Cooking up some Italian for a good cause

Over the years the “Today” show has featured the world's top chefs, who have prepared everything from gourmet feasts to casual cuisine and numerous holiday menus. We've taken our favorite 120 recipes from those celebrity chefs and turned them into “Today's Kitchen Cookbook," with proceeds going to the T.J. Martell Foundation. Marion, John, Anthony and Elaina Scotto from the Manhattan restaurant “Fresco” were invited on the “Today” show to help us launch the book. Here are recipes.

Grilled Pizza Margherita
Each pizza serves 2 to 4

1 quart lukewarm water
1 teaspoon fresh yeast
1 tablespoon molasses
2-1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 cup olive oil
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 cups high-gluten flour
1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
1 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
1 cup grated Bel Paese cheese
1 cup tomato sauce
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil

In a mixing bowl, combine the water, yeast, and molasses. Mix together gently until all the yeast dissolves. Set the mixture aside for 5 to 10 minutes until the yeast makes a raft. Stir in the salt and olive oil.

With the mixer on a low speed, add the three kinds of flour. Mix until all the flour is absorbed and the dough pulls away from the side of the bowl. Roll the dough into one large ball and let it stand for 5 minutes.

Cut the dough into 6 pieces. Roll the pieces into balls and place them on an oiled baking sheet. Brush the balls lightly with olive oil and cover with plastic wrap.

If you are going to use the dough right away, let it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before baking. If you don’t need the dough immediately, you can store it for one day in the refrigerator, but you must let it sit at room temperature for 1 hour before using.

In a bowl, combine the cheeses.

When the dough is ready, prepare the fire, preferably a charcoal fire, but a gas grill works nicely too. Make sure the grill grid is set at least 4 inches from the fire.

On an oiled surface, push a ball of dough out using the palms of your hands. If the dough is sticking to the surface, lift it and drizzle a little more oil on the surface. You want the dough to be a 12-inch circle with an even thickness. The shape of the pizza is not as important as the thickness of the dough.

Gently lift the dough, and, being careful not to tear it, drape it onto the hot spot of the grill. The dough will start to rise immediately. Carefully lift the edge of the dough to see the color of the underside, which should be evenly golden brown (this should take about 2 minutes).

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Flip the dough over and place it on the side of the grill or on a cooler spot of the grill. Brush the cooked side of the dough with olive oil. Take 1/6 of the cheese and evenly spread it out to the very edge of the dough. Next, with a tablespoon, dollop tomato sauce on the pizza (8 to 10 spoonfuls), you don’t want to spread the sauce over the whole surface of the pizza. Drizzle the pizza with 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with 1/2 tablespoon of chopped parsley.

Carefully slide the pizza back to the edge of the hot section of the grill, and rotate the pizza until the bottom is evenly golden brown. This should take 3 to 4 minutes. Do not put the pizza directly over the fire, because the bottom will burn before the cheese melts.

Garnish with the chopped basil and serve immediately. Repeat with rest of dough.

Tip for Pizza Margherita: To turn this recipe into a heart shape, cut dough into heart shape.

Italian Wedding Soup
Serves 6

For the meatballs
1 pound ground beef
1 cup dried bread crumbs (store-bought are fine)
1 egg
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
Pinch of pepper
2 tablespoons cold water

For the soup
1/2 cup olive oil
1 cup dried onions
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 quarts chicken stock
1 cup diced carrots
1 cup diced celery
1/2 cup diced zucchini
1 pound escarole, chopped
5 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
Salt

To make the meatballs: Place the ground beef in a large bowl. Add the bread crumbs, egg, parsley, cheese, salt, and pepper. With wet, cold hands mix the ingredients together well.

Add the cold water. Form the mixture into about 18 one-inch meatballs. Set aside.

To make the soup: In a large stockpot, heat the olive oil over medium heat and sauté the onions until they are translucent. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and sauté for about 5 minutes, or until the onions are glazed.

Add the chicken stock and bring the soup to a boil over high heat. Add the carrots, celery, onions, and zucchini, lower the heat, and simmer for about 1-1/2 hours, or until the vegetables are tender.

Add the meatballs and escarole and simmer for 20 minutes. Stir in the cheese and season to taste with salt. Serve warm.

Tip for Italian Wedding Soup: Always make sure you have plenty of cold water to roll the meatballs.

Steak Pizzaiola with Sun Dried Tomato Polenta

For the Steak Pizzaiola
2-1/2 pounds beef tenderloin
1/2 cup olive oil
1 pound sliced mushrooms
1 can (32 ounces) Italian Plum Tomatoes, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 chopped parsley
1 teaspoon oregano
3 cloves garlic, chopped

Pan-sear beef tenderloin over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from sauté pan and set aside. Add garlic and mushrooms to pan and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes or until golden brown.

Add tomatoes, parsley, oregano and beef tenderloin to sauté pan and simmer over low heat for about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

For the Sun Dried Tomato Polenta
6 ounces sun dried tomatoes
1 ounce chopped garlic
1 ounce chopped shallots
2 ounces extra virgin olive oil
3 cups milk
1 cup water
1 cup instant white polenta
1/2 cup mascarpone

To make the polenta, heat the milk and water in a large pot and bring to a boil. While it is simmering, slowly add the polenta. Stir constantly for 6 to 7 minutes, or until the liquid has been absorbed. Remove from heat and stir in the mascarpone. Set the polenta aside.

Next prepare the sun dried tomatoes. Sauté garlic and shallots in olive oil over low to medium heat until golden brown. Add sun dried tomatoes and cook for about 3 to 5 minutes until soft. Set aside. Puree half of sun dried tomatoes in a blender. The other half should be chopped. To finish, combine polenta, chopped sun dried tomatoes and puree. Serve immediately.

Tip for Steak Pizzaiola: Steak Pizzaiola can be made in advance, but the sun dried tomato polenta needs to be prepared just before serving.

Meatball Lasagna

For the meatballs
2 slices bread
1/2 cup milk
2 pounds ground beef
1 cup finely chopped onions
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 eggs
4 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1-1/2 tablespoons chopped garlic
Salt and pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
5 cups tomato sauce, warmed

For the lasagna
2 pounds fresh mozzarella, diced
2 cups grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
5 pounds fresh ricotta cheese
3 eggs
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
Salt and pepper
4 fresh pasta sheets (store-bought), or 2 pounds lasagna noodles

To make the meatballs: Soak the bread in the milk. In a medium bowl, mix the ground beef, bread, onions, parsley, eggs, cheese, and garlic. Add slat and pepper to taste. If the mixture is dry, add 1/2 cup of cold water and mix well. Form into about 12 meatballs.

Place the meatballs in a sauté pan with the olive oil and fry over medium to high heat until brown, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain the meatballs on paper towels.

In a stockpot, heat the tomato sauce over low heat. Add the meatballs to the sauce and simmer over low heat, covered, for 30 minutes, or until meatballs are cooked through. Remove from the heat and set aside.

To make the lasagna: Mix 3/4 of the mozzarella, 1 cup of the Parmigiano Reggiano, and the ricotta in a large bowl. Add the eggs and parsley. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

Remove the meatballs from the sauce. Crumble the meatballs and set aside. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat and cook the pasta until al dente, about 1 minute. Drain and shock in cold water.

To assemble: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Pour 1 cup of the hot tomato sauce in the bottom of an 8 x 12-inch baking pan. Place a pasta sheet over the layer of sauce, cutting the sheet to fit if necessary. Spread 1/3 of the cheese mixture over the pasta. Spread 1/3 of the crumbled meatballs over the cheese. Repeat the layers of sauce, pasta, cheese, and meatballs two more times.

Spread the remaining cup of tomato sauce over the top layer of the pasta and sprinkle the remaining Parmigiano Reggiano cheese over the sauce. Bake the lasagna for 1 hour or until the top is golden.

Tip for Meatball Lasagna: Be sure to use the best quality cheese available.

Blood Orange Panna Cotta
Serves 6

For the Caramel
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons hot water

For the Cream
2 cups blood orange juice
2 envelopes unflavored gelatin
4 cups heavy cream
1 cup sugar

To make the caramel: Put lemon juice and 1/2 cup sugar into heavy pot. Cook over high heat, swirling often, until sugar caramelizes. Add hot water — be careful, as caramel will splatter and is very hot. Pour caramel into the bottom of mold.

To make the cream: Sprinkle gelatin over orange juice in a small saucepan, set aside to soften. Combine cream and sugar in another saucepan, and heat just to dissolve sugar. Heat orange juice and gelatin gently to melt gelatin. Combine orange juice mixture and cream mixture. Pour into prepared mold, and refrigerate overnight. To remove mold, invert onto serving platter just before serving.

Tip for Blood Orange Panna Cotta:  This dessert can stay refrigerated in the mold for up to 3 days. When ready to serve, invert onto serving platter.