Les Petits Chefs cook the books: Nigellissima (and a giveaway!)

Nigella Lawson meatzza from Nigellissima

See that up there? ^^^ Those would be “meatzzas”. A cross between a meatball and a pizza that only Nigella could pull off with class. Well, until Les Petits Chefs got their hands on the recipe, of course 😉 When I was flipping through Nigella’s latest book (Nigellissima, (published by Knopf Canada, a division of Random House of Canada), I was struck by the tasty simplicity of these “Italian inspired” recipes and knew I would have to include this in this term’s “cooking the books” sessions with the boys.  But what to make? Well when I was chatting with Nigella (! more on that later) she suggested that I make the Parmesan shortbread but since we don’t have the time for dough to rest in the fridge, I looked around for something else that was do-able within the hour we have.  I was chatting with Jan who has two tween boys and she suggested I couldn’t go past the meatzzas. I mean, come on – meatball and pizza, in one dish? I knew it would be a hit and if I made mini-versions, it would definitely be cooked within the hour…

So back to when I was chatting with Nigella

When an invitation to the Chatelaine Kitchens to hang out with Nigella for the grand reveal after a much-needed remodel landed in my inbox, I couldn’t resist. Especially since Nigella would be the special guest.

NIgella in the Chatelaine Kitchens Toronto

I’ve been a huge fan of Nigella’s for many years now. I truly enjoy her writing style and could honestly listen to her all day – that lovely plummy voice makes you feel so comforted – and having met her, I know now that she talks like she writes (or is it vice versa?). In any case, she’s charming, down to earth and downright gorgeous. Even more so in real life if you can possibly believe that.

At the kitchen opening, she spoke about Nigellissima, talked about where she draws inspiration from every day, how to fix kitchen mistakes (sprinkle parsley on savoury dishes, icing sugar on sweet – covers a multitude of sins!) and even touched on how she entertains at home (casually, by the sounds of it – food served family style in a relaxed atmosphere).

The Chatelaine kitchen remodel is gorgeous –  powered by GE CafĂ© appliances and with work by Canadian reno giant Rona creating a gorgeous that’s feels like a home kitchen but operates as powerfully as a professional one – which the Chatelaine team definitely needs for developing and testing the hundreds of recipes it produces and shares with readers every year.  At 33X26 feet and featuring sleek GE CafĂ© appliances, including four ovens, 15 stovetop burners and two high-powered silent dishwashers the kitchen now has a built-in studio for cooking demos/videos/media appearances and entertaining small groups.

In keeping with the Chatelaine mission to “make the everyday extraordinary” there could have been no better celebrity to officially declare the kitchens open than Nigella.  Known for her elegant, yet down-to-earth approach to everyday cooking, Nigella’s dishes have the potential to make every day feel like a special occasion.

In the Chatelaine kitchens with Nigella

Mardi Michels Nigella Lawson Chatelaine Kitchens Toronto
Yes, I’m just a little star-struck…
Thanks Jan (@FamilyBites) for the picture!

Her new book, Nigellissima, features easy “Italian-inspired” recipes – as she acknowledges, it’s not authentic Italian, it’s Italian the Nigella way… Described as a “celebration of food that is fresh, delicious and unpretentious” and featuring fresh ingredients and simple methods, it’s a perfect book for fairly accomplished little chefs who are all about cooking real food, not dumbed-down for kids. Especially when there’s a meatball recipe where the meatball is flattened to for a pizza-style base and topped with pizza toppings… 😉

When I told the boys what we were making on Monday, they were a little bewildered but once they understood the concept, they were fully into it. No-one balked at working with raw meat (we used ground chicken because I had to go shopping on Friday and there was no ground beef that had a long enough use-by date. Such is life in the world of Les Petits Chefs where real life sometimes often gets in the way of the ideal case scenario. In any case, the chicken would have made a delicious meatball so it was a fine substitute.

And off they went.  Cracking and mixing the egg into the meat…

Mixing egg and ground chicken for NIgellas meatzzasShowing off knife skills chopping parsley…

Measuring breadcrumbs to help bind the mixture  (because every session involves some kind of science lesson, right?)…

Measuring breadcrumbs for Nigellas eatzza

Grating Parmesan and chopping garlic to add some flavour…

Grating cheese and mincing garlic for Nigellas meatzzas

Et voilĂ :

Making Nigellas meatzzas

Then we got slicing our Mozzarella…

Cutting mozarella for Nigellas meatzzas

and buttering the mini pie tins we would bake the meatzzas in…

buttering pizza trays for Nigellas meatzzas

And then the fun part – styling our meatzzas…

Assembling Nigella Lawsons meatzzas
Yes that’s a face up there on the right. And yup, that’s a lot of cheese on the left there…

And then they were ready to go in the oven…

NIgella Lawsons meatzzas
Check out the face at the bottom of the tray there (artfully styled, wouldn’t you say?)

Result: an easy recipe (you can find it online here) that even some of my more choosy Petits Chefs were excited about! Win! I’m looking forward to checking out some of Nigella’s other recipes from this book because they look easy enough to make on weeknights. This is always a bonus in my book 😉

Nigellissima book giveaway

Nigellissmia cover pic

Through a twist of fate, I happen to have two copies of Nigellissima so I’m giving one away to a lucky Canadian reader (sorry US/ International friends).

To enter, simply leave a comment on this post telling me what you’d put on your meatzza!

For a bonus entry, tweet the following message and come back to leave a separate comment letting me know you did.

Win a copy of @Nigella_Lawson ‘s Nigellissima from @eatlivtravwrite ! Details here: http://bit.ly/ZzfpWC

Winner will be drawn at random after 6pm on Wednesday March 6th and announced in the final “Les Petits Chefs Cook the Books” post for this term (it’s a good one you won’t want to miss!) on Thursday March 7th.

And hey, for a second chance to win a copy of Nigellissima, head on over to Jan’s Family Bites right now!

On March 7th EDITED TO ADD: Thanks for the great suggestions for meatzza toppings – the giveaway is now over!

44 thoughts on “Les Petits Chefs cook the books: Nigellissima (and a giveaway!)”

  1. I’d put lentil-ricotta meatballs in my meatzza (“meat”zza?), since I’m a vegetarian, and I think I’d have to go with my current favourite pizza toppings: Bleu de Bresse, chopped toasted walnuts, Brussels sprouts (leaves picked), and a drizzle of honey. That sounds like a pretty classy meatzza to me!

    I’m sad that I missed Nigella this time around–I had SUCH a good time at the dinner they hosted for the launch of Nigella Kitchen. She was incredibly lovely and answered my questions and wore the best boots.

    Reply
  2. I have two petits chefs in the cooking club – one is a picky guy and the other will try and eat anything. These meatzzas were a HUGE hit and were eaten on the drive home from school! My “Picky Petit Chef” said it was the best thing he made. What would I add to the meatzza? Black olives of course! A definite easy and delicious dinner option we will make at home! Thank you Mardi and, of course, the fab Nigella!

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  3. I sure would love this book: I am number 700 or something on the hold list at the library…

    Boring, I know, but I would put spinach, mushrooms and hot peppers on the meatzzas – and it probably wouldn’t look as pretty as le version des petits chefs.

    Thanks
    Kathryn

    Reply
  4. Is it crazy that I would want to add more meat to it? I’d totally top it with Italian Sausage. Or chorizo. It’d be a meatastic meatzza. I have problems, what can I say.

    So cool you got to meet her. You did better than I would have. I would have been passed out on the floor.

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  5. I’m putting these on next week’s menu plan. Red peppers, black olives (for me) and teeny slices of pepperettes will probably go over well with the boys.

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  6. I have shared on twitter. I admire Nigella Lawson so much. She looks so beautiful and of course so talented in the kitchen.

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  7. I own Nigellisima but missed this recipe. I adore Nigella – I had my program signed at the Melbourne Food and Wine Show a couple of years back – she is stunning and gracious.

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  8. I’d put about a pound of fresh mozzarella and basil on my meatzza!!! And some pancetta!!! Yum!!! Thanks for a great giveaway!!! 😀

    Reply
  9. I’d strew on a few of the slow-roasted roma tomatoes that I made and froze last fall, along with a grating of parmesan and some fresh thyme!

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