Beef, veal, chicken, pork, lamb and rabbit are the standard recipes that we will be looking at. Other fowl and game will follow on a later date.

Obviously veal dishes figure predominantly in all the fine Italian dining establishments. There are two types of veal. Milk fed which is very tender and slightly more expensive then grain fed veal. You pay for what you get.

A little secret. My husband owned a gourmet italian restaurant in the early nineties and learned one important thing amongst his best chefs. A small ingredient that kept going into all the meat dishes. The name of this ingredient is stock. Add a little to every meat dish for a five star taste.

Beef stock

10 pounds soup bones, the meatier the better. Use a combination of beef and veal bones.

3 large carrots.
2 good size onions
4 cloves fresh garlic
fresh parsley
1 box mushrooms
bay leaves

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Rinse, peel and chop the carrots, onions and garlic. Distribute the vegetables on a oven pan and lay the bones on top. Roast 2 hours until browned, turning over a few times. Take out of oven and and fill a pot half full of water and drop everything and let simmer over low heat at least two hours.

Strain the stock through a fine strainer and then refrigerate. Throw away remnants or make a soup that evening and strain for broth.

After the stock has chilled for a few hours, peel off the fat and you have pure stock for adding to all meats when cooking.

Veal Stock - (brodo de vitello)

MAKES 1 1/2 QUARTS

Homemade stocks can be the building blocks of flavor for so many dishes. For rich veal stock, keep a supply of inexpensive veal shoulder bones in the freezer. Veal stock provides a light flavor for mushroom- and pasta-based dishes such as Pappardelle con Vitello.

2 pounds veal bones
1 large carrot, peeled and quartered
1 large onion, unpeeled, quartered
2 large cloves garlic, peeled
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1 large bay leaf
1 rib celery, cut in half
1 cup hot water
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Generously oil a roasting pan. Add all the ingredients except the water and salt and pepper and roast for about 45 minutes, turning occasionally, until the veal bones are nicely browned. Transfer all of the ingredients to a large soup pot.

Pour the hot water into the roasting pan and, using a wooden spoon, scrape up any browned bits remaining in the pan. Add this liquid to the soup pot along with enough water to just cover the ingredients. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and let simmer for 30 minutes.

Remove the bones and strain the stock through a cheesecloth-lined colander set over a bowl. Press hard on the solids with a wooden spoon to extract all the juices. Discard the solids. Season the stock with salt and pepper. The stock is ready to use. It can be covered and refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months.

Beef Recipes

Italian Beef Stew

Ingredients

2 pounds of stewing meat cut into small pieces
1 cup of flour
2 15oz cans of san marzano plum tomatoes
2 15oz cans of tomato sauce
1 cup of water or enough to cover vegetables
2 green bell pepper cut in large chunks
2 onions cut in half and sliced
5 carrots peeled and cut into circles
1 large zucchini sliced into circles
1/2 pound of fresh green beans
4 stalks of celery sliced in small pieces
5 small baking potatoes cut into pieces
4 cloves of garlic crushed
2 Tbls of dried oregano
1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbls fresh ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
3 ounces of Cognac

Directions

Place meat in flour and shake off any excess.
Slice all your vegetables.
In a large frying pan brown the meat.
Add garlic, oregano and salt and pepper and stir some more.
Add Cognac and let simmer for about ten minutes and keep on stirring.
Add all the vegetable and stir.
Add tomatoes, tomato sauce and water so the vegetables are covered and stir.

Simmer about 1 hour and a half coveredServe with an italian loaf of bread and red table wine..

Print info

Old Fashioned Meatballs

Ingredients:
1lb. ground beef / veal / pork blend
2 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano or Romano Cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Mix all ingredients in a large bowl.
Form meat into meatballs.
Place on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes.
Use with your favorite tomato sauce or in sandwiches.

You can also add the raw meatballs to your tomato sauce as it's cooking.

If you like your meatballs soft add an egg.

Print info

Truffle Filet

Ingredients:
1/2 lb field greens or lettuces of your choice
6 Tablespoons extra olive virgin oil
2 Tablespoons of red wine vinegar
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 oz od Parmigiano Reggiano
4 5oz filet mignon steaks
White Truffle Ool to drizzle

Directions:
Wash and dry the greens. Whish together olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Set aside
Make shavings of Parmigiano Reggiano with a vegetable peeler. Set aside
Grill individual steaks to your liking. When steaks are done, toss greens with dressing.
Divide salad among plates and center a steak on top
Salt and pepper to taste
Drizzle each steak with White Truffle Oil
Top each serving with Parmigiano Reggiano slivers and serve immediately
Serves 4.

Print info

Filet Mignon with Gorgonzola

Ingredients:
4 pc filet mignon, about 3 1/2 oz. each
1 shallot (chopped)
1/2 cup gorgonzola (melted)
4 pieces of toast
1 garlic clove, salt, pepper

Directions:
1. Saute chopped shallot and garlic clove.
2. Brown filets.
3. Place each filet on a piece of toast and pour on the melted gorgonzola and season as desired.
Serve with potatoes.
Serves 4

Print info

Printer friendly information

Print all meat recipe page (approximately 6 to 8 pages)

Or for individual recipe print use the following instructions:

1) highlight recipe you wish to copy
2) Go at the top of your browser with mouse and do edit - copy
3) Open up your Word for Windows and paste on page
4) Use the traditional method of printing in Word for Windows