Spicy Turkey Meatballs and Spaghetti

March 18, 2015 by Laura Messersmith in Cooking with the Contessa

Each week I follow along with Ina Garten (aka the Barefoot Contessa) and attempt to recreate one of her dishes in my tiny New York City kitchen. The catch? This is my version of cooking school and I’m making these recipes for the first time. I’ll share both my successes and um, challenges, along the way and we’ll see if I can keep up with the Contessa!

Episode: “Baby’s First Bash”

The Set-up: Ina’s close friends, the Libermans, are celebrating their first grandchild!

The Menu: Spicy Turkey Meatballs and Spaghetti, Truffled Popcorn, Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp, S’mores

0:40 – Ina’s theme for the party is “nursery food” which I guess translates to things that adults and children will like. Interested to see how she makes that work.

1:23 – First up Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp. Ina says that rhubarb has a very short season and I believe it since I think I’ve only tasted it once in my life.

2:15 – Pro Tip #1: Dissolve a little cornstarch in the orange juice before adding it to the fruit filling. The cornstarch will help thicken the fruit “goo” and mixing it ahead will prevent lumps.

3:41 – The party is taking place outside, so Ina has called up the troops – namely her friend Greg Yale, a professional lighting designer – to transform her already magnificent garden into a wonderland. This is one lucky seven week-old baby.

4:08 – We’re back with Ina to make the crumble topping, which she admits is basically the same from recipe to recipe with the usual suspects (butter, flour, brown sugar, oatmeal…)

5:36 – This particular crumble combination - strawberry rhubarb - is in honor of a recipe Ina once made up on the fly for the grandmother of honor. Even the Barefoot Contessa has to wing it from time to time.

9:43 – Time to make the main course: Spicy Turkey Meatballs and Spaghetti. Ina emphasizes the need to add moisture, in this case fresh bread crumbs soaked in milk, since they’re made from turkey.

10:35 – We check in with Greg, who is literally up a tree hanging café lights. This is a man who is dedicated to making things “magical.”

11:21 – Ina’s recipe calls for mincing up prosciutto to add flavor to the ground turkey, but to me prosciutto is just sort of salty and not all that flavorful.

12:39 – These meatballs are supposed to be spicy, so in go the red pepper flakes. I wonder if using hot Italian sausage instead of sweet would be too much?

13:14 – Instead of frying/sautéing the meatballs they’re going into the oven to roast, which sounds like a fantastic way to get out of standing over a pot of hot oil. Eww.

14:20 – Meatballs go in the oven as Greg and his team tether huge, helium inflated and presumably illuminated, balloons around the garden. These are going to look awesome.

19:06 – The meatballs are done and beautifully browned, now for a little shortcut: store bought tomato sauce. Glad to see that even Ina sometimes turns to a jar once in a while.

20:25 – Outside with Greg for the big lighting reveal and while I do think it’s a little over the top for six people it also looks really cool.

21:40 – Back inside to pop the bag of popcorn and melt truffle butter for the Truffled Popcorn. Newman’s Own in case you’re wondering. I think it’s the Natural Tender White which I can assure you is really good – not too salty, no strangely yellow butter.

22:33 – Full disclosure: I cannot STAND truffles. Seriously, even a whiff of one in a dish and I’m done. I do like the idea of doing a flavored butter or oil with popcorn though – something to explore perhaps…

23:08 – The Liberman family arrives as Jeffrey pops the cork on some champagne the lights twinkle in the trees. #jealous

26:44 – The spaghetti is done cooking and now it’s time to serve the most enormous bowl covered in sauce and meatballs. Yum!

27:37 – Ina’s whole philosophy of cooking could probably be summed up as “nursery food for adults.” She’s so great at taking comfort food classics and dialing up the sophistication without losing the familiarity. Obviously I’m a fan.

28:11 – Outside with the giant bowl of “meatballs and sketti” and everyone dives in over a beautifully candle-lit table. Next comes the Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp with vanilla ice cream.

29:55 – Finally, the moment we’ve actually been waiting for: making use of the fire pit to light marshmallows on fire for S’mores. Ahh, summer.

Final Thoughts:
Note to self: cook something with rhubarb this summer when it’s in season.

I want to try cooking popcorn in infused oil, maybe rosemary? This bears further trial.

Also, investigate giant inflatable balloon lights and a fire pit…

Lessons Learned:
I’ve cooked meatballs before, actually about a month ago, so trying Spicy Turkey Meatballs and Spaghetti was more about trying a different flavor combination and cooking technique.

Meatball Assembly – This mixture was a bit stickier than the original combination and I suspect that’s due to the lack of dry breadcrumbs. I assume they aren’t needed because turkey is so lean and the fresh ones absorb enough of the juices from the sausage. Fluff the mixture together with a fork, or gently fold together with clean hands to keep them from packing too tightly. Portioning to exactly the same size takes a little guess-timation – I find that if I divide the mixture into 4 parts and then try to roll 6 meatballs (for a total of 24) from each quarter it comes out about right. Full disclosure: I ended up with 23 this time, so close enough.

Meatball Cooking – These meatballs are cooked on sheet trays (don’t forget the parchment paper!) in the oven, which is a far simpler technique than cooking them in olive oil on the stove. I put both sheets in at the same time and probably should have switched them halfway through – the bottom ones were a little browner. So, lesson learned!

Final Simmer – I am officially a huge fan of doing this in the oven. It takes the same amount of time and there’s no stress about having to stir or watch the sauce. I just cover and stick the pot in a 350 degree oven where it can pretty much hang out as long as you need it to and then like magic it’s ready whenever the pasta finishes cooking. I’ll also point out that it opens up a burner on the stovetop and the fewer items I have bubbling away there the more in control I feel.

Small Kitchen Friendly?
Fairly, it felt more so than the first meatball recipe, but upon reflection it actually requires the same amount of items. Once again, I used my trusty 5.5 qt French oven for sauce and meatball simmering, in addition to a second large pot for the pasta, a colander, medium mixing bowl, two baking sheet (assuming you’re making the full recipe) and medium cutting board. For utensils, a dinner fork, a wooden spatula, a liquid measuring cup & measuring spoons, a microplane grater, and an instant read meat thermometer. I also needed a small food processor to prep the fresh bread crumbs.

The Verdict:
I made Spicy Turkey Meatballs and Spaghetti when we were having a group of visiting college students for dinner, and while making meatballs from scratch does take effort I also think it’s kind of the perfect home-cooking meal. I hadn’t fully considered what a treat it might be after months of dining hall food. Based on how many meatballs disappeared it was a popular choice. In this version I used sweet Italian sausage and a classic tomato basil sauce, but even with my relatively low tolerance for heat I’d up the spice-factor and use hot Italian sausage and/or an arrabiata sauce in future iterations.

Real Meatballs and Spaghetti

February 12, 2015 by Laura Messersmith in Cooking with the Contessa

Episode: “Boss for Dinner”

The Set-up: The “top brass” from House Beautiful magazine are coming to Ina’s for dinner, including her “dear friend” and editor in chief, Stephen Drucker.

The Menu: Real Meatballs and Spaghetti, Garlic Bread, Ice Cream Sodas

0:38 – Ina says she want’s to “dazzle” her guests, but most of all she wants them to go home saying, “wasn’t that fun?” These are good goals.

1:29 – Contrary to expectations of a fancy dessert, Ina is serving Ice Cream Sodas with chocolate and raspberry sauces.

2:15 – There really is something about childhood desserts – don’t get me wrong I love elegant recipes like crème brulee, but sometimes a brownie sundae just hits the spot.

3:22 – Of course Ina is making her own sauces, no Hershey’s Syrup here!

4:10 – I’m a little surprised that the chocolate sauce uses cocoa powder and not melted bar chocolate. Maybe it would harden?

5:23 – Interesting. I thought the raspberry sauce would include the whole fruit, but instead Ina has pressed the sauce through a sieve to just get the juice.

6:35 – Quick field trip to Villa Italian Specialties in East Hampton to pick up some antipasti for a platter and adhere to Ina’s Rules for Easy Entertaining: never make more than two things. Works for me!

10:47 - The unofficial theme of “Surprise! This Fancy Dinner Isn’t Fancy” continues with the main course - Real Meatballs and Spaghetti.

11:13 – Pro Tip #1: A combination of fresh breadcrumbs and dry breadcrumbs will keep the meatballs tender while also helping them to bind together.

12:06 – Ina has an interesting way of thinking about meatballs – the ingredients fall into two camps: flavoring and binding.

12:52 – Remember when I said I wanted to make Rao’s meatballs? Well, one of Ina’s tricks is from their playbook: warm water!

13:45 – Meatball sautéing montage. What a delicious turn of events…

14:27 – Now onto the tomato sauce montage, which appropriately includes a lot of onion and garlic chopping.

15:33 – Ina’s recipe also calls for red wine, which I’ve seen in things like boeuf bourgignon but not in a pasta sauce.

19:10 – Onward to the Garlic Bread made with fresh oregano and ciabatta!

20:25 – The garlic bread involves an olive oil and herb sauce that almost seems like a really loose pesto, without the parmesan and pine nuts.

21:51 – Ina says that once the bread goes in the oven that the whole house will smell like garlic. Sounds like heaven. Sigh.

22:48 – Out into the garden where Ina is setting the dinner table with a green striped cloth, beautiful bunches of fresh herbs, and white tulips. Again, heaven.

23:20 – Ina leaves the guests speculating on what dinner will be. Their hints are "Italian" and "oregano."

24:49 – Final assembly montage as Ina cooks the pasta, slices the garlic bread, and lifts the lid on a bubbling pan of meatballs and sauce. I am officially hungry.

27:27 – Ina arrives in the backyard with the most enormous footed serving bowl I’ve ever seen full of Real Meatballs and Spaghetti. If these people aren’t excited they must be dead inside.

28:36 – Back inside to set a tray with the ice cream soda makings. Note to self: anything looks elegant in silver bowls and parfait glasses.

29:14 – Guest Barbara goes first and chooses a chocolate soda with espresso ice cream. Well done Barbara, a woman after my own heart!

Final Thoughts:
My fate is sealed. It’s time to make meatballs!

I am absolutely on board with doing simple “home cooking” for important guests – it’s so much more relaxed that way.

At the close of the episode Ina asks for a raise and Stephen tells her she can have a meatball. Which actually sounds like a pretty good deal to me…

Lessons Learned:
It seems like meatballs are every where all of a sudden, so it was time to tackle them for myself. Here's what I learned from Real Meatballs and Spaghetti. Meatball Assembly – I’m a little meh about veal, so I used equal parts ground pork and lean ground beef (90/10). I also didn’t have seasoned dry bread crumbs, so I added 1 teaspoon each dried basil, oregano, and garlic powder to compensate. Other than that I followed the recipe exactly, including the nutmeg. It’s tough to roll them all exactly the same size, but it’s worth it to try. I’d also recommend the “PlayDoh” technique – slightly rounded palms, gentle pressure when forming them.

Meatball Cooking – This is another time to practice your oil heating. Remember that shimmer from the Chicken Piccata recipe? Same deal here – you want the oil good and hot before adding the first batch of meatballs. Resist the urge to crowd the pan – too many meatballs and the oil temperature will drop making them greasy. A baking sheet alternately lined with aluminum foil and paper towels was super helpful during the rolling and sautéing processes.

Sauce Cooking – They say necessity is the mother of invention; well, the timeframe for the final 30 minute cook of the meatballs and sauce coincided with Maddie’s late-afternoon walk. Luckily, or was it by design?, I was using my enameled cast iron French oven. Covered and put in a 350 degree oven it took about 35-40 minutes for the meatballs to braise and cook through – thank you meat thermometer – plenty of time for a spin around the block with the dog. Honestly, with no bubbling, spattering pan on the stove top to worry about I’d do it that way again in a heartbeat.

Small Kitchen Friendly?
Fairly, more so than I’d expected. I don’t have a sauté pan large enough for 16 meatballs AND sauce, so I used my trusty 5.5 qt French oven for the meatball sautéing, sauce preparation, and final cook. I also needed a second large pot for the pasta, a colander, medium mixing bowl, a baking sheet (useful during the meatball rolling & sautéing process) and medium cutting board. For utensils, a dinner fork, wooden spatula, two rubber spatulas (gentler than tongs) a liquid measuring cup & measuring spoons, a microplane grater, and an instant read meat thermometer.

The Verdict:
OMG. Real Meatballs and Spaghetti are so, so good. The meatballs are tender and the accompanying sauce has incredible depth thanks to the Chianti. Mike rarely is interested in having the same meal multiple days in a row – but in this case he was more than willing to revisit this dinner. I think it’s because they seem to grow in power – Day 2 and Day 3 might even be better than Day 1. Please set aside a lazy weekend afternoon to make this recipe – you will not be sorry and whoever you choose to share with will be eternally grateful. Trust.

Lemon Pasta with Shrimp & Roasted Tomatoes

October 27, 2014 by Laura Messersmith in Cooking

I started making a version of this recipe about a year ago when on a sleepy Sunday afternoon after several days with out a grocery run I had lemons, shrimp, tomatoes and pasta on hand and not much else. My thought process went something like – pasta+lemon+shrimp = good, pasta+tomatoes+shrimp = good, but pasta+lemon+tomatoes+shrimp = ????

I decided it was worth a shot and the results were encouraging enough that I kept making it; experimenting to get just the right combination of ingredients, process and flavors.

Then this summer Mike and I took a little Labor Day weekend excursion to Tribeca to scout out Grand Banks – a little slice of Nantucket just off Pier 25 – and have some dinner. We decided to try out Locanda Verde and I had the double benefit of trotting out joking references to my “friend,” Bob DeNiro, and tasting a real chef’s version of the pasta dish I had been dreaming of, but never quite achieving. It was in a word, heavenly.

As I ate I took careful mental notes of the flavors and textures, and on our subway ride home jotted down all the ingredients I could identify; determined that I’d get it right this time. Further motivation? The dish was one of the evening’s specials, so if I wanted to taste it again I’d have to recreate it at home. And so, I give you Spaghetti with Lemon, Shrimp & Breadcrumbs, a taverna-style recipe that you can make in your own kitchen.

Lemon Pasta with Shrimp & Roasted Tomatoes (serves 4)

Ingredients

2 pints cherry tomatoes
1 pound (31 to 40 count) shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 pound thin spaghetti (I like Barilla)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons minced garlic
Zest of 2 lemons
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons bread crumbs
2 tablespoons fresh, julienned basil
2 tablespoons fresh, minced parsley

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Toss the cherry tomatoes with olive oil, kosher salt and black pepper on a sheet pan. Spread them out into one layer roast for 15 to 20 minutes, until the tomatoes are soft and just starting to blister. Turn halfway through the cooking time.

While the tomatoes are roasting, peel and devein the shrimp. Spread in one layer on a sheet pan and toss with 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. When the tomatoes are nearly finished, add the sheet pan with the shrimp to the oven and roast for 2 to 3 minutes. The shrimp are done when they begin to turn pink and are firm to the touch.

Meanwhile, cook the thin spaghetti in salted boiling water according to the package directions, about 6 minutes. Drain well and set aside.

In a large saute pan, heat the butter and oil and cook the garlic and lemon zest over medium-low heat for 1 minute. Off the heat, add 2 teaspoons kosher salt, 1 1/2 teaspoons pepper, and lemon juice and pour this over the pasta. Toss well to coat the pasta.

Add the roasted tomatoes and shrimp to the bowl and gently toss. Serve immediately with a sprinkle of fresh basil, parsley, and breadcrumbs.

Small Kitchen Friendly?

Yes, with a little organization. I used two baking sheets, one large sauté pan, one large pot, a colander, and a large bowl. I also used a medium cutting board, chef’s knife, a microplane zester, measuring spoons and a liquid measuring cup. Tongs and a spatula will also be very helpful.

The Verdict:

I was surprised when I first started making this dish how well the flavors compliment each other and I’ll be honest – I was pretty pleased to see it on the menu of an actual restaurant. Mike and I are both big fans of the combination – garlic, lemon, a little heat from the red pepper – the tomatoes and shrimp are a little sweet once they’ve been roasted and the overall effect is of a complete meal in one dish. Yum!