I can promise you this, if you ask your Italian grandmother how to make a braciole it won’t be this way……….but, I can also promise you this, after you make and eat my Braciole you won’t care, you’ll just be happy you tried it!! (Just so you know its pronounced bra-zhole, you might even see it spelled Brajole)
There are a lot of different cuts of meat you can use for Braciole, I like to use Eye Round because of the uniform size, it makes the slices pretty much all the same. But you can use Top Round if you like. I have also made them out of good sirloin and if I truly wanted to impress even Filet Mignon.
I couldn’t find a small eye round, so I ended up with a filet, my wife has never had my Braciole, so I thought it would be nice to make it extra special! (some stores sell braciole meat already cut thin and pounded, feel free to use this if you can find it!)
Braciole
1 1/2 lbs of eye round trimmed
8 oz Ricotta Cheese
1/2 c Grated Romano Cheese
1 Large Egg
4 oz of baby spinach
1/4 cup roasted red peppers (optional)
season to taste:
granulated garlic
granulated onion
black pepper
egg wash (beaten egg and milk)
flour (1 cup with salt and pepper)
Seasoned bread crumbs (2 cups)
Sauce:
10 oz sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup Sambuca
1/2 cup grated Romano cheese
3 cups Marinara
re-season to tastes
Before we start on the steak, we are first going to mix our stuffing. Start with the Ricotta cheese, then add your baby spinach, roasted pepper, egg, and cheese. Mix well and season with salt and pepper to taste. Place the mixture in the refrigerator while you prepare your meat.
First you want to trim any excess fat, grizzle from what ever cut of meat you do use. Now slice the meat, against the grain, just like you would cut it if it was a roast. You are going to pound out these slices, and while there isn’t any rule for the size, its always nice for them to be consistent. The slice shouldn’t be much more than a 1/4 of an inch. (of course if your market carries thinly sliced pounded Braciole meat, by all means skip this step!!) For this recipe, we are going to make 2 braciole’s for each of our guests and lets plan on serving 4. So we want about a 1 1/2 pounds of trimmed meat. (at my restaurant one braciole would fill the plate, so size is up to you)
Now that your meat is sliced, you need to use a meat hammer and pound it thin, this will also help tenderized the meat, your meat hammer should have a ridged side that helps with the tenderizing. As you pound the steaks, don’t just pound straight down. You need to hold the piece and almost push it outwards as you hit the meat trying to stretch it as you pound. Once all your pieces are pounded you can begin to stuff them with our ricotta mixture.
While stuffing the steak, don’t be afraid to fill them nicely, but not so much than they cannot be rolled properly, as you tuck in the meat you want to try and close the ends in. If they don’t close all the way, its not the end of the world, some of the cheese mixture will ooze out during baking, but you can always push some back in, or just serve it with the braciole. I like to shape the braciole into small football shapes. Once they are all formed we need to getting our breading station ready. One is flour seasoned with salt and pepper, egg wash ( beaten egg with milk), and seasoned bread crumbs (your own or store bought). First dredge the steak in the seasoned flour (this is a good time to help reshape the braciole, the flour will help you close it up a little more), then in the egg wash, and then in the seasoned bread crumbs. Repeat the process until all the braciole are breaded.
At this time you want to get your oven ready, preheat it to 350 degrees. Now get out a saute pan, let it get hot, add some olive oil to the pan and add your braciole. Don’t be in a hurry to turn them over, you want a nice crust on the braciole and good colour. Turn your braciole over and allow the other side to brown, repeat the process to the sides if you can. (Stacking them along side of each other when you do the sides will help keep them upright). Place all your finished braciole’s in your baking dish and place in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes.
While the braciole is in the oven, we will begin our sauce.
We are going to assume you have made your marinara and your ready to finish your sauce. We need sliced mushrooms for this sauce, Those of you that have an aversion to fungus may leave them out….but please try it with the mushrooms first before you decide you don’t like them….you may be surprised. Add your sliced mushrooms, into a saute pan with a little olive oil, browning on both sides until partly done, add your splash of Sambuca(trust me on this one, just use the Sambuca) and allow alcohol to burn off. Now add your marinara, a nice handful of grated Romano cheese and re season with garlic, onion and black pepper. Allow this sauce to simmer briefly, then turn off heat until the braciole are ready to be served. Before serving add one more shot of Sambuca to enhance the taste…if the sauce has thickened up to much you can add just a little water.
Dress your serving dish with some of the sauce, then place the braciole on the dish and top with the remaining sauce……your guests will come back to the serving dish to get more sauce!!
Ask Chef Dennis
Blogging
It’s that time of week again, and I have a few things to share with you this week. Over the last few weeks we have talked about all of the Foodporn sights that are out there, and we also talked about the importance of driving traffic to your blog. Now I understand that not everyone cares about driving traffic to their site, and that’s ok. But if you are interested in having more folks stop by your blog, continue reading.
I had mentioned a new sight last week, FoodBeast and as it turns out a few of our friends checked it out and had their posts featured on Foodbeast! So Check it out!
Now I have another sight for, its Food Porn Daily, or as they like to say click, drool, repeat! I can vouch for this sight because they featured my buffalo chicken wings from last week, and let me tell you it drove quite a bit of traffic to my site! They only pick one image a day to feature, so if your the lucky one, watch out!! Check it out, and tell Amanda who runs the site that Chef Dennis sent you!
Now here’s a little pet peeve of mine, I love to leave comments for as many of my friends as I can, but sometimes I am slowed down by having to enter a word verification. If you use blogspot as your blogging domain, they have an excellent spam filter and you really don’t need to use the word verification……please! You can set it so that they will not publish any comment left on any post older than 14 days, and it seems that is where the spammers concentrate their efforts. Blog Spot will recognize a lot of spam as spam, but if its not sure they will leave it for moderation. I very rarely have any spam get through their new filter.
It may not seem like much, but if your leaving 20 or 30 comments in a sitting, it can really slow things up.
Also the dreaded waiting for moderation before being published……again the spam filter gets rid of almost everything non related, and how often do you really get a comment you don’t post?
Again your call, just my take on things!
Do You Tweet?
If you love to tweet, I may have just the tool for you. It’s called Tweetdeck Check it out, its free and kind of fun…..although I really haven’t quite gotten on board with understanding everything on Twitter, but I had fun playing with Tweetdeck!
Photo Editors
last week we talked about photo editing and some of the different programs that you can use. Now it just so happens that one of our friends Trish from Dish by Trish announced last week that her husband had developed a new photo editing program (that she uses) called SharpShot. Here’s the best part, its free!!
So stop by and check out the the program, you may be surprised!
But what ever program you do decide on using, just start using one. You’ll be happy you did!
Foodbuzz
now you know we couldn’t get through an Ask Chef Dennis, with out having a few questions about the site we love, but can be frustrating at times…..Foodbuzz. Now that being said, yes Chef Dennis does get frustrated on occasion by Foodbuzz, but then he stops and remembers he wouldn’t have met most of you wonderful people without it.
I am still getting questions about linking your website, this is mostly for newbies, but if you go into edit your profile (which is on your profile page) in the personalize your profile section there is a place to add your official website.
While your there why not fill in some more of the info, add a picture of yourself, and link to facebook and twitter. Get the most our of your account.
Another question I had was how to add your newest posts to your foodbuzz page. Thats fairly simple to do. Again go to your home page, and right next to that tab is your profile tab, click on it and all of your posts listed will be hot….when you hover over them you will see Swap or Remove, when you click on Swap a list of your posts will come up. Now here is how it works. The list goes by buzz, so if its new and has a 45 then you need to go past all of the higher buzzed posts until you find it, your newest posts will be at the very end. When you find the post you want to swap with, click on it and it will say Replace, click on that and your new post is up. Now once you set up your page, you just have to add the new post, and swap out the others. The good thing is , once your post has been up for awhile and gets buzzed the score will be higher, you may fine that all of your new posts will show up in a row, and makes it easier to just swap them out and keep your page current. Swapping images also works for your post header, you can add 1-3 images on it.
Last but not least, I talked about having some Foodbuzz mini festivals this summer, and It looks like the one in North Carolina is moving along well. The location will now be Winston-Salem and that looks like a pretty good spot to draw from the neighboring states. I am also still trying to set one up for Philadelphia.
If you may be able to attend either or can help with either please let me know. I have some speakers and demo’s lined up for the North Carolina get together already, so lets see a show of hands who would like to come!! Just let me know if it interest you ….please.
So that’s about it for today my friends, the temperature has dropped seriously in the last few hours and we are supposed to be down to about 15 tonite with windchills to 0…..some fun.
So where ever you are, stay warm and stay safe! Thanks for stopping by and remember
Woo hoo..first commenter! 🙂
That braciole looks like perfection on a platter!
My pet peeve is that verification with those jumbled up or color co-ordinated numbers – cant stand them and I get them wrong each time…Makes me feel retarded 🙂
another great post as usual.
I've left a comment also last time about attending the festivals, both in NC and in PA but I'd like to know an appropriate date so i know for sure if I can come. Thanks
I ALWAYS look forward to your posts just so I can stare at your pictures….hehe. They are always superb!
As for your dish, it looks so savory. I think that sauce can be used in many of my other recipes too.
Looking at the pictures of the braciole is making me hundry – looks delicious!
I've never seen braciole before…it looks delicious (your photos are great!) and the sauce sounds wonderful.
Thanks for the tip about foodbeast too — I'm going there next…theresa
ps word verification is a pet peeve of mine too 😉
You are so busy…I am exhausted! I love the braciole and will try it. I have my aunt's recipe, so will it will be fun to compare the two recipes!
Oh Dennis, The Braciole looks amazing. I do love ricotta so…even added some to a frittata tonight! Looks great. I love that you are organizing a festival, too bad I won't be able to be there but I am sure everyone will keep me up to date on the happenings! Thank you for sharing your wisdom and insight!
Oh, and one more question for you: Do you even have time to sleep these days? 😉
Lori
I love Food Porn Daily! Will have to check out FoodBeast now.
That braciole looks sooooo good. Thank you for including the pronunciation.
Chef Dennis….
This looks delicious…mmmmm as usual your photography skill truly makes me salivate just drooling on the photos of your bra-zhole :)) I know it will taste good for sure ! Thanks Chef for sharing the recipe . I hope to make this for the family one day when I manage to gather all the ingredients together to cook this dish 🙂
I find the word verification thing do really slow down our task on leaving comments on other fellow bloggers' blogs. Like if I have to leave comments on all my foodbuzz friends…you can imagine how tiring it would be when I have 1000over friends all over the world 🙂
Have a nice day Chef,
Elin
When I saw this on my google reader…I was intrigued. I've never heard of braciole before. Needless to say, I was drooling by the end of your post. From the meat to the sauce, it all looks "Chef Dennis good"! Thanks for always making me smile with your words, wisdom photos and recipes. I hope that your Wednesday is full of joy!
I've never heard of Braciole, but it looks delicious! I just might have to brave something non-dessert and give it a try. 🙂 Thank you for always sharing recipes that are out of my cooking comfort zone!
Still awaiting the day that foodbuzz makes becoming a publisher worthwhile for a Canadian (I know many bloggers up here are signed up– but I just don't feel it's nearly worth it at this point for several reasons). Maybe they'll even give us our own little foodie fest! A girl can dream…
Chef your pictures are gorgeous. I can just taste the food looking at it. I like how detailed your instructions are too.
Kristi
Love your version of the braciole, so vibrant in color, and looks like a "work of art" on a platter!
Beautiful, and delicious. The Sicilian way is putting hard boiled eggs in the rolls, but every region in Italy has different versions of this dish.
Thanks for sharing!
I have made braciole only once, a long time ago, when I was truly a culinary novice. Looking at your photos, I would love to give them another try, even if they are not the recipe made by Nonna:)
Great photo!
My question might be dumb, but what does swapping your posts accomplish? My posts feed automatically, and if I want the photo from the post to appear, I have to upload it separately, which is repetitive. Therefore I avoid it, being that time is scarce around here.
All in all I have no clue how Foodbuzz functions. I am just grateful for all the people and blogs I have encountered through it.
Thanks for your explanations – one of these days I might get it:)
First the Braciole (i wish i could pronouce it right!) looks super tasty! Crispy beef and juicy sauce win me over every time.
Second, wow..thanks for the tips and info Dennis. You're awesome! I will think about a word verification. I had spam before without the verification but maybe a blogspot has changed.
I wish my grandmother had shown be Braciole! Never heard of it but now I'm enlightened. Looks incredible. As ever, great post and thanks for the super blogging tips!
Thanks, Dennis, for the proper pronunciation of braciole…good to know! And, as always, such an informative post. A friend asked me to remove my word verification…and I haven't ever gotten spam. And I had no clue about swapping posts…I continue to learn something here 🙂
You've definitely talked me into trying your braciole – actually, I think the picture alone would have done it. Thanks for all the great links.
I will have to make braciole. Never had but looks delish and love anything Italian! Thanks for sharing all of your tips too!
Braciole is one of those dishes that always reminds me of my youth. My grandma and my mom made it all the time…. though none of us dredged the meat in flour and egg… mmmmmmmmmmmmm, I'm sure it turns a fabulous dish into something even more wonderful!! I'll have to try that next time I make it!
Wow that looks so delicious! I have never had Braciole before, I might have to try it now!
Another Foodbuzz lesson I didn't know about was swapping and replacing. Sigh. Now wondering what else I don't know about the site. Your braciole looks incredible. I would love to attend any food festival but being 2000+ miles away makes for quite a journey. Depending on when the Philly festival would be I might be able to attend. Such fun!
That sauce recipe sounds divine. I'm already tasting ladled over a big bowl of steaming pasta.
Thank you for another great recipe and post! The braciolie looks divine!
A huge huge thank you for the word verification thing. I often comment from my smart phone which is slow to begin with. I often jump to another page before it has a chance to load and find that my comment was lost.
Oh, another tip that I discovered is when commenting use the name/url as your identity instead of your google account. That way when someone clicks on your name they are taken directly to your blog instead of your blogger profile.
The braciole looks delicious! Its something I've never tried, wonder why? My entire family would LOVE it!! Gotta make one soon!
I totally agree on the word verification, I HATE THOSE THINGS! Thanks for you tips Chef Dennis!
I have never had braciolie but it does look and sound amazing from the pics and ingredients.
I do hate the word verification too. I am not even sure if half my comments post because I am likely to close a window and move on after I hit submit. Not wait to see if theres more steps. >.>
When is the one in NC?
The braciole looks divine.. and you're right about the word verification. I find the same problem, I may just go back and alter my settings myself!
Magnífico. Saludos
YUM! Looks delicious! Congrats on all the traffic to your site! Well deserved of course!
Wonderful! Your braciolie looks so comforting and perfect for the season!
Thanks for all your advice on blogging/photography, Dennis! It's certainly very helpful!!
Dennis, wow, I have some seriously mouth watering memories of braciole having dated a guy from a very italian north jersey town. Loads of connections to 'Nonna's who cooked up a storm of heaven. Had some of the best braciole of my life during that period.
That said, your braciole looks amazing! I've never tried it breaded, but now I must! My mouth is honestly watering for this at 9am!
Finally, right there with you on the word verification.
Chef, the braciole looks so delicious. I am drooling all over my work computer which is definitely not good.
Chef Dennis I am in love with the recipe, especially the sauce.
Thanks 🙂
Chef D,
Were you reading my mind, I made braciole last night, but I used a flank steak. I think your was way prettier though. Love all your tips as usual. I guess I need to start submitting photos. I wish I could go to the mini festival. I hate those word vers. too! Have a great week.
-Gina-
The braciole looks like a serious upgrade from what so many of us grew up with.
When I moved I lost my extremely expensive cleaver and meat pounder in what we have come to refer to as "box 13" Just vanished. I still haven't replaced them! That said… this braciole is a great reason to do it. Using a hammer or a rubber mallet just doesn't do the trick! Great looking dish too, Dennis!
Oh wow, is that braciole a sight to behold! You're right, it's not my grandmother's braciole…or my mother's even! (Lol!) Looks better than any version I've had yet! 🙂
Oh yum! I haven't had braciole in ages! I think the last time was, in fact, at my Nana's! Thanks for the motivation to remedy that!
When you wake up to minus 12 degrees F (not the windchill the air), you will understand that nothing looks more welcoming than your braciole. This will be done before February is over – at least I have something to look forward to (braciole and more daylight). Grand post – filled with helpful hints. Just reading the ingredient list nourished my spirit.
Chef, you never cease to amaze me and make me incredibly hungry! 🙂
Thank you for your take on commenting. I had comment moderation on for older posts thinking, for some reason, that I would overlook a comment if it came in on an older post. I like to respond to each one personally, if I can. I realized that since they all come to my email that it was foolish to have this on and it was only annoying people who would like to comment. I have taken it off now. Your post reinforces that I made the right decision. Thank you!! 🙂
Am drooling at your amazing photo! It looks great. Had removed my word verification a long time ago, so far I had no problem with that. Thanks for sharing other useful tips too…
The braciole is soooo tempting!! unfortunately, I am over this month's dose of red meat =( so i'll have to wait until next month to try that. The captchas are on my hate list too…but approving the comments, I can vouch for becoz, for eg. today morning I had 9 comments to approve and 8 of them were spam that were undetected by blogger and this aint my first time!!! another thing is some comments might go unnoticed because you dont get notifications of comments unless you set for approval!
This may not be the traditional Braciole….but wow does it look incredible. Lovely job and a wonderful post.
As always, your Ask Dennis series is full of wonderful information. And way to go on your foodbuzz festival planning. it is so awesome that you're taking that on! good luck with the cold spell coming through. stay warm. cheers.
Wow. I love my grandmother's braciole…but might just have to try this…
Dennis, this is just great timing. I have a homemade ricotta cheese recipe waiting for just the right recipe to use it in. You've just now reminded me that I've been wanting to try braciole for the longest time! Thanks for sharing this scrumptious dish – It looks just delicious!
this dish has my mouth watering like crazy!! i've actually never had braciolie so i'd love to try it sometime soon!
hmm, i think i'm one of those people who uses the word verification… i'll have to look into that! =P
also, thanks so much for letting me know about the pears – they should be plenty ripe by the weekend!
I wish I would have seen your photo on Food Porn Daily! I hardly ever go there but I have been checking out the food porn sites and I like to browse them a lot and see my peers photos!
Thank you for all your help, advice and teaching us new things through your cooking.
Great photos, mouthwatering dish! Your wife is a very lucky woman, which I'm sure she knows! Thanks for sharing this one.
Now that's an interesting take on braciole but I do love it Chef, thanks for sharing your version. Great advice, as always 🙂
Love this recipe chef, just love it. I bet the flavor is very rich and nice. Thanks for all your tips again..I feel like at this point I would love to try all these things but I just can't fit one more thing into my day! ha
have a nice one Chef.
I am in NC! And would love to help with and attend the NC festival. Please let me know how I can be involved!
Hi Dennis-What great information you shared! I read every word!! And your braciole looks FABULOUS! I would love to eat a plate of that and a nice glass of vino rosso…mmm:)
"Those of you that have an aversion to fungus may leave them out….but please try it with the mushrooms first before you decide you don't like them….you may be surprised" Sorry, I had to repeat it because this TOTALLY cracked me up!!!! I normally would go sans mushrooms but because I read this I feel like I have to give it a shot first, for you 🙂 Can I share this quote on facebook and give you credit? Have a great night Chef Dennis!
What a great post with a bit more than expected! The braciole is fabulous and one of my favorite Italian dishes. It just has that comfort level that does it for me every time.
This looks so good. I have never made it before but I think I remember it from an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond. Thank you for the FB info. I still have so much to learn and you are very generous in sharing your knowledge. We all appreciate it (and you) so much.
Your Braciole looks fantastic! And great tips as always, I will try and check out your links 🙂
I've never even tasted braciole, but your photo is making me want to make it very soon!
Wow…this is definitely the usually braciolie recipe but I like it! It's seem more easily done! Thanks for another great recipe!
Great use of a cut of meat that may be overlooked by some. I will have to substitute the Sambuca for something else though. Bad teenage memories, me and Sambuca. Any suggestions?
Your braciole looks fantastic and I'm going to try it for certain! Thanks for sharing your recipe!
Oh my goodness, Chef, your braciole looks mouth-watering delicious! It's not the same as the one I ate growing up, but, variety is what makes life interesting, yes?
Your braciole sounds amazing…stuffed with all my favorites.
Thank you for the great tips. Will check out some of the sites:)
That braciole looks so good. Your version is unique, but definitely delicious sounding!!
I haven't had braciole in years! I'll be sure to try your method. 🙂
Also, I'm totally with you on the word verification! Such an unnecessary hassle!
Thank you so much, Dennis, for the info about Swapping out a photo on the foodbuzz profile page. I've been wanting to do that for some time, and had no idea how to do it. Your explanation made it really simple! 🙂
My Italian in-laws make this often. yes different style but, similar concept. Awesome. I love food that triggers fond food memories.
As always, thanks.
Velva
The Braciole looks so tasty! Seems like just the thing I'd like to tuck into right now.
Thank you for your comment on my blog, good to know I'm not the only one who finds rude staff annoying!
For all my love of all things (and food) Italians, I 've never made braciole. Your photos certainly make it more than tempting. Right now, I'm baking long eggplants slices I spread with ricotta. I'll let you know!
Your advice is always so spot on, and always so welcome.
wow this looks wonderful! mmm i think i will have to make it this very week! thank you for sharing your lovely recipe.
http://www.icyviolets.blogspot.com
Your photography managed to capture every sumptuous nook and cranny of the Braciole, it MUST be as delish as it looks. I always enjoy reading your posts and ACD topics – it's akin to lounging with the Sunday paper… Bravo!
this looks delicious lovely picture
thank you for the post
I've never eaten braciole before, thanks for the pronunciation, but yours sure looks good. Like others, I learn something new everyday. I just love FoodBuzz and your pictures!
More wonderful suggestions. I agree. The Word Verification thing gets a bit old.
This recipe looks so rustic… absolutely fantastic, Dennis! Hope you have a great weekend!
Your braciole looks terrific indeed! An excellent dish, love it!
I love the Ask Chef Dennis posts! 🙂 I can vouch for Trish's husband's photo editor.. I tried it and loved it… I've been working with it for the past week.
¡Que bueno todo! Me encanta.
Saludos.
Drooling. Severely. Great guests and post!
Sooo, did YOU actually eat the braciole? 🙂
The mini foodbuzz thing will be here in W-S? Did you find someone else to help coordinate it with you or am I still helping? You went quiet on me about that.
Chef Dennis you always make me hungry and my mouth water, shame on you 😉 I've never had the pleasure of trying Braciole but it sounds like I've been missing out.
Your tips are always wonderful and so useful. I recently grudgingly turned on my comments moderator because of all the spam. But I left the word verification because Blogger suggested it. Now readying your thoughts you convinced me to turn off the word verification, Thank you cause I hate them too:) Happy V-Day!
I would be interested in North Carolina or Philadelphia. Since you have things lined up for Winston Salem, you must have a date in mind. Could you please announce it (even tentatively) so people could begin to think/plan. I can't commit until I know timing. I don't live in either city, but I'd be happy to help remotely…or once on site.
oh Dennis I love Braciole, it's been a few years since I've made it, I love your version!!! The last time I made it I used a flank steak that I had the butcher tenderize, layered fresh herbs, breadcrumbs and a few different cheeses on top and rolled it up like a log, tied it, seared it in white wine, and then slow cooked in in marinara for about an hour and a half or so…..when sliced it was spiraled with all that goodness and came out great….I forgot how much I love that dish….I love how you've used the spinach and red peppers…and ricotta!!! As usual you have given us a plateful of valuable advice and I thank you…truly….congrats on the buffalo wing feature, WELL DESERVED!!!!!!! I look so forward to reading your posts….it always brings me such rest amidst my usually chaotic day
Chef, that looks seriously good! The golden and crunchy exterior, the sauce, the herbs … wish I had some.
As always…amazing information. And that braciole looks delicious!
Saw your photo on Food Porn Daily, congrats! I think I need to work on photography skills before I venture off in that direction. And I think I need a better camera too!
I have been wondering how to freshen up my foodbuzz page with newer posts. Thanks!
Hi Dennis, Just stopping by to say thanks for participating in the YBR and sorry it took me so long to stop by.
Linked over from The Culinary Lens little menu linky…I always love your blog and hearing all about your adventures with your girls at the school. I don’t post as much as I should, but I will from now on! Love love love this gorgeous Italian dish…
Dear Chef Dennis,
Your braciole looks ravishing! (I’m sure the lovely ladies on The Culinary Lens will be discussing your recipe!) Thanks, too, for the tips on posting, comments, etc. — I’ve always favored “moderating” so I can reply before approving, but your sentiments made sense. I’ll give your suggestions some serious consideration.
Also, I’ll check out Food Beast et al. Thanks for a GREAT post!
Do you deliver? 😉 …. I’d never heard of braciole before, but yours looks unbelievably good to this beef lover! It would hit the spot on this cold damp Seattle day.
hi Kath
this is not a traditional braciole but one that will definitely please the palate, especially with that sambuca red sauce!
Thanks for the great advice! I really appreciate your detailed instructions…both about the practicalites of food blogging and on the braciole. This looks delicious and unique, I’ll be trying it soon.
The recipe sounds great and I would like to make it using filet mignon. Should I get the butcher to slice for me? or can I do it myself – slice thick and pound? And, lastly, I’m assuming it does not have to cook long in the sauce considering it’s filet mignon.
Thanks!
PS I realize this is a late post!
hi Patty
I actually used filet for this version I made for my wife. You can cut fairly thin and then pound it out carefully. You don’t really need to cook it in the sauce, I lightly bread mine and saute them and let them sit in a 300 degree oven while I make the sauce and then just top the brachiole with the sauce.
Thanks so much- that really helps!
Hi Chef – Well, we don’t have an Italian grandmother but you are right after we made your Braciole we were just happy we tried it!! My wife and I teamed up again to try another one of your recipes. The beef was nice and tender and it was a great match with the cheese and spinach. Followed your advice to hold the beef while pounding to stretch but couldn’t make an oval slice round. The next one I butterflied and came up with a circle. Just big enough for a pixie football. The Sambuca added a great flavor to the marinara sauce and was nice on some flat noodles with the Braciole. This was not my grandmothers; it was delicious. To top it off, I made your chocolate Mousse for desert, can’t wait to try it. Cheers!
Hi John
sounds like you’re really enjoying some good meals and I’m very happy that you let me know. Pounding out the beef does take a little practice, but the shape is not all that important as long as you can form them with the stuffing and they don’t unroll.
I can’t wait to hear how you enjoyed the mousse!
Cheers
Dennis