Polpette di Tacchino

By LeeBoruchow

Large turkey meatballs. Don't over do it on the sauce - you might be tempted to make a big Americanized soupy mess with this, but remember the key here is balance.

Ingredients

• 4 cups day-old bread, cut into 1" cubes
• 2 pounds ground turkey
• 4 oz prosciutto, 1/8" dice
• 8 oz sweet Italian sausage (pork or turkey), casing removed
• 3 large eggs
• 1/4 cup grated parmigiano-reggiano
• 1/4 cup grated pecorino romano, plus 1/4 cup
• 1/2 cup finely chopped Italian parsley, plus 1/4 cup
• Several gratings nutmeg
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• 2 cups Basic Tomato Sauce
• 1/2 cup dry white wine

Details

Servings 6

Preparation

Step 1

In a large bowl add turkey, prosciutto, sausage, eggs, Parmigiano, 1/4 cup pecorino, 1/2 cup parsley, nutmeg and 1/4 cup of olive oil. Soak the bread in water for 5 minutes, squeeze by hand to wring excess water, and add to turkey mixture. Mix the meat lightly with your hands and season with salt and pepper. Form the mixture into 3" balls. Place the balls on a sheet tray, cover and chill for 1 hour in the refrigerator.

In a large, heavy-bottomed saute pan, heat the remaining 1/4 cup of oil to almost smoking and brown the meatballs in the oil on all sides. Remove meatballs and drain out the oil. Add the tomato sauce and the wine to the pan, then add the meatballs back. Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer for 30 minutes.

Transfer to a bowl and sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 each of pecorino and parsley.