Beef boulettes with financière sauce

Makes: 6 servings

12 ounces leftover beef (pot roast, stew meat or roast beef)

1 cup finely chopped onion, divided

1⁄2 cup finely chopped celery

1 large garlic clove, crushed and very finely minced

3 large eggs

1⁄4 teaspoon plus 1⁄2 teaspoon dried thyme, divided

3

tablespoons teaspoons salt, all-purpose divided flour

2

1 ⁄2 teaspoon black pepper, divided

1 teaspoon baking powder

1⁄4 cup plus 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1⁄2 teaspoon dried oregano

3 garlic cloves, crushed

2 pounds tomatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces, or 1 (28-ounce) can of plum tomatoes

2 cups sliced mushrooms, about 8 ounces

2⁄3 cup slivered green olives

1. Cut meat into chunks, then process it in a food processor until finely chopped. Combine it in a bowl with 1⁄2 cup of the onion, celery, the one crushed and finely minced clove of garlic, eggs, 1⁄4 teaspoon of the thyme, flour, 1 teaspoon of the salt, 1⁄4 teaspoon of the pepper and baking powder.

2. Preheat oven to 160 degrees.

3. Heat 1⁄4 cup of the olive oil in a large skillet. With your hands, make patties with the meat mixture, using about 2 tablespoons for each one — you will have about 18 patties. Working in batches, gently pat the patties to flatten them a bit and place them in the hot oil. Cook for approximately 2 minutes on each side, until browned. Transfer to a tray and keep warm in the oven while you make the sauce.

4. For the sauce, heat the remaining 3 tablespoons of oil in a large saucepan. Add the remaining 1⁄2 teaspoon thyme, oregano, remaining 1⁄2 cup finely chopped onion and remaining three crushed garlic cloves and cook over medium-high heat for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, remaining 1 teaspoon salt and remaining 1⁄4 teaspoon pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook over medium heat for 5 to 6 minutes; at this point, the tomatoes will have liquefied if they were nice and ripe.

5. Push the mixture through a food mill and return it to the saucepan (if you don’t have a food mill, puree the mixture in a food processor and then push it through a sieve). Bring to a boil, add the mushrooms, bring back to a boil, then simmer for 10 minutes. Add the olives and boil for about 1 minute. Serve with the warm boulettes.