Veal

(INVOLTINI DI VITELLO CON PECORINO E ACETO BALSAMIC)

Grill the veal while the noodles boil so both are ready at the same time.

In this classic French dish, a veal roast is sliced and layered with a combination of soubise (onion) and duxelles (mushroom) stuffings, then put back together in the shape of the roast. Traditionally, it's covered with more stuffing and heavily coated with a Mornay sauce (which glazes the roast as it's heated in the oven). In our updated version, we keep the soubise and duxelles separate and arrange them side by side — black contrasting with white — on each veal slice, so the stuffings are visible. We use only a very thin coating of Mornay to glaze the dish, and serve the rest on the side.

Start making this at least one day ahead.

Bettina says that this recipe is one of her delicious and dependable standbys.

You can substitute skinless boneless chicken breasts for the veal cutlets. Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 35 min

These rice-coated meatballs, commonly referred to as zhen zhu, meaning "pearls" in Chinese, are often prepared at home in New York City's Chinatown. Steaming them on lettuce leaves helps prevent them from sticking to the steamer rack. They are traditionally made with sticky rice (sometimes called sweet rice), but we've used long-grain rice, which is easier to find.

"At a recent lunch at the Stage House Inn in Scotch Plains, I was served a braised veal shank," writes Max J. Kalm of Westfield, New Jersey. "This version was so much better than the ones I’ve prepared. Would chef David Drake be willing to share his recipe?" The restaurant serves this entrée with a vegetable risotto. Mashed potatoes would also be a good side dish for the veal shanks.

If you choose to omit the sweetbreads, simply begin the recipe by sautéing the pancetta. (In that case, you may also want to purchase a larger veal or pork loin — going up to a 5-pound veal loin or a 6-pound pork loin.)

As Gourmet wrote in 1959: "Long ago...it did occur to some blithe spirit, a poet of the kitchen to be sure, that when these little veal rolls were arranged on a platter they looked like a flock of headless birds. And oiseaux sans têtes, or veal birds, they remain to this day in the cuisines of such diverse countries as Belgium, Italy, and France.

Ask your butcher to make a "pocket" in the veal breast for you.

Voli are marbles, the multicolored little balls that were so popular with kids during my childhood. But unlike the glass versions, which were quite expensive, the ones we used to play with were made of clay and colored in various bright, glossy shades. They were fragile, and their glaze would crack, revealing their dark red insides, similar in color to these delicious meatballs with bulgur. This recipe comes from the island of Rhodes, and bulgur is probably the grain originally used. Later, in the stewed meatballs of the mainland, it was replaced by rice.

(Pasta con Ragù di Vitello, Salsicce e Porcini) Ragù is a beloved part of Tuscan cooking. Every person has his or her own recipe, but the basics are constant: It is a hearty sauce made with meat (beef, pork, veal, duck, even boar) and vegetables like carrots, tomatoes and onions, all cooked in wine and broth. And ragù is most often served over pasta. This recipe includes dried porcini mushrooms, which give the sauce a real taste of the Tuscan countryside.

When dinner is just for two, why not splurge on veal chops? Accompany this sophisticated entrée with roasted potatoes and sautéed or steamed green beans.

Filet de Boeuf à la Bordelaise Active time: 3 hr Start to finish: 25 hr (includes making stock and soaking marrow)