Spiedini

So Gary and I have been making braciole for a while now. We discovered it while watching Molto Mario one morning. Braciole is made with flank steak. It is a piece of beef that has been tenderized and stuffed- we like to stuff them with Parmesan cheese and parsley and braise them in a tomatoe sauce. We have been known to add cooked carrots or even asparagus. The roll is tied together and braised until very tender.

Spiedini, on the surface seems very similar but they're not! Spiedini is made with eye of round, sliced very thin and then stuffed and rolled but instead of braising we grill them.

This recipe is a traditional Spiedini but I'm sure, like everything else in Italian cooking ingredients can change. A friend of Anna's (Roseanne) taught her how to make spiedini. Anna's family always made braciole. Anna has perfected this recipe!

 Anna's Spiedini

20 slices do eye of round, cut very thinly
20 Julianne slices of caciocavallo
20 Julianne slices of Polish Ham
3 cups of dried Italian bread crumbs (Anna makes them herself- no Progresso for her! She adds Parmesan cheese, basil, oregano)
2 cups of Big boy bread crumbs, seasoned (these are large bread crumbs made from inside of a baguette. She seasons them with basil, oregano and parsley. She lets the bread crumbs sit in her refrigerator for a couple of days before using them.)
~2 cups of EVOO
garlic, crushed
Chopped parsley
Pepper
Mix the big boy bread crumbs with Parmesan cheese, garlic, parsley and pepper and some olive oil just enough to hold the mixture together.
Meanwhile dip each slice of the beef in olive oil and then the bread crumbs. Set aside.
Place a small amount of the bread crumb mixture at the end of the beef round. Place a piece of cheese and a piece of ham on top of the bread crumbs. Add a piece of parsley and a sliver of tomato. Roll the rounds and lay them on parchment paper. You can make these a few weeks in advance.
When you're ready to grill take the spiedini out and bring to room temperature. Skewer one cherry tomato, one spiedini roll, a dried bay leaf, sliver of onion, another spiedini and another cherry tomatoe. Grill the spiedini until browned and cooked through, making sure that the cheese melts.