Tag: mozzarella

Eggplant Rollatini

Eggplant Rollatini

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I love eggplant rollatini. Unfortunately no one else in my family does so whenever we order out food, I usually end up getting it because I never get to make it at home. Never mind that I sometimes get a skin reaction to the eggplant (I have a slight allergy to it), but I could eat this dish as a main course any day instead of chicken or some other meat dish.

I’ve seen recipes for eggplant rollatini using either grilled or fried eggplant (like eggplant parmigiana), but I’ve decided to use the grilled version here because it is not as oily as the fried one. It is time consuming to make this dish but it’s worth it. It is usually served as an appetizer, although it can fill you up quickly because of the cheese filling, but, as I said previously, you can also serve it as a main dish.

Serves 6 to 8 people

Ingredients 

2 eggplants (about 1 pound)
1 cup grated Mozzarella cheese
1 cup Ricotta cheese
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup flat Italian parsley, finely chopped
1 egg
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp. black pepper

  1. Preheat broiler.
  2. Spray sheet pan with nonstick cooking spray.
  3. Peel and slice eggplant lengthwise into long thin slices.
  4. Brush each slice of eggplant with olive oil on one side; place slices on sheet pan, oil side up.
  5. Broil eggplant about 4 minutes until lightly brown. Turn each slice and brush the other side with olive oil. Broil second side about 4 minutes. Set eggplant slices aside.
  6. In a bowl, combine Parmesan and ricotta cheeses, egg, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, parsley and pepper. Mix well.
  7. Spread each slice of eggplant with cheese filling. Roll up eggplant from narrow end to form rollatini.
  8. Spread a thin layer of tomato sauce in the bottom of a baking pan. Line up rolls in a single layer in baking pan.
  9. Spread a thin layer of sauce over the rolls. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese over the top of the sauce.
  10. Bake about 25 minutes at 350°. Sprinkle with chopped parsley if desired before serving.

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Meatballs stuffed with mozzarella

Meatballs (plain or stuffed with mozzarella)

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Contrary to what Americans (USA) think, spaghetti and meatballs are usually not served together in Italy, but rather the pasta is eaten first, then the meat.

I usually make meatballs in tomato sauce and either serve them together with pasta or make meatball parmesan sandwiches with Italian bread. This recipe uses bread crumbs but I sometimes use 1 or 2 slices of white bread, broken up into little pieces, instead. My mother used to add small pieces of butter or margarine to the meat which made the meatballs really tender and quite tasty, but I leave it out because it can make them a little greasy.

I like to make the meatballs stuffed with little cubes of mozzarella but you can leave that part out if you’d like. You can also bake or fry the meatballs and serve as appetizers.

Makes about 12 medium sized meatballs

Ingredients

1 lb ground beef, or 1/2 lb ground beef and 1/2 lb ground pork, or 1/3 lb beef 1/3 lb pork 1/3 lb veal
1/4 tsp salt or according to taste
1/4 small onion, minced
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 T dried parsley (more if using fresh minced parsley)
1 large egg
2 T bread crumbs (seasoned or unseasoned)
mozzarella, small cubes

  1. in a large bowl, combine ground beef, salt, onion, garlic powder, parsley, and egg.
  2. add the bread crumbs and mix well.
  3. grab a small amount of mixture and roll into a ball (about the size of a golf ball). Make an indentation with your thumb and press a small cube of mozzarella in it then cover up the mozzarella.
  4. add to tomato sauce and cook until done.

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Stromboli roll

Stromboli Roll

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This recipe serves approximately 4 -6 people if sliced and served as an appetizer, or 2 people if it is the main dish. You can leave out the prosciutto if it is too salty for your liking.


Ingredients

12 oz. pizza dough
4 slices of ham
4 slices of mozzarella
4 slices of salami
2 long slices of prosciutto
onion powder
garlic powder
oregano
pecorino romano or parmigiano-reggiano cheese
1 T olive oil

  1. preheat oven to 375°.
  2. in a large pizza pan spread the olive oil with your fingers.
  3. stretch the dough out in the pan and sprinkle onion and garlic powder according to your taste.
  4. spread the slices of ham, mozzarella, salami and prosciutto across the dough, leaving about an inch around the dough with nothing on it.
  5. fold about an inch of the dough on opposite ends, then roll one of the other ends until you have a log.
  6. sprinkle some oregano and grated cheese on top.
  7. bake for about 30 minutes, until golden brown.

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Veal Saltimbocca (alla Romana)

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Veal saltimbocca is a classic Roman dish. Saltimbocca literally means “to jump in the mouth”. You can use fresh sage leaves when available for each cutlet or rubbed dry sage which comes in those small spice and herb containers, which is what this recipe uses. You can also leave out the tomatoes and use dry white wine instead.

Serves 6-8 people

Ingredients

3 lbs. thinly sliced veal leg (cutlet)
2 oz. butter
¾ c. olive oil
3 lbs. canned plum tomatoes, chopped fine
3 T fresh parsley
3 tsp oregano
½ tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
¼ tsp sage or 1 fresh sage leaf to place on every cooked cutlet
12 oz. prosciutto ham, very thinly sliced
12 oz. mozzarella or provolone cheese, thinly sliced

  1. Pound veal slices thin if necessary.
  2. Heat oil and butter in a saute pan. Saute veal slices and remove when done to a sheet pan.
  3. After all veal is cooked use the same pan with the remaining butter and oil to cook tomatoes, parsley, oregano, salt, pepper, and sage. Cook and stir about 10 minutes.
  4. Arrange veal slices in plates.
  5. Cover each portion of veal with a slice of prosciutto and a slice of cheese.
  6. Neatly cover each veal portion with some of the sauteed tomato mixture.
  7. Sprinkle each portion with parmesan cheese, if desired.
  8. Warm in low oven if prepared in advance then broil just before serving to lightly brown top.

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Pasta alla Caprese

Pasta alla Caprese (with pesto, tomatoes, and mozzarella)

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Here is a simple but tasty pasta recipe for when you have to cook dinner in a hurry or are just not in the mood for anything fancy.

Serves 4 to 6 people

Ingredients
1 box (1 lb.) of penne pasta, or any other short pasta
4 small tomatoes, cubed
2 c of fresh mozzarella, cubed
4 T pesto sauce
salt to taste

1. cook pasta, drain and reserve some water (in case the pasta is too dry).
2. add tomatoes and mozzarella to the hot pot that you used to cook the pasta in to warm them up a bit.
3. throw pasta and pesto sauce into the pot and mix well.
4. add salt to taste.

If the pasta is too dry, add some of the reserved water a little bit at a time.