One Meatball...or Two or Three II 🌞

Mondeghili
FRIED BEEF AND MORTADELLA MEATBALLS


In the middle-class households of Lombardy, bollito, a steaming-hot plate
of boiled beef cuts, was quite commonly eaten on Sundays. The next day, the
leftover meat would be repurposed in other hearty dishes, including a fresh
salad made with diced bollito and lots of fresh herbs, boiled beef stewed with
onions, or mondeghili, flattened meatballs with a crisp, golden-brown exterior
and a soft, slightly lemony interior. Nowadays mondeghili are a fixture of
Milan trattorias, where they are served as a main course or as a starter. The
name comes from the Castilian word albóndiga, which means meatball, and
probably dates back to the Spanish domination of Milan.

Mondeghili are made with boiled beef, day-old bread soaked in milk, eggs,
grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, and fresh pork sausage or liver mortadella. You
can substitute a few slices of pork mortadella or salami. Eat mondeghili
steaming hot, as soon as they are fried, though leftovers are lovely cold too.


SERVES 4 AS A MAIN COURSE, 8 AS A STARTER

½ ounces/7 g day-old bread (about one and a half 1-inch/ cm slices)
¾ cup/18 ml whole milk
1 pound/455 g leftover boiled beef
ounces/6 g mortadella or salami, in one thick slice
¾ cup/6 g grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Grated zest of ½ lemon
½ clove garlic, minced
1½ teaspoons fine sea salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 large/150 g eggs
1¼ cups/8 g breadcrumbs
7 tablespoons/1 g unsalted butter
½ cup/1 ml extra-virgin olive oil

Crumble the bread into small pieces into a medium bowl. Add the milk
and set aside to soak for about 10 minutes.Grind the meat and mortadella
(or salami) in a meat grinder fitted with the fine die, or cut into cubes and
pulse in the food processor until finely minced but not a paste.

Transfer the meat to a medium bowl and add the Parmigiano-Reggiano,
parsley, lemon zest, garlic, salt, and pepper. Squeeze the bread to release the
excess milk and finely crumble it into the bowl; discard the milk.

Add one/50 g of the eggs to the mixture. Separate the remaining 2/100 g
eggs and add the yolks to the meat mixture; transfer the whites to a small
shallow bowl and set aside. Using your hands, mix all the ingredients together,
squeezing and kneading until the mixture is homogeneous.

Pour the breadcrumbs onto a plate. Lightly beat the egg whites. Set a
rimmed baking sheet or plate nearby for the finished meatballs.
With wet hands, shape the meat mixture into 32 small meatballs, each
slightly bigger than a walnut, then roll each one into an oval shape, and finally
flatten them into fat ovals.

Dip one meatball in the beaten egg whites, letting the excess drip off, add
to the breadcrumbs and turn to coat on all sides, and then transfer to the
baking sheet. Repeat until all the meatballs have been breaded.
In a small frying pan, heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Line
a plate with paper towels and set nearby. To check if the oil and butter are hot
enough, insert a toothpick in the hot fat: when tiny bubbles surround it,
you’re ready to fry. Fry the meatballs, in batches, for 2 to 3 minutes per side,
until crisp and golden brown, then use a slotted spoon to transfer them to the
paper towel–lined plate to drain.

Transfer the meatballs to a serving platter and serve immediately.


From "Cucina Povera "
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60831930-cucina-povera


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Polpette alla Wanda (Wanda’s Veal and Pork Meatballs)

Wanda’s excellent meatballs are delicious as a main
course on their own, but these tender spheres of mixed
ground veal and pork are very versatile: crushed and
combined with a fresh tomato sauce, they are splendid over
pasta. If you like spaghetti with tomato sauce and
meatballs, make small balls the size of walnuts with the
meat mixture and cook them in the same manner.
The polpette are also a vital ingredient in Anelletti al
Forno (a fantastic Baked Timbale of Anelletti with Veal and
Vegetables).

Serves 8

1 pound ground veal
1 1/2 pounds ground pork
2 eggs
1/3 cup freshly chopped parsley
1/3 cup freshly grated pecorino
3/4 cup day-old bread, soaked in water and squeezed dry
1/2 cup diced mortadella
1/3 cup diced ham
Olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon sugar
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Flour

Mix together all the ingredients from the veal through the
ham in a large bowl. (Using your hands is the easiest
method.) Shape into 8 equal-sized balls and flatten slightly
into oval shapes about 1 1/2 inches thick."

Cover the bottom of a large frying pan with 1/4 inch of
olive oil and fry the ovals until well browned on each side.
Transfer to a heavy pot.

Add the onion, tomato paste, sugar, and 1 cup of water to
the same frying pan, stirring to release any tasty particles
sticking to the bottom, and cook for about 5 minutes.
Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Pour the sauce over the meatballs and add enough cold
water to almost cover them. Sprinkle the tops of the
meatballs lightly with flour. Cover and simmer over low
heat for 1 hour.

From "La Cucina Siciliana di Gangivecchio"
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/686638.Sicilian_Kitchen


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TURKEY AND ROASTED RED PEPPER MEATBALLS
GOOD FOR SCALING /

PREP TIME: 15 MINUTES /
COOK TIME: 15 MINUTES

Ground turkey can be bland and boring, but these meatballs—thanks
to the red pepper and plenty of herbs and spices—are super tasty and
tender, too. This recipe makes enough for this dish and for Turkey
Meatball Soup with Swiss Chard and Dill, but you could double it to use
all the ground turkey and freeze meatballs for later use.

½ jar store-bought marinara or 1 (14.5-ounce) can tomato sauce
½ pound ground turkey
4 jarred roasted red peppers, drained, finely chopped (about ¼ cup)
1 piece bread, torn into very small pieces, or ¼ cup panko bread crumbs
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
½ tablespoon garlic powder
½ tablespoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 large egg
Basil leaves, torn
Grated Parmesan cheese, for garnish

1. Heat the marinara in a 4-quart pot or deep skillet over medium heat,
while making the meatballs.

2. Combine the turkey, peppers, bread, parsley, garlic powder, onion
powder, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Crack the egg into the bowl
and gently mix it to combine, without overmixing. Shape the mixture
into eight 2-inch balls, slightly larger than a golf ball, dropping four
of them, one by one, into the sauce.

3. Turn the meatballs gently with a spoon to coat them with the sauce.
Cover and simmer until cooked through (or internal temperature
reaches 165ºF), 15 minutes. Serve over your favorite cooked pasta,
spaghetti squash, or just a bed of spinach. Garnish with basil and
Parmesan.

Preparation Tip:

Add more vegetables to this dish by adding
diced zucchini to the sauce while simmering the meatballs. You
could also add 2 ounces of pasta to the sauce while simmering
for a one-pot option, but add more sauce or ¼ cup water to the
pot at the beginning of cooking time.


From "30-Minute Cooking for One"
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58315150-30-minute-cooking-for-one


Thatsa Spicy Meatball!!!