Recipes by Zola - Salami Roll-ups

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Salami Roll-ups

Zola Gorgon

The Birthday Gift...

I've been meaning to tell you about the incredibly romantic birthday gift my husband bought for me.

It's a meat tenderizer.

Meat tenderizer, you scream! How can a meat tenderizer be a romantic gift?

Here's the story...

While I'm making dinner, my husband usually sits across the counter from me. I'm inside the kitchen and he's on the outer edge acting as "supervisor". If he's finished with his daily Sudoku "fix" (he's really good at it), then he'll volunteer to cut vegetables. We're both watching the news, or one of those Hollywood gossip shows, to keep us entertained while I cook. When people ask if he cooks, I often refer to him my sous chef. He's great at prep work and he's a wizard at emptying the dishwasher. Both things I appreciate very much.

One day, not long ago, he was watching me flatten some chicken breasts. Instead of a meat tenderizer I was gently pounding them with the edge of a full can of soup.

"Why are you not using your meat tenderizer to squish the chicken?" he inquired. "Because my meat tenderizer is at the Madison house", I answered. "I learned that Plan B for a meat tenderizer can be a full can. When we were on vacation and I wanted to tenderize meat, and I had no meat tenderizer, so, I improvised. A can of soup or chicken broth can come in really handy. So when we set up our apartment in Chicago, I never bought a meat tenderizer. I just use a can of something".

"Why?" he inquired "Why haven't you gotten yourself a meat tenderizer?". "Because they are so big", I countered. "I don't want to have to store one here. I have so little storage I didn't want to use up space with something I don't use very often. It's okay. I like my can".

And that was the end of that conversation. We continued to make dinner and he let the subject drop.

When he handed me my birthday gift I about dropped it. The compact box was very heavy, especially considering how small it was. I had no idea what was in there.

To my surprise, I opened the box to find the coolest meat tenderizer I had ever seen. It was only about 5" high. It had a flat side, and if you unscrewed that part, the picky side was opposite. It was ingenious. It was small and it was a beautiful, shiny, chrome. It looked more like an art deco sculpture than it did a meat tenderizer. I giggled and squirmed with delight. I realized he had internalized our conversation, set his sights on a meat tenderizer, got on the Internet to do his research and then found one that suited all of my specifications. What a guy.

That meat tenderizer is going down as one of my favorite birthday gifts of all times. It also might double as a burglar killer if I ever need one!

And in case you are wondering, he bought me another gift too. Something perhaps a bit more on the traditional side. A new digital camera. The camera will come in handy when I want to take pictures of finished dishes for you all to see. Now I just have to figure out how it works. Not so with the meat tenderizer. That one is easy.

With the Super Bowl coming I wanted to offer you something fun to make and serve to all of your football (US-style) fans. The Super Bowl and the Oscars are two of the most, worldwide-watched events on TV in any given year. This year, my hometown team, The Green Bay Packers just got shut out of the Super Bowl. (I was born 26 miles from Green Bay in Appleton). The Packers lost to the Giants. RATS! But I'll be watching the Super Bowl anyway. I can't wait to see the commercials!

This is what I refer to as "Boy Junk Food". Men love these roll ups (and truth be told women do too). They aren't particularly good for you. That's the junk food part, but everything in moderation, right? And in a pinch, I know a lot of guys who do not normally cook, who will venture into making these on their own. You'll see why when you see how easy they are!

Salami Roll-Ups
16 Rolls

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

2 containers of refrigerated crescent rolls (Pillsbury is one brand). Each package will contain 8 rolls
2 Tbl of mustard. I use Grey Poupon but you can use any flavor of mustard that suits your fancy.
2 Tbl of mayo. You can use regular mayo, sandwich spread or light mayo. Your choice.
16 slices of salami. You choose this too. My favorites are Genoa and Cotto. Just make sure it's sliced thinly so it will roll up. If you don't like salami you can use proscuitto.
16 slices of cheese. Swiss is my first choice but I've used cheddar too. Thin slices so they will roll too.

Open your crescent rolls and separate them into the triangles. Place the triangles on your work surface so they don't touch each other.

In a small bowl or cup mix your mustard and your mayo. Stir well.

On top of each triangle spread a smear of the mayo/mustard combination. I just use a spoon and spread it with the back of the spoon. Then place your salami on top and your cheese. The salami and cheese will stick over the sides of the dough. No worries. Now, gently roll up your triangles from long side to the short tip. They will encase your salami and cheese. If a little mayo/mustard drizzles out the sides that's okay too.

Now place each salami roll on a clean, ungreased cookie sheet. Make sure they are at least an inch apart because they will "grow" as you bake them.

Bake at 375 degrees for about 13 minutes or until golden brown. Carefully use a spatula to remove them from the cookie sheet and onto your serving platter. Caution people not to immediately dive in lest they fry the top of their mouth with the molten cheese.

These are mucho yummy. Just try not to feel too guilty as you eat them.

Cheers,
Enjoy!
Zola

Send email to Zola at dinnerwithzola@hotmail.com.

This news arrived on: 01/28/2008

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