Involtini di carne

[spacedlaw]

Something I've cooked tonight for my mother in law, who doesn't eat much meat.
So I've disguised it inside Swiss chard leaves...



To much success.



It goes this way:

We had this in 3 (5 pieces per person) but they are nice and you might want to have this for 2 persons instead.

15 Swiss chard leaves

Filling:
About 300g minced beef
1 sausage
About 2 tablespoons of breadcrumbs
About 2 tablespoons of grated ricotta salata (use whatever cheese you have)
1 medium sized egg.
Nutmeg
Pepper

Some dry white wine
Tomato sauce

Separate the leaves from the stalk and blanch rapidly (20 seconds MAX) in boiling water, dunking them in cold water before putting them on a tea towel to dry off slightly.



Mix the filling bits together. Feel free to add red pepper. I haven't used salt because the sausage meat is already salted as is the cheese but it is really a matter of taste.

Form 15 little cylinders of filling, size depending on the size of the leave you need to stuff.
Fold your leaves around the cylinders so they are completely covered.
Place each parcel with the loose end bits at the bottom in a lightly oiled pan.



You can prepare this for the next day, just keep your pan covered in the fridge.

When you are ready to cook the involtini, just splash a dash of white wine and add good quality tomato sauce on them (not a whole lot - half a litre max). Cook uncovered on a medium flame for at least 20 minutes.
Do NOT stir or otherwise disturb your parcels before you are ready to serve them (with a slotted spoon).