Italian Recipes

We get a weekly newsletter here at FUA and they occasionally include recipes for us, so I figured this would be a good place for me to keep them all :) enjoy!

Risotto di Zucca

Pumpkin Risotto
Pumpkin risotto is one of those comforting dishes which can please anybody, including vegetarians (if the chicken stock is replaced by vegetable stock). This specific recipe comes from the kitchen of chef, Renato Piccolotto.  Serves 4
600g (1 lb 5 oz) pumpkin flesh, chopped into very small chunks
2 tbsp olive oil
90g (3 1/4 oz) butter
4 sprigs of fresh rosemary, 2 finely chopped, 2 whole
1 garlic clove
1 small onion, finely chopped
300g (10 1/2 oz) carnaroli rice
1 litre (1 3/4 pints) chicken stock, hot
50g (1 3/4 oz) Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
Salt and pepper to taste
In a pan, heat the oil and a third of the butter, then add the whole sprigs of rosemary, the garlic clove and pumpkin. The pumpkin will automatically exude some liquid and so no water needs to be added. Cook for about 20 minutes or until the pumpkin softens and dissolves. Remove the rosemary sprigs and garlic clove.
In another large pan, heat half the remaining butter and fry the onion gently until soft, then add the rice and fry equally gently, stirring continuously, for a few minutes. Add a little of the hot chicken stock and then the pumpkin mixture. Add more stock gradually until it is all used up and has been absorbed by the rice, stirring from time to time to avoid it sticking to the pan. Take off the heat and beat in the remaining butter and the Parmesan, and sprinkle with chopped rosemary.
 

Buon appetito!
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Recipe of the Week

Polpette
"Authentic Meatballs - without the spaghetti!"

Ingredients
:

1 lb ground beef

1 lb ground veal

1 lb ground pork

2 eggs

1 large bunch of parsley

1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Garlic Cloves

Pinch of Kosher salt

1 1/2 cup seasoned breadcrumbs

1 loaf of day old Italian bread

Enough vegetable oil to fill pan half way
 

Directions:

• Take your day old Italian bread and tear it into large pieces. Ciabatta or a baguette is a good bread to use. Put the bread chunks into a large bowl and drizzle water over them until they are covered.
• Use your hands and pick up a handful of the bread and squeeze the excess water out of it. Mix it with the ground meats. This gives your Italian meatballs moisture and helps bind the meats.
• Add the eggs, the parsley, the cheese, the breadcrumbs, diced garlic, salt and mix together. Yes, still using your hands. Knead it all together until all the ingredients are blended well. You can just smell all the delicious flavor of the fresh meats and spices.
• When you form your Italian meatballs make them big. Nice and BIG! A good size should be almost as big as a baseball. That's the Southern Italian way. 
• When you're ready to cook the meatballs, heat the vegetable oil in a deep pan. Don't use Olive oil, it burns too quickly. Fry the meatballs, turning on each side, until they're golden brown. You can do them in batches. You don't want to add all at once or they will stick and become a meaty mess. Remove from the oil and set on some paper towels to drain some of the oil.
• The meatballs are not cooked all the way through at this point. They are just browned. The remainder of the cooking process is done in your favorite tomato sauce, marinara sauce recipe or Italian gravy, if that's what you call it. I use my traditional homemade Italian marinara sauce to cook my Italian meatball recipe. Allow the sauce, with the meatballs in it, to simmer until the meatballs are tender and fully cooked and the flavors are melded into a pot full of deliciousness. About an hour.
• You can serve your Italian meatballs with a crisp green salad and a chunk of crusty bread or break.

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SPRING!
Recipe of the Week

Risotto al limone con gamberi e piselli
Risotto with Lemon and Peas

Serves 6

Ingredients
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp butter
1 small onion, minced
1 1/2 cups Carnaroli rice
3/4 cup white wine
Zest of one lemon
5 cups chicken broth, heated
1 cup cooked peeled shrimp
1/2 cup fresh shelled peas or frozen baby peas run under hot water and drained
3/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 tsp fresh lemon juice

Heat the broth in a small saucepan, keep at a low simmer. In a large saucepan heat the oil and butter on medium heat. Add onion to the butter and oil and stir until translucent. Add the rice and stir constantly to keep from burning, cook for 5 minutes. Add the wine, stir and reduce the wine by half. With heat at medium-low add 1 cup of warm broth and lemon zest, stir briefly and allow to reduce. Keep adding broth one cup at a time, stirring occasionally allowing each cup of broth to reduce before adding the next cup until the rice is al dente, about 20 – 30 minutes (to prep ahead of time stop adding broth after about 15 minutes, chill broth and rice until ready to resume and finish adding re-warmed broth 1 cup at a time, until al dente). Stir in the peas and shrimp and add another 1/2 cup of broth, cook for 2 more minutes. Stir in parsley, Parmesan and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper.

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