Ingredients
BEEF OR VEAL SLICES
750 gr (about 12-15 slices)
BREADCRUMBS
120 gr
CACIOCAVALLO
100 gr
RAISINS
40 gr
PINE NUTS
40 gr
BAY LEAVES
20 leaves
RED ONIONS
2
PARSLEY
1 tuft
BREADCRUMBS
to taste
EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL
to taste
SALT
to taste
PEPPER
to taste
Sicilian-style rolls are a typical second course from the Palermo area. These are delicious meat rolls stuffed with toasted breadcrumbs, wilted onion, grated caciocavallo cheese, raisins, pine nuts and chopped parsley, traditionally served skewered on wooden skewers and alternating with slices of red onion and bay leaves: hence the name, in local dialect, of spitini.

To bring them to the table, you just need to thinly beat the slices of beef, then stuff them with the indicated ingredients and then roll them delicately on themselves until you obtain many regular parcels. At this point, all you have to do is form the skewers, then coat them in breadcrumbs and finally cook them in a non-stick pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil until a golden and fragrant crust has formed on the surface. The result will be tasty and stringy morsels, ideal for a Sunday lunch with the family or a convivial dinner with friends together with a vegetable caponata or a lighter mixed seasonal salad.

Very similar to braciole alla messinese, Sicilian involtini differ mainly in size, filling and cut of meat used. We have chosen beef escalopes, but you can easily replace them with veal, which has a more tender consistency and delicate flavor, with chicken or turkey.

Instead of caciocavallo you can opt for provola, scamorza or another stretched curd cheese, you can replace the pine nuts with flaked almonds or, if you don’t particularly like the sweet and sour taste, you can omit the raisins from the preparation.

Discover how to prepare Sicilian involtini by following the step-by-step procedure and tips. If you liked this recipe, also try the involtini al sugo alla romana and the bombette pugliesi.

How to prepare Sicilian-style rolls
Step 1
Remove the crust from the bread, break it into pieces and reduce it to crumbs in the bowl of a mixer 1.

Step 2
Toast the bread crumbs in a non-stick pan without adding fat 2.

Step 3
When it is golden and fragrant, remove the toasted breadcrumbs and transfer them to a bowl; then, in the same pan, sauté 1/2 red onion, finely chopped with a knife, with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil 3.

Step 4
Add the wilted onion, a sprig of chopped parsley, the raisins, the pine nuts and the grated caciocavallo cheese to the toasted bread 4, and season with salt and pepper.

Step 5
Thinly beat the beef slices with a meat tenderizer 5: if they are too large, you can divide them in half with a pair of scissors.

Step 6
Place a spoonful of the prepared mixture in the center of each slice, then fold the meat over the filling and form the rolls by rolling them tightly starting from the short side 6.

Step 7
Skewer the meat rolls on the wooden skewers and alternate them with the remaining sliced ​​onion and a bay leaf 7.

Step 8
Grease the skewers lightly with a drizzle of oil and coat them in breadcrumbs 8.

Step 9
Heat a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil in a non-stick pan, arrange the rolls and let them cook for about ten minutes, turning them every now and then, until they are golden on both sides 9.

Step 10
Once cooked, arrange the Sicilian-style rolls on a serving plate 10, bring to the table and serve.