bowl. Shape into 12 (1 1/2") balls.
• Heat 1 Tbsp. oil in reserved skillet. Working in batches, cook meatballs, turning occasionally, until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes per batch; transfer to a plate. Working in batches and adding remaining 1 Tbsp. oil to skillet as needed, cook sausages, turning occasionally, until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes per batch. Transfer to plate.
• After braciole has baked 1 1/2 hours, using tongs, gently lower meatballs and sausages into sauce. Cover pot and continue to bake until braciole is very tender and meatballs and sausages are cooked through, 25-30 minutes more.
• To serve:
• Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally, until al dente. Transfer sausages, meatballs, and braciole to a platter; remove strings from braciole. Spoon some warm sauce over.
• Drain pasta and toss with as little or as much sauce as you like. Serve topped with Parmesan.
• Do Ahead
• Sauce can be made 3 days ahead; cover and chill, or freeze up to 6 months. Braciole, meatballs, and sausages can be made 3 days ahead; submerge in sauce, cover, and chill, or freeze up to 3 months.

BRACIOLA AND SAUSAGE SUNDAY GRAVY

Steps:

• Sprinkle the meat on both sides with salt and pepper. In a bowl, combine half of the cheese, the breadcrumbs, 1/2 cup parsley, pine nuts, lemon zest, salami, minced garlic and the finely chopped chile pepper. Top the steaks, leaving a 1-inch border. Roll and tie the meat.
• Heat about 2 tablespoons of EVOO in a pot over medium-high heat. When the oil smokes, add the meat bundles and brown. Remove the meat bundles, then add the sausages and cook until brown, then remove. Add about 1 tablespoon of EVOO and reduce the heat to medium, then stir in the fennel seeds and cook for 15 seconds. Add the wine and deglaze the pan, then add the tomatoes, bay leaf, carrots, celery and halved onion. Break up the tomatoes, and add the passata, then stir in the basil and season with salt and pepper. Slide the meat and sausages into the sauce and bring to a bubble, reduce the heat and simmer partially covered for a couple of hours, stirring occasionally.
• In a skillet, heat about 2 tablespoons EVOO, 2 turns of the pan, then add the sliced onions, cubanelles, red bell peppers and sliced chile pepper, and cook to soften, stirring frequently, 12 to 15 minutes. Add the stock, the remaining 1/4 cup parsley, tomato paste and season with salt and pepper. Simmer 15 minutes more.
• For a make-ahead meal, cool the sauce and meat and refrigerate. Reheat over a medium-low flame on the stovetop until warmed through. Store the onions and peppers separately and reheat over medium-low heat in small skillet.
• To serve, bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt the water and cook the spaghetti to al dente.
• Place the meat and sausages on a serving platter. Remove the onions, carrots, celery and bay leaf.
• Add about 1 cup of the starchy cooking water to the sauce, then put half of the sauce in a gravy boat. Melt the butter into the remaining sauce and toss with the pasta and cheese. Serve the pasta alongside the meat roll and sausage. Top the pasta and meat with more sauce and cheese, and serve the peppers and onions on top of the sausage.

SUNDAY GRAVY WITH BEEF OR PORK BRACIOLA AND ANNA AND FRANKIE'S MEATBALLS

Steps:

• Braciola: With meat cleaver or any heavy kitchen utensil, pound the meat slices between 2 sheets of waxed paper. Rub each piece of meat with the garlic clove. Sprinkle each slice of meat with and equal amount of cheese and parsley. Add salt and pepper, to taste.
• Roll the meat up tightly like a cigar, and tie with butcher's twine to keep meat rolled while cooking. Heat oil in a large saucepan over high heat. Add the meat rolls and fry for about 6 minutes or until evenly browned. Reserve meat for gravy.
• Meatballs: Combine beef, veal, and pork in a large bowl. Add eggs, cheese, parsley, garlic, and salt and pepper to taste. Using your hands, blend ingredients. Add bread crumbs to mixture. Slowly add water, 1 cup at a time, until mixture is moist.
• Shape meat mixture into balls, approximately 2 1/2 to 3-inch balls.
• In a large skillet, heat oil. The oil should be very hot, but not smoking. Place the meatballs in pan, and fry in batches. When the bottom half of meatball is browned and slightly crispy, turn over and cook top half. Remove from pan and drain on paper towel.
• Sunday Gravy: In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and toss to coat with oil. Cook meat a few pieces at a time, about 5 minutes, until nicely browned on all sides. Remove meat from pan and set aside. When garlic cloves have browned, remove and discard them.
• Combine tomato paste and water and stir into oil. Stirring constantly, cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes and juice, raise heat, and bring to a boil. Using a tomato can, measure 2 cans of cold water, add to pan, and return to a boil.
• Return beef and pork to the sauce, and add salt and pepper, to taste. Bring to a boil and allow to boil for 5 minutes. Lower heat and partially cover pan. Cook for approximately 2 hours stirring occasionally until meat is almost falling apart and sauce is thick.
• One hour before sauce is ready, add the beef or pork braciola and sausage. Add the meatballs at the same time.
• To serve: Remove meat from sauce. Serve sauce over pasta, and the meats on a separate platter.