Veal Spiedini - Rolled, Skewered, and Grilled Delight
Recipe provided by Don Pintabona
Difficulty: Easy
Servings: 6 as an appetizer, or 12 when served alongside other dishes
Total time: 30 minutes
Preparation: 20 minutes
Cooking: 10 minutes
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 pounds veal leg cutlets, thinly sliced and pounded, about 12 inches long each (11 cutlets)
- 6 tablespoons whipped butter, softened at room temperature
- 1/2 cup plain Italian bread crumbs
- 1/4 cup chopped onion
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup chopped parsley leaves
- 1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
- 6 ounces grated cacciocavallo cheese
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 36 fresh bay leaves (dry bay leaves can be used as an alternative)
- 2 large red onions, peeled, cut into wedges, and leaves separated
- 12 bamboo skewers, each 8 inches long, soaked in water beforehand
Instructions
- Lay the pounded veal cutlets flat on a clean cutting board.
- Slice each cutlet horizontally into thirds, creating three pieces approximately 4 inches long from each cutlet. Season each piece with salt and pepper, then spread about 1/2 teaspoon of softened whipped butter evenly over each slice.
- In a bowl, combine the bread crumbs, chopped onion, minced garlic, parsley, and both types of grated cheese. Season generously with cracked black pepper and mix thoroughly.
- Pour olive oil over the bread crumb blend to moisten it, then use your hands to fold and integrate the oil into the mixture well.
- Place a heaping tablespoon of the bread crumb mixture onto each veal piece, then roll it up tightly, folding in the edges like a spring roll to encase the filling. Some rolls may be longer; these can be trimmed in half to create uniform sizes. Reserve extra rolls to form an additional skewer.
- Place one fresh bay leaf and one red onion wedge on top of each veal roll. Thread three of these topped rolls onto each skewer, ensuring every skewer carries three bay-leaf-topped rolls with onion wedges.
- Assemble a total of 12 skewers, using extra trimmed rolls to complete.
- Grill the skewers on a pre-oiled, hot grill for about 2 minutes per side, brushing with olive oil again during cooking, and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- If a grill is unavailable, broil the skewers 8 to 10 inches away from the heat source, turning carefully and cooking for 2 minutes on each side until nicely browned.
