The Chef: Fulvio Sardelli
The Restaurant: Sardelli Italian Steakhouse in Hollywood
The Dish: Sausage Stuffed Cubanelle Peppers
Ingredients:
6 Cubanelle peppers
4 tsp. olive oil
2 lb. sweet Italian sausage
1 spanish onion, chopped (for stuffing)
2 cloves garlic. minced
2 cups cubed day-old bread
10 leaves fresh sage
1 tsp. fennel seeds
1 tsp. crushed red pepper
½ cup white wine
1 cup Parmesan cheese
1 cup chicken stock (for sauce)
½ cup minced Spanish onion (for sauce)
oil left over from frying the peppers
1 garlic clove, minced (for sauce)
Method of Preparation:
– Cut off the tops of the Cubanelle peppers but make sure the opening at the tops aren’t too wide. Otherwise, the sausage stuffing could fall out when cooking.
– Add olive oil to a pan and get it hot. Add onions, garlic, fennel seeds and crushed red pepper. Sauté for a couple of minutes. Next, take sweet Italian sausage out of casings and add it to the pan. Fry the sausage for about 15 minutes, breaking it up with a spoon. Cook until brown on the bottom of the pan.
– Add white wine, chicken stock and reduce. Stir well, scraping the little bits on the bottom of the pan. Add fresh sage, bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese. Stir well then let it cool.
– Now it’s time to stuff the peppers with the sausage mixture. Use a wooden spoon to pack it down. Wipe each stuffed pepper clean, then put them in a pan with olive oil and fry them slowly on low heat. Turn the peppers until they are light brown on all sides.
– When they’re done, take them out of the pan and set them aside. Keep the residual olive oil in the pan and add chopped onion, garlic, red pepper flakes, tomato sauce, kosher salt, pepper and simmer for several minutes. This makes an oily sauce that’s perfect for stuffed peppers.
To Plate:
Ladle some sauce onto a plate and place a stuffed pepper on top.
Serving suggestion: Chianti
Serves: 6
Sardelli Italian Steakhouse
331 Van Buren Street.
Hollywood, FL 33019
(954) 921-8331
http://sardellis.com