Swordfish Balls!

(Lettrici e lettori italiani, visitate il meraviglioso blog della sig.na Sara Drilli.)

Greetings from beautiful, snowy Utah, where I am celebrating the new year with my wife, children, and in-laws.

I am distracted from my family, however.  And the reason is this:

And this:

And this:

Polpette, made not from beef or pork or veal but from ... Sicilian swordfish! Caught from the cool, fresh waters of the Tyrrhenian Sea!

I cannot think of anything else but these swordfish balls!  Dear Sara Drilli, on her magnificent blog I Pi@ttini di Drilli, provides the recipe:

400 gr. (c. 1 lb) swordfish, cut fine

a handful of pine nuts

fresh parsley, chopped

breadcrumbs

freshly grated parmigiano

2 eggs

Make them as you would regular meatballs.  Fry them in oil.  And let them "swim" in some tomato sauce for a little while.

Now, how does one make tomato sauce? 

I am often asked this question by Americans, and my answer invariably is: see this webpage:

Tomato Sauce 101

This website, Memorie di Angelina (http://memoriadiangelina.com), is in my humble opinion the best Italian-American foodblog. In terms of content, authenticity, and the clarity of the explanations, Memorie di Angelina has no equal.  Its author is Frank Fariello.  You will be hearing more about Mr. Fariello in Pensieri Meridionali -- I have much more to say about him.  For now all I will say is: had I discovered Memorie before starting Pensieri, I would never have started Pensieri.

Now, go read Tomato Sauce 101. For these swordfish balls, you can use either "Sauce #1," "Sauce #2," or "Sauce #3."

Respectful thanks to both Saridda and Frank.  And Buon Anno a tuttiquanti!