Braised Veal Stew with Butternut Squash
This recipe comes from the Jewish community of Venice, Italy, and was adapted from Joyce Goldstein’s Cucina Ebraica. Warm, hearty, and comforting, you can make the stew the day before and reheat it before serving. Marsala and butternut squash lend a sweet note to the dish, balancing the piney aroma of the rosemary. The recipe doubles easily.
SERVES 4 TO 6
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 butternut squash (about 1½ pounds), halved, seeds and fibers removed, peeled, and cut into ½-inch cubes
3 medium carrots, peeled and roughly chopped (about ½ cup)
2 medium onions, chopped (about 1½ cups)
2 garlic cloves, minced (about 2 teaspoons)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
2 pounds veal shoulder, trimmed and cut into 1½-inch cubes
Kosher salt
1 cup marsala or other sweet wine
1½ cups chicken or vegetable stock, plus more if needed
Freshly ground black pepper
In a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pan with a tight lid, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the squash and carrots and cook, stirring occasionally, until the squash starts to brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a plate and set aside.
In the same pan, warm 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over low heat. Add the onions, garlic, and rosemary and sauté until tender and translucent, about 8 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a plate and set aside.
Warm the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in the same pan over high heat. Pat the meat dry and, working in batches, add to the very hot pot and brown on all sides, about 5 minutes per side. Sprinkle with salt, add the wine, and let it bubble up.
Add the squash, onions, and the stock to cover and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer gently until the meat is tender, 1 to 1¼ hours. If the stew begins to dry out, you can add additional stock. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper and serve.
Pan Roasted Veal with Sage
In memory of Marcella Hazan, who sadly passed away in 2013 and is rightly credited with bringing classic Italian cooking to America, we’re including our adaptation of her roasted veal. Jewish American cooks adopted her as our nonna because her husband, Victor, was proudly Italian, Jewish, and American. Marcella’s recipes teach us that high-quality ingredients cooked in the simplest ways can result in the most delicious meals. Traditionally, Italian households didn’t have an oven and therefore many of their classic dishes are cooked stovetop, as here. If you are very lucky, there will be some leftovers, which will make the most amazing sandwiches. One idea: Stack slices of the veal with our Caramelized Saffron Onions (here), tomatoes, and arugula on whole-wheat bread or our Rye Bread (here), and schmear with a mustard mayonnaise.
NOTE: This recipe doubles very well. Make sure to get two equal-size roasts and not one large piece.
SERVES 4 TO 5
1 (2½-to-3-pound) tightly rolled and tied veal shoulder roast, no more than 3 inches in diameter
3 medium garlic cloves, thinly sliced
6 fresh sage leaves
About ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
4 medium shallots, finely chopped (about ¼ cup)
4 fresh rosemary sprigs
1 bay leaf
1⅓ cups dry white wine
6 ounces baby carrots
Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley or tarragon, for garnish
Pat the roast dry with paper towels. Tuck the garlic slices into the roast wherever you can find an opening. Tuck 4 sage leaves under the string. Season with the pepper.
In an enamel pot or heavy-bottomed saucepan into which the meat just fits, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the meat and sear on all sides until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Don’t worry if the sage leaves darken. Season with the salt and transfer the meat to a large plate.
Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil to the pan and heat over medium heat. Add the shallots and sauté until they begin to color, about 5 minutes. Add the remaining 2 sage leaves, the rosemary sprigs, bay leaf, and wine and bring to a boil.
Return the meat to the pan. Reduce the heat to a very slow simmer and add the carrots. Set the cover slightly askew and braise, turning the meat from time to time, until the roast is fork-tender, about 1 hour and 15 minutes. If the pan seems dry while the meat is cooking, add 1 to 2 tablespoons of water.
Transfer the meat to a cutting board and let it rest at least 10 minutes. There should be some pan sauce; if there isn’t, add ¼ to ¹⁄³ cup water, deglaze the pan over high heat, and reduce until thick. Discard the rosemary sprigs and bay leaf. Cut the roast into slices about ¹⁄8 inch thick and place on a platter with the carrots alongside. Drizzle the pan sauce over the veal, garnish with parsley, and pass additional sauce to serve.
Iraqi Lamb Burgers with Mint Pesto
As the three of us have Ashkenazi backgrounds, we find it exciting to draw upon Sephardic food traditions and flavors in our cooking. A burger infused with Middle Eastern spices—mint, cinnamon, and allspice—and with added pine nuts is a nice break from a traditional American hamburger. We serve the burgers on toasted pita bread with our wonderful mint pesto and Caramelized Saffron Onions (here), which amplifies the regional flavor profile. The pesto lasts in an airtight container, refrigerated, for up to 2 weeks.
Mint Pesto
3 cups packed fresh mint leaves
1¼ cups olive oil
1 to 2 teaspoons honey
4 garlic cloves, peeled
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
Burgers
6 tablespoons pine nuts
2 pounds ground lamb
½ cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
½ cup finely chopped fresh mint leaves
1 medium onion, finely chopped (about ½ cup)
2 to 3 teaspoons kosher salt
1½ teaspoons ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ cup ice water
2 tablespoons bread crumbs or matzah meal
6 pita breads
To make the pesto, combine all the ingredients in a food processor and purée. Transfer to a small bowl and set aside.
In a small pan over medium-low heat, toast the pine nuts, watching carefully and stirring, until lightly colored, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.
To make the burgers, preheat the broiler or lightly oil a grill pan. In a medium bowl, combine the pine nuts, lamb, parsley, mint, onion, salt, allspice, and cinnamon. Knead well by hand, squeezing the meat through your fingers. Add the ice water and continue mixing by hand. Add the bread crumbs and knead well again until the meat is very soft and all the ingredients are well blended, about 3 minutes.
Shape the meat into six 2½-inch patties by rolling it between your palms into 1-to-1½-inch-diameter balls and then flattening them.
Transfer the patties to a broiling pan and broil, turning once, until brown and cooked through, 2 to 4 minutes per side. Alternatively, grill over high heat for 2 to 4 minutes per side. Remove from the heat and set on a serving plate.
Before serving, warm the pitas in foil in a 300°F oven for a few minutes. Serve the burgers with the pita, mint pesto, and saffron caramelized onions.