OssoBucco alla Milanese, Snow and Handel

Wow,  it's been a very busy month and I have managed to neglect, not only my blog but all the blogs that I love and follow!

I started the month of December with a bout of BroncoPneumonia which was an experience that scared the living wits out of me, to say the least.
Within a few weeks we had a school inspection and the following week all the oral and written exams. It was a total roller-coaster. The school has closed now for two weeks and I am sighing the deepest sigh of relief.

The snow has been amazing too and my first experience of  temperatures reaching
below -10.

Yesterday I was fortunate enough to have the most wonderful cultural experience.

A rendition of Handel's 'Messiah' performed amazingly by a fantastic choir and orchestra in beautiful settings!

I did shed a few tears and it was all for free, which made me all the more grateful to be living in a country where music and culture hold such a high place.

I shared my Christmas greetings with all my students as well as plenty of Panetone, chocolate Pandoro and various traditional  sweets.

However, I wanted to share with you a recipe that I cooked a few weeks ago for a dinner party that turned out to be amazing!

I followed Frank Fariello's recipe and served it with Creamy Parmeggiano Mash and Peas fried with pancetta and onions.

It was gorgeous and a total success with all the guests.

Here's Frank's recipe with my pictures of the successful attempt:

OSSOBUCO ALLA MILANESE

There are numerous versions of ossobuco, but most Milanese recipes call for making a simple soffritto of chopped onion sautéed in butter (or butter and oil).

Once the onion is well softened and translucent, place rounds of veal shank, lightly floured and trimmed  and brown nicely on both sides. (Some recipes call for removing the onion to prevent its browning, but I find that simply shifting it to the edge of the pot works fine.)

Then splash the veal shanks with wine, scraping up the sucs that will have formed at the bottom of the pot, lower the heat and cover. (Most modern recipes call for some chopped or puréed tomatoes—which I like to add—but the original recipe is in bianco.)

Simmer until quite tender, generally anywhere between 1-1/2 and 2 hours or more, depending on the age and quality of the veal. Add wine or water from time to time if necessary to prevent the pot from drying out, although some veal actually gives off quite a bit of liquid as it braises.

And the final product. It may not look like much but it was melt in your mouth stuff! Thank you so much Frank!

 

I still have many of my students recipes to share with you and will try to post as much as possible over the holidays!

Stay tuned!