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 Cheese
1 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 Bread
1/4 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.

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 Cheese
1 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.

Tiramisu Semifreddo Recipes

Tiramisu Semifreddo

A semifreddo is semifrozen dessert, and can typically include ice-cream cakes, and semifrozen custards. When entertaining at home, a semifreddo is a fantastic dessert option because you can make it even a couple of days before, and then just slice, garnish, and serve when needed. I used to make this type of dessert quite often, but for some reason I just haven’t made a semifreddo in a couple of years. Earlier this summer though, I had a couple of dinners we were hosting within a couple of days of each other, and I was looking for menu ideas that would work for both to simplify things. When I came to the dessert course, I realized something frozen would be ideal as it was exceptionally warm at the time, so I decided a semifreddo was in order. I liked this dessert so much in fact, I made it a couple more times over the summer, sometimes doubling the recipe if I was serving a large group. This dessert is creamy smooth with the addition of mascarpone cheese and whipped cream, though the coffee dipped sponge cookies add some needed texture. Include the flavor combination of chocolate and coffee, and how could you possibly go wrong?
I am, and always have been a tremendous fan of Tiramisu, so I decided to turn my basic Tiramisu recipe into a semifrozen one. This recipe keeps well in the freezer for a couple of weeks if wrapped well, and is a pleasant change from the traditional recipe. To serve, I just cut into serving sized portions, and then garnish with a dollop of whipped cream and shaved chocolate. In the photo, I doubled the recipe and made it in a large rectangular pan and cut the tiramisu into squares instead of slices.

Buon Appetito!
Deborah Mele 2012

Tiramisu Seifreddo

Yield: Serves 8 - 10

Prep Time: 20 mins

Ingredients:

250 gr. (1 Cup) Mascarpone Cheese At Room Temperature
1 Cup Whipping Cream
4 Eggs, Separated
1 1/2 Cup Espresso Coffee, Cooled
1/2 Cup Sugar
1/3-Cup Brandy, Marsala, or Rum
12 Savoiardi Cookies (Ladyfingers)
1/3 Cup Dark Chocolate Cocoa
1/2 Cup Dark Chocolate, Shaved, Divided
To Serve:
Sweetened Whipped Cream

Directions:

Beat the 4 egg yolks until light, and then slowly beat in 1/2 cup of sugar, then the mascarpone cheese.
In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff.
Fold egg whites gently into the cheese mixture.
Now whip the cream until soft peaks form, and fold this too into the cheese mixture.
Line a 9 x 5 inch pan with plastic wrap with an overhang to ease in removal later.
Add the brandy to the cooled coffee, and carefully dip in ladyfingers one at a time just until the outside of the cookie is barely damp.
Arrange cookies side by side to cover the bottom of the pan, cutting in half if needed.
After the first half of the cookies are layered, spread 1/2 of the cheese mixture on top.
Sprinkle the cheese mixture with half the cocoa, then repeat with another layer of cookies and cheese mixture.
Sprinkle the rest of the cocoa on top as well as half the shaved chocolate.
Gently tap the pan on the counter top to remove any air pockets, then wrap well in plastic wrap.
Freeze for at least four hours or until frozen.
When ready to serve, use the plastic wrap to help in removing the tiramisu from the pan.
Cut the tiramisu into slices, garnish with a dollop of whipped cream and the rest of the chocolate sprinkles.