Veal Sausage Recipes

VEAL SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and shallot and cook until translucent, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool completely. Combine the veal and pork fatback with the shallot mixture, red pepper flakes, fennel seeds, coriander, sugar and 1 tablespoon salt in a large bowl. Transfer to a large plastic zip-top bag and refrigerate overnight. At least 30 minutes before grinding the meat, place all of your tools (including the meat grinder parts, stand mixer bowl, stand mixer paddle attachment and sausage stuffer parts) in the freezer to chill. Using your meat grinder, grind the marinated meat mixture twice through the small die plate into the chilled bowl of the stand mixer. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes, then return the mixture to the mixer and beat on medium speed using the chilled paddle attachment, 45 to 60 seconds. Refrigerate until ready to use. Stuff the sausages and, for best results, refrigerate overnight. Before cooking, pierce each sausage several times with a pin. Grill over medium heat until the center registers 150 degrees F, 10 to 12 minutes. (You can also pan-fry or broil the sausages.) Serve with cornichons, mustard and bread. If you don't have time to stuff sausage links, cook the sausage mixture loose in a skillet or form it into patties for grilling or pan-frying.

CANNELLONI OR STUFFED SHELLS WITH VEAL AND SWEET SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
• Meanwhile, heat the EVOO in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the sausage and crumble to very small pieces. Then add the veal, brown and crumble. Add the sage, garlic, onions and some salt and pepper, and cook until tender. Separate the spinach with your fingertips and add to the skillet. Stir to heat through, then deglaze with the wine and remove from the heat.
• In a saucepot over medium heat, melt the butter, whisk in the flour and bring to a bubble. Whisk in the milk and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste. Thicken the sauce to coat the back of a spoon. Taste to adjust the seasoning and remove a ladle of sauce to combine with the egg yolks to temper them. Add the egg yolks to the sauce and stir in half of the fontina cheese and Parmigiano-Reggiano. Reduce the heat to low, or cover to keep warm.
• Salt the water, and cook the pasta to a chewy al dente, 6 to 7 minutes. Then drain and cool. Fill the tubes or shells with the meat filling using small spoon. Cover the bottom of the baking dish with one-quarter of the sauce, then arrange the shells and cover with the remaining sauce, then top with the remaining cheese. Refrigerate or freeze for a make-ahead meal.
• Bake from room temperature at 375 degrees F until brown and bubbly, 30 to 40 minutes.

HOMEMADE BRATWURST (GERMAN PORK & VEAL SAUSAGES)

Steps:

• You will need to have a meat grinder and butcher's twine to prepare this recipe.
• Make sure all visible fat and gristle has been trimmed from the meats.
• Cut meat into very small pieces, then place in a bowl with salt, nutmeg, and mace and mix to combine.
• Put the meat mixture through a very clean meat grinder three times.
• Mix the ground meat mixture with 1/2 cup water.
• Stuff casings, being careful not to tear, tying ends with butcher twine.
• The number and size of sausages you can make will depend on how small or large the casings you purchased are.
• To cook the bratwurst, set sausages into a pot and fill with enough cold water to cover.
• Bring to a boil, then immediately remove from the heat.
• Let stand 3-5 minutes, or until firm.
• Drain water.
• Pour some milk into a bowl and dip each bratwurst into the milk.
• Set dipped bratwurst onto a greased broiler pan and broil or grill until golden brown under low-medium (300-350°F if broiling) heat for about 15-20 minutes or until cooked through.
• Makes enough filling for 4-6 servings.
• They should be stuffed and cooked the same day.

RAVIOLI (DOUGH AND CHOICE OF 4 FILLINGS)

Steps:

• MAKING THE FILLING: Ricotta Filling#1: In a large bowl, blend all filling ingredients together until smooth, set aside filling until needed.
• Ricotta Filling#2: In a large bowl, blend all filling ingredients together until smooth, set aside filling until needed.
• Beef and Spinach Filling: Brown beef and veal in butter with the whole clove of garlic.
• Remove garlic and let meat mixture cool.
• Mix spinach, parsley, eggs, cheese and nutmeg into cooled meat until well blended, set aside filling until needed.
• Sausage Filling: Brown sausage in frying pan, drain fat and allow sausage to cool.
• When sausage has cooled, mix in eggs and cheese, set aside filling until needed.
• MAKING THE RAVIOLI DOUGH: Sift flour and salt together.
• Place flour mixture on a board, making a well in the center of the flour.
• Drop eggs into the flour well, using your hand or a fork, break the yolks and beat eggs slightly.
• Combine the eggs and flour together, gradually adding enough warm water to make a stiff dough.
• Knead dough well, until smooth; cover the dough and let it rest for 15 minutes.
• Cut dough in half and roll each half of the dough out on a floured board, into a very thin sheet (about 1/16 to 1/8 inch thick).
• FILLING THE RAVIOLI: Drop about 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoonfuls of filling about 1 1/2 inches apart all along the dough.
• When the sheet of dough is fully dotted with dabs of filling mixture, cover filling with other sheet of dough.
• Using your fingers, gently press dough between each dab of filling to seal it.
• Cut ravioli into squares with a (zig-zag edged) pastry cutter, or very sharp knife.
• DRYING THE RAVIOLI: Allow ravioli to dry for one hour before cooking.
• COOKING THE RAVIOLI: Drop ravioli into 6 to 8 quarts of boiling, salted water and cook for about 10 to 15 minutes, or until dough is tender.
• Remove cooked ravioli from pot carefully with a skimmer or a large slotted spoon, and drain well.
• Place drained ravioli on a serving platter in layers, alternating layers with your favorite sauce and a sprinkling of grated cheese between each ravioli layer.
• Serve hot.