I love sautéeing just about anything. This Italian variation of sautéed chicken it fairly simple considering all the ingredients it includes.
4 Chicken breasts halves, on the bone and fat trimmed
6 Tablespoons butter, melted
¼ cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 oz salt pork, diced
1 medium onion, peeled and sliced
1 bay leaf, crumbled
2 cloves of garlic, minced
¼ cup red wine
1 Tablespoon dried oregano
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
Place flour in a large dish and sprinkle in some salt & pepper and mix with a fork. Brush chicken breasts with butter and dredge the seasoned flour, shaking of any excess. Combine the remaining butter, olive oil and salt pork in a hot sauté pan. Add onions, bay leaf and garlic and sauté slowly for five minutes. Add chicken and cook over medium heat for 20 minutes. Add wine and more salt & pepper if desired. Cover and cook for 10 minutes longer or until done. Serve immediately and spoon sauce from the pan over the top.
The French definitely got this one right.
½ cup (packed) fresh Italian parsley leaves
3 garlic cloves
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons dry white wine
½ teaspoon coarse sea salt
2 pounds assorted fresh white mushrooms, stemmed & sliced (larger mushrooms quartered, medium mushrooms halved)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Freshly ground black pepper
Additional fresh Italian parsley
Finely chop parsley with 1 garlic clove and set aside. Finely chop remaining 2 garlic cloves. Whisk chopped garlic, 4 tablespoons oil, wine and ½ teaspoon salt in large bowl to blend. Add mushrooms and toss to coat.
Heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in heavy large skillet over high heat. Add mushroom mixture and sauté until mushrooms are light brown and just tender, about 10 minutes. Remove skillet from heat. Mix in parsley mixture and lemon juice. Season to taste with more salt and freshly ground black pepper. Transfer mixture to bowl. Garnish with additional fresh parsley and serve.
Lyonnaise Potatoes
2 pounds potatoes, peeled and diced
5 oz butter
4 medium white onions, finely sliced
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
Italian flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
Melt 3 ounces of the butter in a heavy skillet. Add the potatoes and fry them over medium heat, turning them regularly until they are golden brown and evenly cooked. In a separate pan, melt the remaining butter and gently fry the onions until they are also golden brown. Add the onions to the potatoes, mix well and continue cooking. Sprinkle with the chopped parsley and serve.
Since my heritage is ¼ Italian (Neapolitan), I figured I’d share one of my favorite Italian recipes. Veal Scaloppine alla Marsala is quite popular in Italian restaurants, but you rarely find it in the home kitchen. This is a technique that is easy, light and delish!! As always, if you try any of these, I demand feedback!
2 to 2 ½ pounds veal cutlets
All-purpose flour
12 tablespoons sweet butter
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
8 slices of imported Italian prosciutto, diced (don’t use any of the domestic crap)
2 large garlic cloves, mashed and minced
2 teaspoons crumbled dried rosemary
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup fine Marsala wine or sherry
4 cups white mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
½ cup fresh Italian flat leaf parsley, leaves only, chopped fine
Pound veal cutlets thin and sprinkle with flour on both sides. Shake off any excess flour. Place butter and olive oil in a large skillet and heat. Add the veal slices and the prosciutto. Sauté for three minutes, then turn and add garlic, rosemary, salt & pepper. Cook for two more minutes. Add the wine, cover and sauté for three minutes. Uncover the skillet and add the mushrooms and parsley and cook slowly for six minutes longer. Serve with a green salad and/or a side of pasta.
This recipe also works well with chicken.
Jeez-Louise — this is one of the bestest dishes I’ve ever had the pleasure of cooking. I love pork. Let me say that again. I LOVE PORK !!! Pork barrel projects, no so much. That’s Ted Kennedy’s department. Thanks Tyler!
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons onion powder
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 porterhouse pork chops, ¾-inch thick, bone-in
¼ cup olive oil + one more tablespoon
1 cup chicken broth
½ cup buttermilk
1 medium white onion, peeled, halved and sliced thin
Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, for garnish
Put the flour in a shallow platter and add the onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne, salt, and pepper; mix with a fork to distribute evenly. Pat the pork chops dry with paper towels to remove any moisture and then dredge them in the seasoned flour; shaking off the excess.
Heat a large sauté pan or cast iron skillet over medium heat and coat with the ¼ of the oil. When the oil is nice and hot, lay the pork chops in the pan in a single layer and fry for 3 minutes on each side until golden brown. Remove the pork chops from the pan and add a little sprinkle of seasoned flour to the pan drippings.
Add the onions and another tablespoon of oil to the pan and sauté for 5 minutes stirring frequently. Mix the flour into the fat to dissolve and then pour in the chicken broth in. Let the liquid cook down for 5 minutes to reduce and thicken slightly. Stir in the buttermilk to make a creamy gravy and return the pork chops to the pan, covering them with the sauce. Simmer for 5 minutes until the pork is cooked through. Season with salt and pepper.
Often served as tapas, croquetas are most well known as a Spanish dish. This recipe comes from my Cuban influence. The best Cuban ham croquettes I’ve had on the west coast were at Felix Continental Cafe in downtown Orange, California. Dip these into a side of Cuban mojo and you’ll be in heaven.
Filling
4 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, minced
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 ½ cups room temperature milk
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 tablespoon dry sherry
1 tablespoon finely chopped Italian flat leaf parsley
4 cups of smoked ground ham, about one pound
1 cup dry bread crumbs
Salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
Coating
2 eggs, beaten with 1 tablespoon water
1 cup dry bread crumbs
¼ cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Vegetable oil
In a large pan sauté the butter and onions until the onions are translucent. Slowly stir in the flour and make a roux. The roux needs to be very smooth with all the flour dissolved. Add more butter if necessary. Gradually whisk in the milk. Continue cooking until the sauce thickens. The sauce needs to be very thick. Add the nutmeg, sherry, and parsley. Fold in the ham and bread crumbs. If you can’t find ground ham, you can finely mince it yourself or grind it in a food processor. Allow the mixture to simmer for five minutes on low heat. Taste the mix and season with salt and pepper if necessary. The ham has quite a bit of salt in it already, so be careful. Spoon the mixture into a baking pan and refrigerate at least one hour. The mixture needs to be firm enough to form into rolls. If your mixture is too soft or sticky, add some additional bread crumbs.
Shape the ham mixture into three inch long logs, ¾-inch thick. Make an egg wash by beating the eggs with water until frothy in a small bowl. Combine the bread crumbs, flour, salt and pepper in a second bowl. Dip the logs in the egg wash and roll the logs in the seasoned bread crumbs. Dip the rolls in the egg wash a second time and re-roll in bread crumbs. Cover logs with plastic wrap and refrigerate for two to three hours. This is very important!
Sauté the croquettes in hot vegetable oil, a few at a time, for three to four minutes, turning occasionally until golden brown. Remove from oil and drain on paper towels. You can also deep fry them if you like. Serve immediately.
One variation of these croquettes is making them with chicken. You can easily substitute a pound of cooked chicken for the ham, white or dark meat, or a combination. Finely mince the chicken or grind it in a food processor. Add a dash of fresh lime juice to the chicken. You can also grind in a small handful of chopped cilantro instead of the parsley for a nice flavor twist.
Never being a spinach fan as a kid, I fell in love with creamed spinach while dining at Izzy’s Steak & Chop House in San Francisco. The House of Prime Rib, also in San Francisco, has very good creamed spinach as well, but they put a bit too much nutmeg in it.
10-16 ounces of fresh spinach
½ cup of heavy cream
Two tablespoons of butter
Fine grain sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Pinch of ground nutmeg
Boil spinach with a pinch of salt for one minute or until it is bright green and tender. Cool the cooked spinach with ice water; squeeze excess moisture from it and chop it. Getting as much of the water out of the spinach is real important. Place the cream in a small saucepan, turn the heat to medium and cook for five minutes. Turn the heat to low and add the spinach, butter, salt, pepper and pinch of ground nutmeg. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is creamy and very soft, about 10 minutes.
Sometimes I’ll lace the creamed spinach with some onion. For this, sauté a small amount of very, very thinly sliced white or yellow onions with another ½ tablespoon of butter for about five minutes. Add along with the rest of the ingredients of the recipe.
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