Recipe Of The Day: Italian Burgers | Features

CINCINNATI, OH (FOX19) - This recipe of the day is a slice of Italy in your mouth. Chef Caitlin MacEachen Steininger and the team from Cooking with Caitlin are make cooking easy and fun for everyone! Chef Caitlin explains how to make Italian Burgers.

Let's just say this sandwich is a tall stack of all your Italian favorites. A savory meatball that melts in your mouth, and a creamy cheese ravioli make it a sandwich to remember. Serve with a simple green salad with Creamy Italian Dressing for a complete meal.

cooking information

•Yield: 12 Sandwiches

•Prep Time: 15 minutes

•Cooking Time: 60 minutes

all ingredients

•12 Hamburger Buns

•4 Cups Marinara Sauce

•12 Large Cheese Ravioli

•2 Pounds Ground Beef

•1 Pound Ground Pork

•1 Bunch Fresh Parsley

•3 Slices White Bread

•2 Teaspoons Minced Garlic

•1/4 Cup Grated Parmesan

•2 Eggs

•Salt and Pepper

•Vegetable Oil

•Add these items to your shopping list on Cozi.com

recipe instruction

1. In a bowl, cover your white bread in hot water.

2. Using your food processor, chop your fresh parsley. Drain your white bread of the hot water (using your hands. Don't worry you won't be able to get all of the water out.) Add the white bread to the parsley and blend together until you can't tell it is white bread.

3. In a large bowl combine your ground beef, ground pork garlic, parmesan, eggs, salt, pepper, and blended parsley and white bread concoction. Mix together until completely combined.

4. Preheat a large sauté pan to medium high heat. Fill the pan an inch deep with vegetable oil.

5. Create 12 equal meatballs. You will need to cook the meatballs in two batches. Add your meatballs to the hot oil. Let cook 5 minutes in the oil or until the first side gets a nice crust. Flip and finish cooking 3 more minutes. (It is okay if the meatballs aren't finished cooking in the middle because they will finish in the sauce for more flavor.)

6. To a saucepot, add your marinara sauce and your finished meatballs. Turn to a low simmer and finish cooking another 20-30 minutes.

7. Bring a saucepot full of water to a boil. Follow the specific directions of your cheese ravioli. Cook, drain, toss with extra marinara sauce and set aside.

8. While the burgers and ravioli are still warm, assemble burgers. Onto the bun, first place the meatball, top with the ravioli, and ladle on top a little extra sauce.

9. Serve and enjoy.

cooking tips

•Using white bread soaked in hot water will create a fluffier, more moist meatball.

•If you don't have a secret family recipe for sauce you could always use store-bought sauce and store-bought cheese ravioli.

•To make it less burger-like you could always layer the meatball, sauce, and ravioli pasta upon crusty Italian bread and serve it as more of a gourmet sandwich.

•The meatballs can always be made ahead of time and stored in your freezer up to a month in advance.