Recipe: Savory Meat Roll

Similar idea of a meat roll, our meat roll has a biscuit crust rather than a meat crust, no photo for our recipe up on Food Network - Image by Gio JL via Flickr

From Denny: I just got through watching this Food Network show called Guy's Big Bite and he is quite the entertainer. He also loves calorie monster food! He loves comfort food of all kinds. Though I'm not the heavy meat eater and high calorie consumer he is, I liked this recipe for a few reasons.

One, it's something simple you can easily cook up for a family or a large crowd. Two, you can break down the steps and do them over a few days if you like. It's that kind of recipe that can be interrupted and resumed and still tastes just fine. Three, this recipe is one of those you can change the ingredients from meat savory to vegetarian friendly if you desire.

In the summer heat we don't eat a lot of meat. Why? Meat is harder to digest which means your body heats up hotter and for a longer period of time than if you are eating plant proteins and cheeses. Today I'm going to work on developing a Mexican refried bean version, using the same principles in this recipe, and will get back to you as to how it went! (Sorry, no photo up on their site yet and no video up. Will check back and embed if they do put it up.) Enjoy this killer recipe!

Savory Meat Roll

From: Sarah Simington, Blue Moon Cafe, Baltimore, Maryland

Prep Time: 20 min
Inactive Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 1 hr 0 min
Level: Intermediate
Serves: 7 to 8 rolls plus ends

Ingredients

For the pesto:

1 small bunch fresh basil (about 2 cups packed)

1/2 cup cashews

4 garlic cloves

1/2 cup grated Asiago

Fresh lemon juice, to taste

Salt

1/2 cup olive oil

For the filling:

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

3 pounds country sausage

2 cups shredded mozzarella

2 cups grated Asiago

For the topping:

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 red pepper, diced

1 green pepper, diced

1/2 onion, diced

2 teaspoons granulated garlic

2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

6 Roma tomatoes, diced

10 button mushrooms, sliced

1 cup shredded mozzarella

1 cup grated Asiago

For the biscuit:

5 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for surface and kneading

3 tablespoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 stick cold butter, cubed

2 cups milk

To slather on the biscuit dough when assembling the roll:

1 stick butter, softened

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

To make the pesto: Place all the ingredients in a food processor and process until mixture turns into a smooth paste. Set aside.

To make the filling: In a saute pan over medium heat, add oil and then the sausage. Saute the sausage, breaking it up with a spoon, until it cooks through and it turns golden brown. Cool slightly and drain the fat. Set sausage aside in a bowl. Keep mozzarella and Asiago cheese on standby.

To make the topping: Heat a large saute pan with oil, add the peppers, onion, granulated garlic and Italian seasoning. Cook until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and mushrooms and cook another 5 minutes. Don't overcook the tomatoes. They should retain their shape. Set aside.

To make the biscuit dough: In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the butter and with your fingertips or with a pastry blender blend together until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in milk, using a fork, until the dough comes together. Sprinkle flour on a clean work surface, remove the dough from the bowl and knead several times on the floured surface. Add small amounts of flour, as needed, so that dough will be easy to roll out. Roll the dough out to roughly 15-inches in diameter.

To assemble: (Good thing I proof read these recipes as they forgot to include the obvious for you! Make sure you slather the biscuit dough with the softened butter stick before assembly! The butter will act as a barrier to keep the biscuit dough coating from becoming gooey and help hold the filling properly.)

Sprinkle the top of the dough evenly with the sausage and top with the mozzarella and Asiago. Roll the dough into a log. Cut the ends off to create even edges then cut the log into 7 or 8 pieces, depending on the length of the roll. Place slices (on their side so the spiral design shows facing up) on a baking sheet and press the tops down. Put the ends on the baking sheet and press those tops down. Bake 20 to 30 minutes until biscuits turn golden. Transfer the rolls to a serving platter. Serve topped with the sauteed vegetables and sprinkled with remaining cheese.

This recipe was provided by professional chefs and has been scaled down from a bulk recipe provided by a restaurant. The FN chefs have not tested this recipe, in the proportions indicated, and therefore, we cannot make any representation as to the results.