Italian Spedini

½ lb. lean ground beef
½ lb. ground pork.
1 tsp. finely chopped parsley.
½ clove of garlic
1 loaf white bread
3 large eggs
2 cups of Italian Seasoned Breadcrumbs
8 ounces Precious Mozzarella Whole Piece
½ cup of olive oil
3 tbsp. Parmesan cheese, grated
Salt and pepper to taste
One small package of 9" size wooden skewers

Stack 4 slices of bread at a time on a cutting board and cut the bread crusts off. Take the bread crusts and tear into small pieces, enough to make one cup. Cut the bread without the crust into 1” squares and set aside for later use. You will need to cut more 1” squares as you assemble the spedini. Eventually you may slice up most of the loaf of bread for this recipe.

In a medium size bowl mix the ground beef and ground pork, 1 egg, bread pieces (take 1 cup of bread pieces and soak in water and squeeze dry), 1 tbsp parmesan cheese, ½ clove of garlic, 1 tsp of finely chopped parsley, salt and pepper to taste. This is easier if mixed with your hands. Shape the meat mixture into 1" inch size meatballs. At this stage you may want to fry a small piece of the meatball mixture to taste and adjust seasonings.

Cut the block of mozzarella cheese in to 1”x 1” x ¼” size cubes.

Set all the ingredients on the counter or table in assembly line fashion.

Put 2 eggs a flat bowl. Using a fork or whisk, blend together until evenly mixed. You can add some milk to the eggs to ensure sufficient egg wash for the spedini.

Pour 2 cups dry breadcrumbs in a separate pan and add 2 tbsp of grated parmesan cheese.

Using the 9” skewers, start with the meatball, then bread, then cheese. Alternate until skewer is filled and set aside. End the skewer with a meatball. Cut additional squares of bread and cheese until all the meatballs are used up.

Dredge each spedini in the egg mixture and immediately dip into the bread crumbs. Set the breaded spedini’s on another plate. After all the Spedini”s are dipped and breadcrumb coated, place them on a flat cookie sheet or pan. Drizzle them with olive oil.

Bake at 375 until brown and the meatball is cooked, remove from pan and place on a plate.

Enjoy this delightful recipe as an appetizer. You can put them on toothpicks, putting one meatball, one bread square and one cheese square. Otherwise, these are great for a dinner with a nice salad and your favorite dressing.

Buon Appetito!

Salvatore and Pauline Libutti
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