Bobby Flay's Throwdown! (13 page)
Read Bobby Flay's Throwdown! Online
Authors: Bobby Flay
Postscript:
The Collucci brothers closed their diner in Hyannis when their lease ended but have moved on to bigger and better things—Colluccis’ 4 Bros. Bistro in West Yarmouth, Massachusetts. Have no fear: their “Throwdown Meatloaf” has a place of honor on their new menu.
Roasted Vegetable Meatloaf with Balsamic Glaze
SERVES 6
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large zucchini, finely diced
1 red bell pepper, finely diced
1 yellow bell pepper, finely diced
1 small onion, finely diced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
8 ounces ground pork
8 ounces ground veal
1 pound ground beef chuck
1 cup panko (Japanese) bread crumbs
½ cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese
1 cup ketchup
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1.
Preheat the oven to 425°F.
2.
Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over high heat. Add the zucchini, red and yellow bell peppers, onion, and salt and pepper to taste, and cook until almost soft, 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and ¼ teaspoon of the red pepper flakes, and cook for 30 seconds. Remove from the heat and let cool.
3.
Whisk the eggs, parsley, and thyme together in a large bowl. Add the pork, veal, beef, bread crumbs, cheese, ½ cup of the ketchup, the 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, and the cooled vegetables, and mix until just combined. Mold the meatloaf into a 12-inch-long, 6-inch-wide loaf on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
4.
Whisk the remaining ½ cup ketchup, ¼ cup balsamic vinegar, and ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes together in a small bowl, and then brush the mixture over the entire loaf. Bake the meatloaf for 1 to 1¼ hours, until cooked through. Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes before slicing.
Collucci Brothers’ Meatloaf
SERVES 4 TO 6
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 celery stalks, finely chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 pounds 80/20 ground beef
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
Dash of hot sauce, preferably Tabasco
Dash of Worcestershire sauce
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 slices white bread, torn into small pieces and soaked in cold water
½ cup Italian-seasoned dry bread crumbs
½ cup ketchup
1.
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2.
Heat the oil in a medium sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the celery and onion, and sauté until tender, about 7 minutes. Set aside to cool.
3.
In a large bowl, combine the celery mixture, ground beef, eggs, hot sauce, and Worcestershire sauce, and season with salt and pepper. Squeeze the water out of the bread, add the bread to the bowl, and combine. Mix in the dry bread crumbs. Shape into a firm 9 × 6-inch loaf on a rimmed baking sheet. Spread the ketchup over the top, and bake in the oven until cooked through, 45 to 55 minutes.
Name: Delilah Winder
Establishment: Delilah’s Southern Cuisine
Hometown: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Website:
www.delilahwinder.com
Phone: (856) 528-4133
“The experience was over the top, especially to have the opportunity to interact with someone in the industry whom I have adored from afar. And each and every time the segment runs, fans line up for mac and cheese as though it is the last food on the planet. Thanks,
Throwdown!
, for a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
—DELILAH WINDER
I went to Philadelphia so I could go cheese to cheese with mac ‘n’ cheese queen Delilah Winder. Delilah thought that she had been chosen for a television special entitled “America’s Favorite Food” and that Food Network was throwing her a cookbook release party. She had no idea that she would be sharing her spotlight with this surprise guest.
Delilah owns four Delilah’s Southern Cuisine stands in Philly and has built an empire on her soul food dishes, especially that mac and cheese. She combines the traditions of her grandmothers with the artisanal ingredients of a modern chef to create her incredible seven-cheese macaroni and cheese. A local legend in Philadelphia, Delilah and her warm smile, boisterous personality, and delicious soul food grabbed national attention when Oprah Winfrey named her mac and cheese the best in the country. Delilah parlayed that fame into her own cookbook,
Delilah’s Everyday Soul: Southern Cooking with Style.
Delilah’s mac and cheese is not just outrageously good; it’s flat-out outrageous. The recipe calls for seven cheeses (and that’s not including the Velveeta), a dozen eggs, half a pound of butter, and 6 cups of half-and-half. According to her calculations, each serving weighs in at almost 2,000 calories! She doesn’t fear the fat in the slightest, noting that her grandparents lived on the food she now so lovingly prepares, and they lived well into their nineties.
I started my quest for the perfect macaroni and cheese at
the
place to shop for cheese in the Big Apple: Murray’s Cheese. I made my selections: slightly aged fontina, a great-tasting melting cheese; creamy Asiago, which also melts really well; Irish cheddar, for good luck; and sharp American cheddar and imported Parmesan cheese, for lots of flavor.
I take my mac and cheese pretty seriously and brought my game face with me to the test kitchen. Most people’s childhood memories of this dish start and end with elbows and one kind of cheese, typically cheddar or Colby. (And that’s if it didn’t come from a box!) Our macaroni and cheese is decidedly more upscale. Taking my cue from Italian carbonara, my dish is chock-full of pancetta, garlic, and parsley in a five-cheese sauce enriched with egg yolks. I’m putting my five cheeses up against Delilah’s seven. Stephanie, Miriam, and I had just one disagreement this time: I like my macaroni overcooked in my mac and cheese, but Stephanie and Miriam would have none of it. As far as they’re concerned, pasta—no matter how it’s served—should always be cooked al dente.
