Cucina DiBella

Blueberries with Mascarpone

Oh, Hay-Seuss.  This may be my new favorite dessert.  I had a hard time stopping myself from eating the whole thing.  Mascarpone is similar to cream cheese, and, like cream cheese, can be used in either sweet or savory applications.  To make the cheese work as a dessert, I sweetened it with powdered sugar.  I then put the sweetened mascarpone over top of blueberries.  The reason I chose blueberries is because I then drizzled some white peach balsamic vinegar over the whole thing.  Peaches and blueberries go wonderfully together, but this would also be great with segmented peaches or plums, or with regular balsamic vinegar and strawberries.  In all honesty though, I don't think I'll give any of those a try. I don't think the blueberry and peach balsamic vinegar combination can be beaten!

 

Blueberries with Mascarpone

Ingredients:

8 ounces mascarpone cheese

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1 pint blueberries

White peach balsamic vinegar

Process:

1. In a bowl, stir together the mascarpone cheese and powdered sugar until well combined.
2. Place most of the blueberries in a separate bowl, reserving a handful with which to garnish the top.
3. Top the blueberries with the mascarpone.  Place the reserved blueberries on top of the mascarpone. 
4. Drizzle the blueberries and mascarpone with the white peach balsamic vinegar.

Ryan's rating of Blueberries with Mascarpone: 5.  Judging by the way he devoured it, I would say Dominic rated it pretty highly as well.

 

1 - Awful. If you make this again I'll shove a fork in my eye.

2 - Meh. It's not my favorite, but I won't threaten self-harm if it shows up again.

3 - Good. I wouldn't feel forced to order a pizza behind your back.

4 - Great! I will fight you for the leftovers.

5 - Love it! Make it again tomorrow. Or immediately and I will bathe in it.

Braised Beef Rolls

Braciole is traditional Italian-American Sunday dinner.  I was hesitant to call this recipe "braciole" since I took some liberties with the recipe.  It is really more of a combination between traditional braciole and my Nonna's spadini. 

There is something so comforting about any recipe that involves sauce simmering away for hours. To make matters even better, the beef adds such an amazing depth of flavor to the sauce.  Tasting it immediately brought me back to New Jersey, eating veal parmesan in my grandma's dining room.  I think I found my new comfort food!

 

Braised Beef Rolls

Adapted from the Food Network

Serves 4

4 pieces top round thin cut steaks, about 1/2 pound each

4 slices prosciutto

4 slices provolone

1 small onion, diced

4 garlic cloves, minced

4 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup breadcrumbs

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

1/2 cup red wine

2 cups marinara sauce

1 cup water

salt and pepper

Process:

1. If necessary, pound your steaks to about 1/4 inch thick. 
2. Place one piece of prosciutto on each of the steaks.  On top of the prosciutto, place one slice of provolone, cut in half and layered if needed so that the cheese does not reach past the edge of the steak.
3. Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat.  Once hot, add the onions and cook until just softened, about 2 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook another 1 minute.  Remove the pan from the heat and add the breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese. Stir to combine.
4. Divide the breadcrumb mixture between the four steaks, creating a layer of the mixture over the provolone slices. 
5. Starting at the short end, roll up each piece of steak and secure with toothpicks.  Season each roll-up with salt and pepper.
6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
7. In a large, oven safe pot, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat.  Brown the beef roll-ups on all sides, cooking them about 2 minutes on each side.
8. Add the red wine to the pot and cook until the wine has mostly cooked off.
9. Remove the pot from the heat.  Add the marinara sauce and water, making sure that there is sauce on the top of each roll-up.
10. Cover the pot partially with tinfoil.  Place the pot in the oven and cook for 30  minutes.  Baste the roll-ups with the sauce, return the foil, and continue baking for another 30 minutes.  Baste the roll-ups again, remove the foil, and bake for another 30 minutes uncovered.
11. Remove the toothpicks and serve hot.

Ryan's rating of Braised Beef Rolls: 5.  I can't say enough about the sauce.  We had some extra left in our pan and I made sure to save it for pasta later in the week!

1 - Awful. If you make this again I'll shove a fork in my eye.

2 - Meh. It's not my favorite, but I won't threaten self-harm if it shows up again.

3 - Good. I wouldn't feel forced to order a pizza behind your back.

4 - Great! I will fight you for the leftovers.

5 - Love it! Make it again tomorrow. Or immediately and I will bathe in it.

Caprese Salad

There are few dishes that can outdo Caprese Salad in the presentation department.  Slices of tomato topped with slices of fresh mozzarella and basil leaves, the finished product is bursting with color.  Usually Caprese Salad is thought of as a summer recipe, and it really is wonderfully refreshing when tomatoes are in season.  However, I decided to make it today in defiance of the dismal winter weather we've had this year. 

 

There are a few ways that you can change up the following recipe.  I chose to drizzle balsamic vinegar straight from the bottle, along with some olive oil, on top of the salad.  However, you could also take an extra step and simmer the balsamic vinegar on the stove to create a balsamic reduction.  Another approach that you can take is to use smaller tomatoes, such as Romas, and cut them in half.  Then, you can roast the tomato halves and once they've cooled, proceed to top them with the mozzarella, basil, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil. 

 

Caprese Salad

Makes 12 slices

Ingredients:

3 vine ripe or hot house tomatoes

8 ounces of fresh mozzarella

12 basil leaves

Process:

1. Cut the tomatoes into slices about 1/4 inch thick. 
2. Cut the mozzarella into slices about 1/4 inch thick.
3. Place one slice of mozzarella on top of each slice of tomato.  Place a basil leaf on top of each slice of mozzarella.
4. Drizzle balsamic vinegar and olive oil over the tomato and mozarella slices.

Ryan's rating of Caprese Salad - 5.  And this is coming from someone who doesn't really like tomatoes. 

1 - Awful. If you make this again I'll shove a fork in my eye.

2 - Meh. It's not my favorite, but I won't threaten self-harm if it shows up  again.

3 - Good. I wouldn't feel forced to order a pizza behind your back.

4 - Great! I will fight you for the leftovers.

5 - Love it! Make it again tomorrow. Or immediately and I will bathe in  it.