Braciole

In New Orleans it is Mardi Gras. Being that my husband has to work this weekend and the kids are with their Dad; I decided to take it easy and fix a comforting meal. After two hours scouring through cookbooks, I came up with Braciole (pronounced Brah-shol). 


Braciole is a traditional Italian beef dish that is prepared in the Rollatini style, as in rolled up like a jelly roll, and stuffed with bread crumbs, cheeses, and seasonings.

It's moist, rich, and very flavorful and it is actually easy to make, although not quick. In order to make this cut of meat moist and flavorful, it needs a great amount of time cooking on the stove. It is perfect for a Sunday meal.

Every Italian family has its own version and this is what I finally put together.

Red Sauce

2 tablespoon Olive oil

1 onion, chopped 

1/2 cup fresh basil leaves or 1 1/2 teaspoon dried

1 (28 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes

1 (15 ounce) of tomato paste

3/4 cup Merlot wine

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon ground pepper

2 teaspoons dries oregano

1/4 white sugar

Heat olive oil in a large dutch oven oer medium-high heat, and cook. Stir the onion and garlic until translucent but not browned, 6 to 7 minutes.

Pour in the whole peeled tomatoes, and bring the mixture to a boil, stirring and chopping the tomatoes with a wooden spoon. Pour in the tomato sauce and stir and bring to a simmer. Let the sauce simmer until slightly thicken and bubbling, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes.

Stir the tomato paste into the sauce, and fill the empty tomato paste can with Merlot wine. Pour into the sauce and stir well to combine. Bring the sauce back to a simmer, and stir in the salt, pepper, dried oregano, and sugar. Let the sauce simmer until the seasonings are blended about 30 minutes.

Braciole
.
2/3 cup grated Pecorino Romano Cheese
1/3 cup grated Italian Style Cheese (Mozzarella, Provolone, Parmesan, Romano, Fontina & Asiago cheese)
1/2 cup dried Italian-styled bread crumbs (I use Progresso)
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons chopped onions
5 cloves of garlic, minced
1 flank steak
1 teaspoon of sea salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper


In a medium bowl, stir the cheeses,bread crumbs, parsley, onions, garlic, to blend. Stir in 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, and set aside. 


The main objective is to use pieces of steak that are pounded down to between 1/8 and 1/4 of an inch thick. You do this by placing the meat between two sheets of plastic wrap and pound it down with a meat mallet. This also helps to tenderize the meat. 


Now that your ingredients are ready, lay the meat down on a clean work surface. Sprinkle the meat with 1/2 teaspoon of each salt and pepper then spread the bread crumb stuffing evenly over the steak. Keep the stuffing away from the edges so that it won't cook out. Start at the narrowest end and roll up the meat like a jelly roll. Seal the rolls with butcher's twine. Sprinkle the braciole with the remaining salt and pepper.

Brown the braciole on all sides in the remaining olive oil. Add to the red sauce and cook over medium low heat about 2 hours or until meat is tender. Remove the twine before serving and serve with your favorite choice of pasta. I used penne rigate.

After eating this dish, you will be a Braciolist for life!! Hope you enjoy this as much as I did.

~ Kelly ~