OPEN TABLE NEW YORK RECIPES

These amazing Italian baked meatballs are from the world famous Frankies Spuntino Restaurant in Brooklyn, New York! Perfectly textured, not at all dense but not falling-apart crumbly, with just the right amount of egg, bread crumbs, garlic, and cheese throughout. But what really makes these meatballs special is the addition of raisins and pine nuts. At the restaurant, they come three to an order with plenty of tomato sauce for sopping and a generous grating of Pecorino. I like to keep a bag of these delectable meatballs on hand in my freezer to pop into a pot of my Easy Spaghetti recipe #278033. Wonderful! Enjoy with a nice glass of red wine such as Chianti. Buon appetito!

Total Time 55 minutes

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Yield 20 meatballs, 6-8 serving(s)

Number Of Ingredients 11

• Ingredients

Nutrition Facts : Calories 417.3, FatContent 22.7, SaturatedFatContent 7.6, CholesterolContent 222.3, SodiumContent 816.1, CarbohydrateContent 14.9, FiberContent 1, SugarContent 4.7, ProteinContent 36.8

This recipe for Pastitsio appeared in Woman's Day Magazine on February 8, 1983. The title of the recipe is "Pastitsio For A Party". The recipe was part of a pasta segment by James Beard called "Pasta According to James Beard." Mr. Beard said this, "This rich and full-flavored oven dish comes from Leon Lianides, owner of the Coach House Restaurant in New York. The meat sauce can be prepared ahead and refrigerated." My experiences with this recipe are these: I have personally made this recipe many times over the years. It is the most delicious pastitsio that I have ever eaten. It is not diet food. If you are on a diet this is not the recipe you are looking for. It is not everyday food, it is for celebrations. Some other things I will mention are that the recipe can be halved. Half the recipe makes one 9 x 13 pan. Also, I not only cook the meat sauce a day ahead, but I prepare the cream sauce ahead, fully cooked because of the raw eggs. Bring the temperature up to at least 160 degrees to fully cook the eggs and then add the ricotta cheese. Otherwise the eggs would only be partially cooked and may not be safe the next day. Refrigerate with plastic wrap placed on the surface of the sauce to keep a skin from forming on the surface. And I have on other occasions used five whole eggs instead of using 10 egg yolks. The sauce will be firmer because of the whole eggs but I did not have a problem with it. On the day that I make the dish I cook the pasta and since the cream sauce is cold I mix the pasta into the cream sauce and assemble the recipe as directed. The sauces are cold and you may need to add 5 to 10 minutes cooking time to the times given in the recipe (or until casserole is bubbly). One other variation that I have used is to skip the Romano cheese and use the same amount (or more if you like) of sharp cheddar cheese. I've never used the parsley. The recipe did not specify fresh parsley, but I believe that is what is intended, because of the 1/2 cup amount called for. I did not use ground lamb, ground pork was substituted. I have on occasion used all ground beef. I cook the meat sauce for about an hour. When cooked for 20 minutes as the recipe specified, the meat was too firm for my taste. If making the 12 servings I would use two 4 quart dutch ovens. Add salt and pepper to your taste if the amounts in the recipe are too much or not enough. Here is the recipe as it appeared in the magazine. One other note. I used butter, not margarine. I would not substitute margarine, the flavor will not be as good. Canned tomato sauce is fine. It is a long recipe, takes quite a bit of time and some planning ahead but is very easy to do. And it is expensive to make so please read the entire recipe before beginning. This is my first recipe posting. Be kind. Thank you.

Total Time 4 hours 55 minutes

Prep Time 4 hours

Cook Time 55 minutes

Yield 1 Casserole, 12 serving(s)

Number Of Ingredients 23

• Ingredients

Nutrition Facts : Calories 1308.1, FatContent 87.7, SaturatedFatContent 49, CholesterolContent 446.3, SodiumContent 1285.8, CarbohydrateContent 71, FiberContent 3.5, SugarContent 5, ProteinContent 55