Polpette alla Pratese

Prato is a city very close to Florence, and its kitchen is very easy, based on poor ingredients offered mainly from the countryside. The most famous typical products from Prato are the “mortadella”, celery loaves, the “bozza” (a kind of bread) and the dried figs from Carmignano (a wonderfull town not far from Prato). The dessert are very simple too, based on poor ingredients like eggs, flour and sugar. They are exclusively made in the oven because in the past our great-grandparents used to cook them together with the bread and they had to be good for at least a week! Among them, the most famous are four kinds of cookies: “cantucci”, “amaretti”, “zuccherini” and “sassi” (literally “stones”!). But there are also some famous cakes, such as “berlingozzo” (which is usually prepared for mardi gras) and “mantovana”.

In Prato there is also a good quality meat which comes from the mountains that sorrounded the city.

Ingredients

200 gr veal

100 gr bacon

2 big potatoes

2 spoons of raisin

2 spoons of pine-seeds

4 walnut

4 eggs

parsley

flour

50 gr of butter

olive oil

salt and pepper

ragù sauce      

Directions

Boil the potatoes, peel and mash them. Put the veal in a pan with the butter and cook it for 5 minutes or at least until it gets brown outside. Then mince it accurately together with the shredded bacon.

In a big bowl mix the mashed potaotes, the mixed meat, 2 eggs, minced parsley, wet raisin, pine-seeds and minced walnuts.

Add salt and pepper and mix well. Using your hands, divide in small parts and shape rounded loaves. Roll them in the flour and then in the other eggs previously beaten and fry them in hot oil. Finally, put the loaves in a pan with the ragù sauce and cook them for some minutes.