Fresh Mozarella Smoked (Again)

[scarbelly]

We are in the process of making some meatballs and one of the ingredients in our recipe is smoked mozarella

Here it is ready to go in the smoker after sitting uncovered in the fridge for about 3 hours to get a skin on the outside so we dont loose all the moisture during the smoke

Here is how I set up the smoker. The AMS is loaded with apple and lit on both ends. The pan is filled with ice about half way. If it were not 89 outside I dont even use the ice most of the time

Here is the cheese after 3 hours. It is really nice and smokey and the best part is we can eat it right away not like the hard cheeses where you need to seal and wait for a couple of weeks to ripen.

 One of these will be cut into 1" pieces and stuffed into meatballs we are making with some italian sausage we made a couple of weeks ago. We will add some veal and a little hamburger to the sausage to make the meatballs then they will go on some home made sourdough rolls for sammies

 

[squirrel]

Fresh mozzarella is my absolute favorite cheese. It's so easy to make it from scratch, then smoke it yourself. That looks yum scarbelly! Also, those meatballs sound awesome too! Can you show us some pics of that? Please?

 

[scarbelly]

I will try to take some pics- we are making them with the grandsons this afternoon and that sometimes gets a little hectic. We have 9 of them so youd think we would have if figured out by now LOL 

 

[nwdave]

Scarbelly, you started it by mentioning all the goodies.  Now, if you were about 850 miles north, you wouldn't need the ice.  We'll be lucky to see 65 or better before next spring.  So, I guess I'm smoking some Mozzarella tomorrow.  Now, if a certain somebody would elaborate on the menu.........

 

[scarbelly]

[h1]Here is the basic recipe [/h1][h1] [/h1][h1]All'Amatriciana with Spicy Smoked Mozzarella Meatballs[/h1]
4 to 6 servings

Serves:
[h2]Ingredients[/h2]concordance-begin[h3]All'Amatriciana Sauce:[/h3]

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 6 ounces pancetta, diced
• 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• Pinch crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 (14-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
• 1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano
•  

[h3]Meatballs:[/h3]

• 1 small (6-ounce) onion, grated
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, plus 1/4 cup
• 2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus 1/4 cup
• 1/3 cup Italian-style bread crumbs
• 1 large egg
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
• 8 ounces ground italian sausage
• 8 ounces ground veal
• 2 ounces smoked mozzarella cheese, cut into 16 (1/2-inch) cubes

concordance-end[h2]Directions[/h2]
For the sauce: In a large heavy skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the pancetta and cook, stirring constantly, until golden brown, about 5 to 7 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the pancetta and reserve. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, and the cooked pancetta. Simmer, uncovered, over medium-low heat until the sauce thickens, about 15 minutes. Stir in the cheese and season with salt and pepper, to taste.

For the meatballs: Position an oven rack in the lower 1/3 of the oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine the onion, 1/2 cup parsley, 2/3 cup Parmesan, bread crumbs, egg, tomato paste, garlic, red pepper flakes, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Add the beef and veal. Using your hands, combine all ingredients gently but thoroughly. Shape the meat mixture into 16 (1 1/2-inch-diameter) meatballs and place on the prepared baking sheet. Make a hole in the center of each meatball and place a cube of mozzarella inside. Reform the meatball so that the mozzarella is completely covered with the meat mixture. Bake the meatballs for 15 minutes until cooked through.

 

[bmudd14474]

I cant wait to see the meatballs. The Mozarella looks great. I want to try and make some. 

 

[scarbelly]

Here are some pics for ya - we have 3 grandkids here today helping cook so things are hectic and I did not get all the pics I wanted

Here is the sourdough waiting to rise - it did not do well due to being very humid today

Stuffing the cheese into the meatballs

Here is one rolled up

Here is the finished tray ready to go into the oven

Here are the baked rolls ready for sammies - they did not rise enought to suit us but they were still good

And here is the sammie well worth the effort. Sorry for the blurry pic, taken by one of the kids

 

[bmudd14474]

Danm those look good. Ill take 1 please.

 

[chefrob]

nice lookin sammies scar..........and the mozz you brought was used to top some stuffed peppers, delish!

btw - what happened to yer fat pudgy hands.......the new ones are sexy!!!!!!!

 

[eman]

Fresh mozzarella is my absolute favorite cheese. It's so easy to make it from scratch, then smoke it yourself. That looks yum scarbelly! Also, those meatballs sound awesome too! Can you show us some pics of that? Please?

How about a wiki on how to make mozzarella??? My better half keeps saying she wants to try cheese making..

 

[squirrel]

Will do eman! I'll be making some this week!

Scarbelly! Dang they look awesome! Thanks for the recipe, I'm printing it out for future use!

 

[bowtieracin]

i second the motion on the cheese recipe that sounds awesome to make it up!! please thank you

 

[mballi3011]

Man oh Man I could use one of those sammies now. That bread looks really good to. I bet it could soak up all my tears from last nights game. The Gators and the RoLL over our As... Tide. Now I do wish one of you'll would make a how to thread so I could make some myself. I havebben wanting to make some of that for years now.

 

[scarbelly]

Will do eman! I'll be making some this week!

Scarbelly! Dang they look awesome! Thanks for the recipe, I'm printing it out for future use!

Where do you get your supplies from? We are thinking of adding a cheese making session to our 4H class
 

 

[distre]

Great post as always Scarbelly,

                 Props on your q-view.

             I'm going to have to try your recipes. Makes my mouth water. Don't you just love the AMNS. Great tool for the smoker. Thanks for the great post!

 

[miamirick]

looks like fun day   but really, blaming a blurry pic on the grandkids?

 

[squirrel]

Scarbelly - I get my supplies from here http://www.cheesemaking.com/  I usually get my fresh milk locally, but if you can't do that then use store bought, but here's the thing, some milks are just pasteurized, others are ultra-pasteurized you don't want the ultra. It has been heated to such a high temp that it kills all the good bacteria. I'll be making cheese soon and will post it.

 

[scarbelly]

Thanks Cheryl. I contacted these folks earlier this year to see if they would give me some guidance with the kids and got a kind of lame response. If you say they are good I will talk to the parents and place an order. The 30 minute moz kit sounds really good for us to use

 

[squirrel]

Sorry to hear that Scar, I've never spoken to anyone directly, only ordered and used her products. Good shipping and products are great too. I think that 30 min. kit could be a good thing for kids. I have used her 30 min. method and it works, but it really does take more like an hour. Maybe she can turn it out in 30 because she's done it alot, but I don't mind it taking longer. I picking up fresh milk today so maybe this afternoon I'll do some Mozz. Good luck!

 

[scarbelly]

Is the kit enough work for more than one kid at a time? I was thinking of doing one kit for two kids and one for us as a demo. Obviously I would do a test run or two first so we can get past the first time errors

Thanks

Gary