Thursday 23 May 2013
Friday 5 October 2012
Frico With Potatoes Pancetta
Frico With Potatoes Pancetta
Frico are simply cheese crisps, are often made from grated Parmesan or Montasio cheese and can be used simply to nibble on with a glass of wine, or as a garnish for salads or risotto. I have made frico frequently over the years, but recently came across an Italian recipe that included potatoes, pancetta and onions along with the grated cheese. The frico made with the addition of these other ingredients are much larger, and the frico are then cut into wedges and served, making them a much heartier appetizer than the usual frico. Montasio is a cheese made from cow’s milk, produced in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia and Veneto regions of northeastern Italy.
I adapted my recipe to include green onions or scallions in place of regular onions as I felt they added a freshness, as well as color to the dish. The potatoes, pancetta and onions are blanketed on both sides with the grated cheese, which when cooked becomes crispy and golden brown. These frico are quite easy to make, although you do need to wait until the cheese turns golden brown before you turn the frico. These frico are best enjoyed soon after they are made as they tend to get hard if left sitting for too long.
Buon Appetito!
Deborah Mele 2012
Frico
Yield: Serves 4 - 6
Prep Time:
15 mins
Cook Time:
15 mins
Ingredients:
8 Ounces Grated Montasio Cheese1 Medium Potato, Peeled & Boiled Until Tender
1/3 Cup Chopped Pancetta, Cooked Until Crispy
2 Green Onions (Scallions), Chopped, Retaining Some To Be Used As A Garnish
Cracked Black Pepper
Directions:
Slice the potato thinly and set aside.Scatter half the cheese over the bottom of a 8 to 9 inch frying pan, then cover the cheese with the potatoe slices.
Scatter the pancetta and onions over the potatoes and sprinkle with cracked black pepper.
Cover the potatoes with the remaining cheese and turn the burner on to medium heat.
Cook the frico until the bottom is a deep golden brown, about 5 to 7 minutes.
Place a large dinner plate over the frying pan and carefully flip the frico over onto the plate.
Slide the frico back into the frying pan and cook this side until golden brown like the first.
Turn the frico out onto a cutting board and use a pizza cutter or sharp knife to cut into wedges.
Place the wedges onto a platter, and scatter the remaining green onions on top.
Sprinkle the top with a little additional cracked black pepper, then serve immediately.
Mortadella Bites Recipes
Mortadella Bites
This is probably going to be the easiest appetizer recipe you ever made, but it is so good you’ll want to make it a lot, I promise! One thing we offer to all our farmhouse guests here in Umbria is a wine tasting at our place next door. My husband shares three of his favorite Umbrian wines and I prepare two appetizers for each of the wines he has chosen. When we first started doing this I was making a lot of fancy, multi step delights and would spend much of the day of our wine tasting in the kitchen prepping. I’ve since discovered fancy doesn’t mean better, and I am all for simple, casual country style Italian food. These mortadella bites can be put together in a few minutes and everyone always loves them. In fact, everyone always asks for the recipe and though I initially wasn’t going to post it just because it was so simple, I decided I better share. The cubes of mortadella are quickly fried in a little oil in a frying pan, and once they are light golden brown I add the balsamic vinegar and toss to coat. The heat caramelizes the vinegar onto the meat creating a tasty tidbit that is delicious. I’ve probably made these bites about 30 times in total over the past four years, but I am always too busy serving guests at the time I am making them to get a proper photo of them, so I made a small batch for lunch recently for myself to enjoy so I could grab a photo or two to share.
For those not familiar with mortadella, according to Wikipedia it is a large Italian sausage or cold cut, made of finely hashed or ground, heat-cured pork sausage, which incorporates at least 15% small cubes of pork fat (principally the hard fat from the neck of the pig). Mortadella is a staple product of Bologna, Italy. It is flavored with spices, including whole or ground black pepper, myrtle berries, nutmeg and pistachios. Mortadella can be found in most grocery stores these days at the deli counter where it is generally sliced very thin for sandwiches. I simply ask the deli worker to cut me a large slice about 1 inch thick. I then cut this slice into 1 to 1 1/2 inch cubes. You can experiment with the amount of vinegar to add, I do not like too much as I think it overpowers the flavor of the meat, but you can choose for yourself.
Buon Appetito!
Deborah Mele 2012
Mortadella Bites
Yield: Serves 4 - 6
Prep Time:
5 mins
Cook Time:
10 mins
A very quick and easy appetizer using cubes of mortadella and balsamic
vinegar.Ingredients:
1 Pound Thick Mortadella Slice (See Notes Above)2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
2 to 3 Tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
Directions:
Cut the mortadella into square cubes about 1 to 1 1/2 inch in size.In a frying pan, heat the oil and once hot, add the mortadella.
Cook, stirring frequently and turning over the cubes until the meat is just starting to brown on all sides, about 5 to 7 minutes.
Add the balsamic vinegar, remove the pan from the heat, and toss the meat to coat in the vinegar.
Place the mortadella bites in a bowl with mini skewers and serve immediately.
Bruschetta With Capocollo and Fresh Figs
Bruschetta With Capocollo and Fresh Figs
I have a backlog of easy appetizers to share that I have been making over the past few months while we’ve been hosting wine tastings with our farmhouse guests here in Umbria. I like to keep my recipes seasonal and while in the spring I may use fava bean puree on my bruschetta, or make a frittata with tiny wild asparagus, in the fall I’m thinking more of Bruschetta With Melted Local Cheese & Sausage, or Stuffed Mushrooms With Sausage & Chestnuts (recipes coming soon!) We have been enjoying an abundance of fresh figs lately, so I decided to incorporate figs into a simple bruschetta. Since figs are sweet, I needed to balance the flavor with something a little salty so paired the figs with paper thin slices of Capocollo. This is yet another appetizer that can be pulled together in minutes as long as you have the right ingredients. Capocollo is often sold in a mild or sweet form or spicy and for this bruschetta I chose the mild version.
Capocollo is a traditional Italian cured meat made from the shoulder or neck of pigs. Though similar in flavor to prosciutto, as both are from pigs, prosciutto is made from the thigh or buttock of a pig or wild boar while Capocollo is always made from the shoulder or neck. I happened to find black figs at my local market the day I made these bruschetta, but any fresh, ripe fig will work just fine. I also used chestnut honey as it has a rich flavor but you can use any full flavored honey.
Buon Appetito!
Deborah Mele 2012
Bruschetta With Capocollo & Fresh Figs
Yield: Serves 4
Prep Time:
5 mins
Cook Time:
8 mins
Sweet fresh figs are balanced with salty capocollo in this quick and easy
appetizer.Ingredients:
1 Crusty Baguette Bread1/4 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
16 Thin Slices of Capocollo
4 Ripe Fresh Figs
1/4 Cup Full Flavored Honey (Like Chestnut)
Cracked Black Pepper
Directions:
Preheat broiler.Cut 8 slices from the bread and lay on a baking sheet.
Lightly brown both sides of the bread slices under the broiler, then brush one side lightly with the olive oil.
Arrange the bread slices on a platter and place two slices of the capocollo on each oil brushed side, folding the meat over if needed to fit.
Slice the figs crosswise, and top each bruschetta with a slice of fig.
Warm the honey and drizzle a little over each of the bruschetta.
Use a pepper grinder to top each bruschetta with some fresh cracked black pepper.
Serve immediately.
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