Tuscan Meatloaf

The Spicy Olive takes an all-American favorite on a European vacation!

2 thick slices of ciabatta bread
1 lb. lean ground beef
1 lb. ground pork
.25 lb. prosciutto, chopped
.5 c Parmesan cheese, grated
.25 c. chopped parsley
2 large eggs
.25 c. The Spicy Olive Tuscan Herb Extra Virgin Olive Oil
.5 c The Spicy Olive Sherry Balsamic Vinegar
Two 14-oz. cans diced tomatoes

Tear the bread into large pieces and soak in milk. Squeeze to remove the excess milk and combine in a large bowl with the beef, pork, prosciutto, Parmesan, parsley and eggs. Season with salt and pepper, then mix with your hands.

Shape the meat into a ball, place on a rimless, slightly oiled baking sheet. Preheat the oven to 325F. Heat the oil in a roasting dish over moderately high heat. Slide the meatloaf into the roasting dish and cook until the bottom is browned and crisp. Ass the Sherry Balsamic Vinegar and cook for 5 minutes, until slightly reduced. Add tomato sauce and cover meatloaf with foil and bake for 40 minutes.

Transfer the meatloaf to a board and cover loosely with foil. Place the roasting dish over moderate heat, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom and side of the pan. COok until the sauce thickens. Cut the meatloaf and serve with the tomato sauce.

Beef Pot Roast

3 tablespoons The Spicy Olive Empeltre Extra Virgin Olive Oil
4 lbs. beef, tied into a neat shape
1 onion, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped,
1 carrot, chopped
2 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
.75 c. The Spicy Olive Traditional Balsamic Vinegar
1.5 c. beef broth
1 Roma tomato, chopped
Fresh thyme sprigs

Preheat the oven to 275F. Heat a heavy frying pan over high heat and add the oil. When it just begins to smoke, add the beef and brown well on all sides.

Combine the extra oil, onion, celery and carrot in a large oven-safe pot and cook over low heat until the vegetables are soft. Add the garlic and cook one minute more. Put the meat and juices on the vegetables. Remove any excess fat from the frying pan but leave in brown bits.

Add the Traditional Balsamic Vinegar to the pan and deglaze, our this over the meat in the casserole dish. Add the stock, tomato, and thyme. Season with salt and pepper. Cook in the oven for 3 hours, basting with liquid from time to time. The dish should cook at a very gentle simmer.

When the meat is tender, remove it to a cutting board. Reduce the liquid in the pan to a slightly thickened pouring consistency. Slice the meat thickly, pour a few tablespoons of the sauce and serve with mashed or boiled potatoes.

Schinco

Sometimes called ‘stinco’ by young children, this dish is a specialty of Trieste, Italy.

1/4 cup of  The Spicy Olive Wild Mushroom & Sage Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 red onion, chopped
3 veal hind shanks
6 anchovies, drained
4 large cloves garlic
6 sage leaves
1/2 cup of  The Spicy Olive Sherry Balsamic Vinegar
2 c. veal stock or broth

Combine the oil and onion in an oven-safe pot and cook over moderate heat until the onion softens. Add the shanks and turn the heat up to brown thoroughly, about 15 minutes. Remove the shanks and keep them warm.

Remove the charred onions from the pot, add anchovies, garlic and sage to the pot and pour in the Sherry Balsamic Vinegar. Bring all to a boil scraping the browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Return the veal to the pot and braise in the oven at 275 degrees F, for 1 hour. Turn the meat over and cook for another hour, until the meat is very tender.

Spaghetti alla Carbonara

An Italian Classic

2 large eggs
.5 c freshly grated parmesan cheese
.33 c Spicy Olive Tuscan Herb EVOO
2 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 fresh red chilies
.25 lb. pancetta, chopped
1 lb. spaghetti

Combine the eggs and parmesan and whisk until smooth. Combine the oil, garlic, chilies and pancetta in a frying pan and cook over low heat until most of the fat is released. Keep the garlic at a very pale color. Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti in plenty of salted, boiling water until al dente. Drain and turn the pasta into a heated bowl. Remove the chilies from the frying pan and pour the hot contents of the pan over the pasta. Then add the eggs and cheese. Add some of the pasta cooking water if necessary to moisten. Toss well and serve immediately.

Linguine with Asparagus and Shrimp

1 lb. fresh linguine pasta
1 lb. fresh thin asparagus, sliced into 1-inch pieces
1/4 cup Milanese Gremolata Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 lb. medium fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 shallot, sliced thin
.5 c dry white wine

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook according to the package directions. Meanwhile, heat the Milanese Gremolata olive oil in a large skillet.

Sauté the asparagus  for 5 until tender.  Add shrimp, shallot and dry white wine. Increase the heat and cook for about 2 to 3 minutes until all is cooked. Toss with the pasta or just top the pasta and serve with freshly ground pepper.

Cheesy Tortelloni with Sauteed Vegetables

1 garlic clove chopped
3/4 lb.  cremini mushrooms, sliced thick
1 lb. mixed summer squash (zucchini and yellow squash), quartered
1/4 cup Wild Mushroom and Sage Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 lb. fresh or frozen cheese tortelloni
1/3 cup grated Parmesan
2 tbsp snipped chives

Bring a large pot of water to boil (drizzle a few drops of olive oil into it to keep pasta from sticking). Heat the Wild Mushroom and Sage Extra Virgin Olive Oil in a deep skillet. Sauté the vegetables and mushrooms over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes. Cover and keep warm.

Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook according to package directions. Toss the pasta in with the mushrooms and vegetables, then sprinkle with chives and Parmesan.

A Spicy Olive Christmas

We hope you had a very Merry Christmas with your friends and family! And we can’t wait to hear about the ways you used our products to spice up your favorite foods this holiday. Here’s some of what we had…





For the salad, we used Persian Lime Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Pomegranate Quince White Balsamic Vinegar to dress baby field greens topped with feta cheese and pomegranate seeds.




For the main course, we made beef tenderloin, potatoes, and asparagus. The beef tenderloin was marinated with Tuscan Herb and Garlic extra virgin olive oils and rubbed with Bologna  Seasonella Salt Mix. Then it was cooked in the oven at 425F until it reached an internal temperature of 150F.

The potatoes were cubed and sprinkled with 1/4c Tuscan Herb Olive Oil and the Seasonella Sea Salt Blend. After placing the potatoes in the oven for 40 minutes at 425F, they come out browned and with a touch of crispiness.

Finally, the asparagus was coated in Garlic olive oil, sea salt and pepper and roasted in the oven.





This whole meal just needs the Tuscan Herb extra virgin olive oil, Seasonella sea salt blend as well as the Persian Lime extra virgin olive oil and Pomegranate Quince balsamic vinegar for the salad dressing. It was festive and delightful!