Cappone Farcito al Forno
(Stuffed Roast Capon)
Andrea Apuzzo
Andrea’s
Metairie LA

Andrea Apuzzo’s Stuffed Capon is authentically Italian — just like Andrea (that’s pronounced An-DRAY-ah) himself. He serves it with his tortellini; recipes for the capon, stuffing, sauce, tortellini, and tortellini stuffing follow. This dish can turn any day into a holiday.

Serves 8

1 capon, approximately 5 pounds

Stuffing
1/2 pound chicken livers
1/2 pound pork loin, cubed
10 ounces bulk Italian sausage
2 ounces Pancetta (Italian bacon), roughly chopped (substitute: bacon)
1/2 pound boneless chicken breast, skinned and roughly chopped
1 bunch Italian parsley, roughly chopped
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
1 clove garlic
3 slices white bread, crusts removed
1 teaspoon chopped marjoram
Pinch of fresh rosemary
1 egg
2 ounces Vecchia Romagna (Italian brandy)
1 ounce Marsala wine
3 ounces dry vermouth
2 ounces olive oil

Sauce
1 carrot
1 garlic clove
1 small onion
2 celery stalks, strings removed
1 fresh sage leaf
1 rosemary sprig, stemmed
2 bay leaves
2 ounces vegetable oil
Capon bones (reserved from above)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 ounces dry white wine
1 tablespoon flour
2 cups chicken stock
1 quart water
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Tortellini
1 pound semolina or all-purpose flour
4 eggs
1/4 teaspoon olive oil
Pinch of salt
1/2 pound ground veal
1/2 pound ground beef
2 carrots, peeled and finely diced
1 small onion, finely diced
2 stalks celery, strings removed, finely diced
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon Ricotta cheese
1/2 pound Mozzarella cheese, shredded
Pinch of ground nutmeg
Pinch of oregano
1 teaspoon chopped fresh basil (or 1/2 teaspoon dried basil)
Egg wash: 1 egg, mixed slightly with 1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 ounces unsalted butter
2 ounces grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage (or 1/2 teaspoon dried sage)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

To debone the capon: Boning the capon is tricky and must be done while leaving the bird whole for stuffing. Begin by chopping off the wing tips, leaving only the drummettes. Next, working inside the tail cavity of the capon, run a knife between the backbone and the flesh, peeling the meat back as you cut. Follow close to the bone and be careful not to pierce the skin. Small tears can be patched with pork fat during roasting. Turn the capon over and bone the breast in the same manner, scraping and slicing the meat away from the bone. Working inside the neck cavity, bone the wishbone-wing structure. Pull out the carcass, then bone the thighs. Leave in the drumstick bones. Set the bones, giblets, and neck aside for the sauce.

To make the stuffing: Combine the chicken liver, pork loin, sausage, Pancetta, chicken breast, parsley, Parmesan, onion, garlic, bread, marjoram, and rosemary. Run the mixture through a food grinder with a coarse blade, then add the egg, brandy, Marsala, and vermouth. Season with salt and pepper.

To roast the capon: Preheat the oven to 400 F. Fill the cavity of the capon with the stuffing and sew the opening closed. Truss the wings together. To hold the shape of the bird during roasting, secure crosswise with string three times. Heat 2 ounces of olive oil in the roasting pan. Set the stuffed capon in the pan, breast side up, and cover the wing tips with foil. Roast at 400 F for 30 minutes, then lower the temperature to 325 F and roast for 2 hours, or to an internal temperature of 180 F. Baste with pan drippings every 15 minutes.

To make the sauce: Cut the carrot, garlic, onion, and celery into fine dice. Mince the sage, rosemary leaves, and bay leaves. Combine to form a mirepoix. Chop the bones and carcass. Brown in the vegetable oil in a pot on top of the stove. Add the mirepoix and cook until lightly browned. Stir in the tomato paste and white wine. Bring to a boil and reduce by one-fourth in volume. Sprinkle in the flour. Stir in the chicken stock and 1 quart of water. Season with salt and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer 1 hour and 15 minutes. Strain and reduce by half.

Make a mound of the flour, then create a well in the top. Break the eggs into the well. Add the olive oil and salt. Gently work the liquid ingredients into the flour, adding a few drops of water as necessary. Knead the dough until it forms a smooth elastic ball, adding more water or flour as necessary. Sprinkle the dough with all-purpose flour, cover with a slightly damp towel, and let rest for 10 to 15 minutes.

To make the filling for the tortellini, place the veal, beef, carrots, onion, celery, tomato paste, cheeses, nutmeg, oregano, and basil in a food processor. Pulse the machine just until the mixture is thoroughly combined. Set aside while rolling the pasta.

Cut the ball of dough into 4 or 5 small pieces. Feed each piece through a pasta machine, starting at the thickest setting, according to manufacturer’s directions. Dust with flour and re-roll the strip several times, adjusting the machine to form very thin sheets of pasta. Cut into 2-3/4-inch rounds with a cookie cutter or biscuit cutter. Brush the pasta with the egg wash and place a scant teaspoon of filling in the center of each. Fold the circles in half and press along the edge to seal. Form into the traditional shape by folding the pasta around your finger like a ring, overlapping the ends. Press the ends together, flipping up the edges like a hat brim. Place on a tray dusted with flour.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Put the tortellini in the water and cook 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender. Drain, reserving 1/4 cup of the water. Melt the butter in a large saute pan and add the tortellini, Parmesan cheese, sage, and pasta cooking water. Season with salt and pepper and toss to coat.

To serve: Remove the roast capon from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes before slicing. Stir the pan drippings into the sauce. Serve slices of capon on a pool of sauce accompanied by tortellini. Garnish with fresh sage and rosemary.

Nage of Dover Sole Riveria
Jean Banchet
Riveria Restaurant
Atlanta, Georgia

A nage is a dish that begins with cooking shellfish or fish in stock, then serving it with the same stock: it is ‚“swimming,‚” the origin of the name. Jean Banchet simmers delicate sole in mussel stock with fennel julienne. The sole comes to the table on a bed of pasta and surrounded by the mussels. The cooking stock is transformed into a creamy sauce for the dish.

Serves 4

Mussel Stock
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 pound fresh mussels
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon peeled and chopped shallots
1‚ÅÑ4 cup fish stock (see Basics)
1‚ÅÑ4 cup dry white wine
1‚ÅÑ4 cup dry vermouth
1 teaspoon saffron

Sole
1‚ÅÑ4 cup olive oil
2 fennel bulbs, trimmed and cut into 1‚ÅÑ16-inch julienne
2 fresh 18-ounce Dover sole, boned and filleted
Salt and pepper to taste

Sauce
1‚ÅÑ4 cup heavy cream
1‚ÅÑ4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Pasta
8 ounces fresh or dried black linguini pasta
1‚ÅÑ2 cup (1 stick) butter
Salt and pepper to taste

Garnish
8 outer leaves from fennel bulbs
8 medium mushroom caps
2 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and diced

To make the mussel stock: Carefully pick through the mussels, discarding any that do not smell sweet. Scrape off the beards. In a medium saucepan melt the butter over medium heat, stir in the shallots, and cook slowly until limp. Then add the parsley, mussels, fish stock, white wine, vermouth, and saffron. Cover the pan and shake to mix together the ingredients. Raise the heat to high, cover the pan, and let the mussels steam 3 to 4 minutes or just until the mussels open. Remove the pan from the heat, and strain the mussel stock into another pan. Reserve the mussels separately.

To prepare sole: In a medium saute pan heat the olive oil over medium heat, add the fennel, and cook slowly for 2 to 3 minutes or until the fennel is tender and wilted. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Pat the fish dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Lightly butter a flameproof baking dish that will just hold the fish. Place the fillets in the baking dish, sprinkle with the julienned fennel, and roll up the fillets. Fasten with a toothpick.

Pour in enough of the mussel stock to come two-thirds of the way up the fillets. Lay buttered waxed paper or parchment paper over the fish and set the dish over medium heat just until the liquid starts to bubble. Place in the preheated oven and cook 8 to 10 minutes or until the skin has turned an opaque white. Remove the pan from the oven, drain the fish cooking juices into a saucepan, and keep the fish warm while finishing the sauce.

To make the sauce: Set the pan with the fish cooking juices over medium-high heat, and reduce by three-fourths. Add the cream and bring to a boil. Simmer until reduced by half. Remove from the heat and pour into a blender. Add the olive oil, salt, and pepper, and blend well.

To prepare the pasta: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook about 5 minutes until al dente. Drain and return the pasta to the warm saucepan. Add the butter, salt, and pepper and mix well.

To prepare the garnishes: Remove 8 of the large outer leaves from the fennel bulbs. Trim and clean the mushroom caps. Place a medium saucepan over high heat, fill with salted water, and bring to a boil. Add the fennel leaves, and cook until softened. Remove the leaves from the water with a long-handled strainer. Add the mushroom caps to the water and cook 1 to 2 minutes or until softened.

To serve: Remove the mussels from their shells. Place the pasta in the center of 4 serving dishes. Arrange 2 fennel leaves around the pasta and put 1 sole fillet in each leaf. Garnish each plate with the mussels and spoon the sauce over the mussels and sole. Top each sole fillet with a mushroom cap and 1 tablespoon of the diced tomatoes.