Palotte Cacio E Ova (Bread And Cheese Balls)
A classic dish from Abruzzo, Italy, these "bread and cheese balls" repurpose stale bread (either white, brown or sourdough) and leftover cheese for a delicious snack to serve at aperitivo hour!
Ingredients
- 300 g grated pecorino cheese (or any type of hard or semi-hard cheese you have at hand)
- 4 eggs
- 200 g bread (crust removed)
- 1 garlic clove (chopped)
- 1 small bunch of fresh basil
- 1 small bunch of fresh parsley
- 1 red pepper
- 1 litre vegetable oil (for frying)
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 200 g tomato sauce
- 100 ml milk (optional)
- Salt and pepper (to taste)
Instructions
- Take the crust-less bread and chop it roughly into small cubes. If the bread is too dry, soak it in milk, and squeeze out the excess liquid before creating the balls.
- Mix the chopped bread with chopped parsley, garlic, 4 eggs and cheese. Do not add too much salt, as the pecorino cheese is already salty. Mix and knead well by hands until smooth. Then form small balls with the mixture. Traditionally, the balls should not be larger than 3 cm.
- As an accompaniment, chop the pepper, roast it with oil and a pinch of salt and add it to the tomato sauce.
- Heat the vegetable oil and then fry the cheese balls for 2-3 minutes until they are perfectly-golden, at a temperature of 160 degrees.
- Drain the balls from the oil, and dry on kitchen paper.
- Spread a generous spoonful of tomato sauce with pepper on the centre of the plate. Gently place the cheese balls on the top.
- Garnish with extra cheese if desired and a fresh Basil leaf. Drizzle extra virgin olive oil on top and serve!