Sausage and Escarole Bites

This recipe was inspired by an episode that I recently watched of The Essence of Emeril. The original recipe, Swiss Chard Boules Stuffed with Lemon Barley Risotto, was made of a pancetta, barley and risotto filling, wrapped with swiss chard leaves (click here for the original recipe). I was intrigued by the recipe and started to think how I could put my own spin on it. Being snowed in for a two day weekend left me the perfect opportunity to experiment. I decided on ground sausage stuffed with provolone cheese for the filling. I went with escarole leaves for the outer wrapping. I blanched the leaves in chicken broth for a few minutes, enough time to make the leaves soft and pliable enough to wrap around the cooked sausage stuffing. I placed the wrapped sausage in a baking dish, added a little bit of the broth to the dish for extra flavor, then baked them for about 20 minutes. Gotta say, I was very happy with the end result! As expected, the sausage and provolone were perfect together. The fresh, crisp taste of the escarole was a nice compliment and the additional chicken broth added great flavor. I definitely plan to use this recipe again and suggest it as a party appetizer.

SAUSAGE AND ESCAROLE BITES

1/2lb sausage (hot or sweet), removed from casing
chunk of sharp provolone cheese, broken up into 12 small, sugar-cube size pieces
1 bunch of escarole (you’ll need 12 nice size leaves), thoroughly washed
1 chicken bouillon cube

Remove sausage from casing. Grab a small bunch at a time, enough to roll to the size of a meatball. Place a piece of provolone cheese onto the sausage, then roll into a small ball. You should end up with 12 sausage balls filled with cheese. Fry the sausage balls in vegetable oil in a frying pan, turning often so that all sides are done and inside is thoroughly cooked. Remove sausage from pan, set aside to let cool.

Fill a large pot with water, add a chicken bouillon cube; bring to boil. Add 12 escarole leaves, blanching for about 3-4 minutes until just soft and pliable. Remove leaves from broth. One by one, place the sausage onto the bottom edge of 1 of the escarole leaves and roll the ball in the leaf, tucking edges in and rotating the ball so that the sausage is evenly covered and the edges of the leaf are smooth. Place them in a baking dish, add 1/4 cup of broth to the dish and cover with foil. Place baking dish in the oven at 350º for about 15-20 minutes. Remove from oven, place on a dish and serve.

Makes 12 pieces.

New Recommendation – Penzeys Rosemary Powder

I’m not a big fan of rosemary. I’m well aware that this is a bit of a hurdle for me, being that rosemary is practically a staple seasoning in many Italian dishes. Not sure when my dislike for the herb came to be…I may have had a dish flavored with rosemary that “didn’t agree with me” (I’ve had the same effect with Jägermeister). It’s not even the taste that bothers me, but rather the woody, needle-like texture. “Just chop it up!” is what one of my aunts recently told me. I tried. No dice.

Just when I was about to give up hope, along comes my friend John with a miracle in a jar…Rosemary Powder! He picked up a jar for me at Penzeys, a spice and seasoning superstore (located in Chestnut Hill, among other locations and on the Web). It’s similar to your regular powdered seasonings (garlic, onion, celery, etc.), grounded very fine. It was the perfect compliment to some homemade chicken soup that I recently made. It has a terrific aroma, and the taste is very fresh, yet slightly subtle and not overpowering. And there is no crunch…my prayers have been answered!

Next time you’re in the Chestnut Hill area, be sure to check out Penzeys. If you’re not in the area, hit up their website. Tons of great kitchen accents and gift ideas!

Cavatelli with Broccoli Rabe and Pancetta

Last week I was in the mood for a hearty, old world pasta dish with lots of zip. I found the recipe for broccoli rabe and pancetta in an old Food & Wine magazine. I decided to add it to cavatelli (aka ‘gavadeels’). Very tasty and very filling. The bitterness of the rabe and the saltiness of the pancetta made for a great pasta topping. No other herbs or spices needed.

You’re working with two pots of water, so to avoid any confusion I’ve labeled them as Pot A and Pot B.

CAVATELLI WITH BROCCOLI RABE AND PANCETTA

1 lb package frozen cavatelli
2 lbs broccoli rabe, cut into 2-inch lengths, thick stems discarded
2 tablespoons plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 lb pancetta, sliced 1/8 inch thick and cut into tiny cubes
4 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

In a large pot (Pot A), start to bring 4 quarts of salted water and one tablespoon olive oil to a boil. This will be for the cavatelli – do not add cavatelli yet, as it cooks quickly. The oil is added to prevent pasta from sticking.

In another large saucepan (Pot B), bring 2 quarts of salted water to a boil. Add the broccoli rabe and cook until just tender, about 5 minutes. Drain, shaking off the excess water. Wipe out the saucepan.

Add two tablespoons olive oil and pancetta to saucepan (Pot B) and cook over moderately low heat, stirring often, until the pancetta is golden, 8 to 10 minutes.

At this point, you will add the cavatelli to the large pot (Pot A) of boiling water, cook for 5-7 minutes.

Add the garlic to pancetta (Pot B) and cook, stirring, until golden, about 3 minutes. Add the broccoli rabe to the pancetta, season with salt and pepper and cook over moderately high heat until tender, 3 to 4 minutes.

Drain cavatelli when done, add to a large bowl, mix with broccoli rabe and pancetta.

Serves 4

Pork Chops Italiano

Whether you’re grilling, pan frying or shaking and baking, pork chops always make for a nice meal. My favorite way of preparing chops is marinating, then baking or grilling. Marinades always work well with pork chops. They add lots of great flavor and your chops won’t end up dried or leathery. You want to be sure to let the chops marinate for at least 2-4 hours.

One of my go-to marinades is Italian dressing. It’s loaded with spices and herbs and is available in a nice variety, from light and creamy to zesty and robust. It works well with pork, chicken and fish.

Soy sauce also makes for a terrific marinade base. You can then season the soy sauce with all different kinds of spices and herbs and take the flavor in all kinds of tasty directions. Some spices that I like to add for pork are ginger, allspice, honey, sesame oil and brown sugar (more on that in another post).

For this recipe you’ll want to use an oil-based Italian dressing (not Creamy Italian). To help kick it up a bit, I like to top the chops with some thin sliced onions and roasted red peppers. Serves well with rice, noodles or couscous. And don’t forget the applesauce!

PORK CHOPS ITALIANO

4-6 chops (your choice of thickness)
1 bottle of oil-based Italian salad dressing (not creamy Italian)
1 small onion, sliced thin
1 jar roasted red peppers, sliced

Pierce pork chops with a fork to allow dressing to soak through. Place chops in a plastic baggie, pour dressing over chops and let marinate in refrigerator for at least 2-4 hours.
Heat oven to 350º. Remove chops from marinade, making sure that some marinade stays on the chops. Place chops in a 13×9 sprayed baking dish. Top chops with thin slices of onion and roasted red peppers. Cover dish with aluminum foil. Gently puncture the foil with a fork in a few spots to allow steam to escape. Bake for approximately 45-60 minutes, depending on thickness of your chops. Thinner chops will be done at about 35-45 minutes, thicker chops will take longer, around 60 plus minutes. Chops will cook faster without aluminum covering, but will lose moisture and may end up dry. Gauge timing and method to your likeness, just be sure to check chops accordingly and make sure that chops are no longer pink inside.

* The Italian dressing adds plenty of flavor, so adding the onions and /or peppers is not necessary of you’re not a fan of either taste.