Veal and Porcini Mushroom Sliders with Dill Slaw

Delicious gourmet sliders!

   
     The gourmet slider craze is still going strong.  Las Vegas is the current burger capitol of the world and gourmet sliders are offered by many of the top chefs.  Meats like ground kobe beef, wild game, veal and black angus beef are part of many gourmet sliders.
     Sliders that are offered at burger stands, tend to be very simple.  Fast food sliders are better off being avoided, but the exception to that rule is White Castle sliders.  White Castle is the grandaddy of the slider world!  
     I have posted a few slider recipes in this blog that are far from the ordinary.   This veal and porcini mushroom slider offers two great classic Italian flavors.  The slider rolls were made with a focaccia dough recipe.  Store bought slider rolls are fine for this recipe too, but focaccia sliders rolls add a nice touch.
     Many people seem to think that only olive oil is used in Italian cooking.  Many Italian regions and recipes call for butter or a mixture of butter and olive oil.  Nutmeg and lemon is used to flavor veal in some northern Italian recipes.  Dijon mustard is enjoyed by many Italians.  You might say that this recipe is actually Italian, but it is more like what people eat in their own home or what cooks snack on in an Italian restaurant kitchen.  

     Focaccia Dough Recipe:
     If you have dough making experience, then this will be easy.  
     High gluten flour is best for this recipe, but bread flour can be used.  Pizza dough is focaccia dough or Italian bagette style bread dough.  No oil in the mixture will produce a dough that is like many Italian breads that are not enriched with fat or like a French baguette bread dough.  Many pizzeria chefs do not add oil to a pizza dough and that is correct pizza dough too.  
     Focaccia style doughs require enrichment with fat.  Olive oil is a fat!  Oil strengthens and elongates the gluten strands of the dough.  It only takes a very small amount of oil to produce a nice texture.  The elastic gluten strands give pizza dough the ability to be stretched and tossed in the air!
     Add 2 tablespoon of fresh yeast or 1 tablespoon of dry yeast to 16 ounces of tepid luke warm water in a mixing bowl.
     Place the mixing bowl in a luke warm place like on top of a warm oven, with a dry towel under the bowl.
     When the yeast activates, add 2 teaspoons of sugar to proof the yeast.
     Add about 2 cups of flour.
     Add 2 teaspoons of sea salt.
     Add 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil.
     Stir the mixture with a spoon, till a very loose wet dough is formed.
     Start adding a little bit of flour at a time,while stirring, till a loose dough is formed.
     Add a little more flour at a time, while mixing with your fingers, till the dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl.
     Note:  You will be able to feel when the dough is starting to get elastic.  It will stick to your hands when made correctly, but that will change after rising twice.
     Add flour, while hand mixing, till the dough can pull away from the sides of the bowl.
     Cover the dough in the mixing bowl with a dry towel.
     Set the bowl on top of an oven in a luke warm area, with a second towel underneath the bowl to protect the dough from too much heat.
     When the dough rises more than double, beat it down with your knuckles and gather the dough like a ball in the bowl.
     Cover the dough with a towel and let it rise again.
     When it rises the second time, beat the dough down and knead firmly with your hands for 1 minute.
     Place the dough on a floured counter top.
     Roll the dough into a large ball.
     Cut the dough ball in half into 2 easy portions that are easy to work with.
     Roll and tuck each dough portion with with your hands to make smooth dough balls.
     You can cover and refrigerate each dough ball for a few days or freeze the dough portions for later use.
   
     Shaping the Focaccia Slider Rolls:
     To make focaccia slider buns with the focaccia dough, cut walnut size dough portions of the focaccia dough.
     Place the dough portions on a parchment paper lined baking pan and space them about 3" apart from each other.
     Brush the rolls with olive oil, then sprinkle sea salt and coarse back pepper on the dough portions.  (optional)
     Let the dough rise and proof.
   
     Bake the slider rolls in a 425 degree oven, till they become a very light tan color.
   
     Dill Slaw Recipe:
     Place 1 cup of very thin sliced cabbage into a mixing bowl.

     Add 1 tablespoon of chopped green bell pepper. 

     Add a few small thin match stick cut carrots for color.

     Add sea salt and black pepper.

     Add 2 to 3 pinches of chopped fresh dill weed.

     Add 1 teaspoon of sugar.

     Add 1 teaspoon of rice vinegar.

     Add 2 1/2 tablespoons of mayonnaise. 

     Mix the ingredients together.
     Chill the slaw for 15 minutes, before serving.
     Mix the ingredients again, before serving.
     
     Porcini Mushrooms:
     Porcini mushrooms are not easy to find fresh outside of Italy.  Dried porcini are good for this recipe.
     Soak 6 large dried porcini slices 2 cups of water in a refrigerator over night, till the porcini become reconstituted.
     Cut and trim the soft porcini mushrooms into large bite size pieces, so they will fit on top of the slider patties.
     Heat a saute pan over medium heat.
     Add 3 pats of unsalted butter.
     Add the reconstituted porcini mushroom slices.

     Season the porcini with sea salt and white pepper. 

     Saute till the porcini get some light brown colored highlights.
     Keep the porcini warm on a stove top.
     
     Veal Patties:
     Place 8 ounces of ground veal into a mixing bowl.
     Add 1 small pinch of nutmeg.
     Add sea salt and white pepper.
     Mix the ingredients together.
     Divide the ground veal mixture into 3 equal portions.
     Form the ground veal portions into mini burger patties.
   
     Veal and Porcini Mushroom Sliders:
     Heat a saute pan over medium heat.
     Add 1 small splash of olive oil.
     Add the veal slider patties.
     Saute the patties, till they become a golden brown color.
     Add 1 squeeze of lemon juice.
     Keep the slider warm on a stove top.
   
     Veal and Porcini Mushroom Sliders with Dill Slaw: 
     Split the slider rolls in half.
     Spread a little bit of Dijon Mustard on the rolls.
     Place a piece of lettuce on the bottom half of each slider roll.
     Place a slice of plum tomato on the lettuce.
     Place a few very thin slices of bermuda onion on the tomato slices.
     Place the veal patties on top of each slider roll "set ups."
     Place the porcini mushroom slices on top of each of the veal sliders.
     Set the stacked sliders on a plate.
     Lean the slider roll tops against the sliders.
     Place a portion of the dill slaw on a small bed of lettuce on the plate.
   
     These are some nice tasting gourmet sliders!  Porcini mushrooms are so great with veal.  Dijon mustard is nice with the light lemon flavored veal and the rich tasting porcini mushrooms.
     Entrees like gourmet sliders are fun, creative food that make people happy!  Have fun when cooking!  Ciao Baby!  ...  Shawna