Tag Archives: Ricotta cheesecake

April 26, 2012

 

Suggested Dinner Menu For Entertaining: 

Appetizer: Marinated Roasted Red Peppers, Artichoke Hearts, Olives, Celery Sticks, Fresh Mozzarella Slices and Bread Sticks.

Entree: Italian Pot Roast; Spaghetti and Green Salad.

Dessert: Sicilian Ricotta Cheesecake.

How To Make Pot Roast:

I developed this recipe for family get-togethers and special occasions many years ago. Gradually, through the years, I worked on the ingredients until they came together the way I wanted this recipe to taste.  This dish became a family favorite and was requested for birthdays, christenings, and parties. Pot roast is an excellent choice for a company dinner because it can be made several days ahead of time.  The roast actually tastes better a day or two later and preparing the main dish ahead of time, gives the host time to prepare other menu items.

The Italian name for this dish is Stracotto, a recipe common in most regions of Northern and Central Italy. “Stracotto” means overcooked in Italian. The important part of the recipe is the slow cooking of the meat at a very low temperature to tenderize even the toughest cut of beef. The recipe starts with a soffritto of onion, carrot, celery, and pancetta, finely diced, and continues with the addition of red wine and sometimes fresh tomato or tomato paste. Pancetta, Italian bacon, can be substituted with un-smoked bacon, but most delis carry pancetta now.

In order to keep this recipe healthy, it is important to choose the right cut of beef – one that is lean and benefits from long, slow cooking.  Many pot roast recipes call for a chuck roast but this is a very fatty piece of meat. Chuck cut can be used if the fat can be removed from the sauce after the meat is chilled.  For the Italian pot roast, the sauce contains a vegetable base and removing the fat would be difficult. This sauce is served with the meat and over a side course of pasta.  As you can see in the photo below, the chuck roast contains a lot of fat.

I have found that any one of the following roasts are perfect for this recipe because they are a solid, lean  piece of meat, that does not break up or shred during the long cooking process.

 

 

 

Italian Pot Roast

Serves 8

Ingredients

• 4 pound rump, eye of the round or top round beef roast
• 1 teaspoon salt plus more to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• Flour for coating meat
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 ounce pancetta, diced
• 1 large carrot, diced (about 1 cup)
• 1 large celery stalk, diced (about 1 cup)
• 1 medium onion, diced (1 cup)
• 2 garlic cloves, finely minced
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
• 2 cups medium-bodied Italian red wine
• 2 cups low sodium beef broth
• 1 28-32 ounce container Italian plum tomatoes
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 lb. spaghetti

Directions

Trim most of the fat from the meat. Pat dry with paper towels. Season generously with the salt and pepper and lightly rub with all- purpose flour. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large, heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot,  but not smoking, add the roast and brown on all sides, 10-12 minutes. Transfer the meat to a platter.

Reduce the heat to medium and heat 1 tablespoon olive oil.  Add the pancetta, carrot, celery, and onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, 10-12 minutes. Add the garlic, parsley, tomato paste and rosemary and stir about 1 minute.

Add the wine and stir to incorporate the vegetables.  Add the beef stock, the tomatoes, the bay leaf and the roast with any juices accumulated on the plate.  Bring to a boil. Cover the pot, reduce the heat, and simmer on very low, turning and basting the meat every half hour or so, until the meat is very tender, about 4 hours.  (You can also put the pot into a 300°F oven and turn the roast every hour.)

Boil the water for the spaghetti.

Remove the meat from the pot and place it on a cutting board, covered loosely with aluminum foil to rest for 10 minutes. Taste and adjust sauce seasoning, remove bay leaf and keep the sauce hot.

Cook the spaghetti.

Cut the meat into thick slices and place in a deep serving dish. Spoon some of the sauce over the meat and reserve the rest to add to the cooked pasta.

You can certainly serve this roast with mashed potatoes or polenta, but my family likes spaghetti with this dinner.

Sicilian Ricotta Cheesecake

Ingredients

• Butter for the pan
• 2 pounds ricotta cheese, drained overnight in the refrigerator
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour, plus extra for the pan
• 6 eggs
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  

  Sicilian Ricotta Cheesecake

• 1 1/2 teaspoons orange zest
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 teaspoons Amaretto liqueur or rum
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.  Set rack in the middle of the oven. Butter and flour a 9 1/2 inch springform pan, and tap out excess flour.
2. Place the ricotta in a large mixing bowl, and stir it as smooth as possible with a rubber spatula. Stir the sugar and flour together and thoroughly mix into the ricotta. Stir in the eggs 1 at a time. Blend in the vanilla, cinnamon, orange and lemon zest, Amaretto and salt. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
3. Bake in the center of the oven for about 1 1/2 hours to 1 3/4 hours, until a light golden color. Make sure the center is fairly firm, and the point of a sharp knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. It will sink slightly as it cools. Cover, and chill overnight in the refrigerator. Remove from pan before serving.

Related articles

• Pot Roast craving means fall (goerie.com)
• Pass the Pot Roast: Your Sunday Supper Meal Plan (artofmanliness.com)

Posted by Jovina Coughlin in artichokes, Beef, carrots, celery, cheesecake, Desserts, Dinner, Healthy Italian Cooking, Italian Cuisine, onion, Pasta, peppers, Pot Roast, Sauces, Spaghetti, tomatoes, Vegetables, Wine Tags: Beef, dinner party, healthy, Italian cuisine, pasta, pot roast, Ricotta cheesecake