Veal Scallopine with Charred Cherry Tomato Salad

Yesterday was the start of my marathon training for the Disneyland Half Marathon in September. I wanted a light meal for our dinner, because I knew that an hour after we ate I was going out for my first training run. I usually run after my kids go to bed, so I have to plan our meals around what will settle nicely in my stomach and not give me a horrible stitch in my side. I had all the ingredients on hand for this dish, and it fit my "travel light" running requirement.

This recipe piqued my curiosity since I had never tried to grill veal before. I am so glad I experimented, because this was light and delicious...a perfectly balanced meal for my pre-run dinner.

Veal Scallopine with Charred Cherry Tomato Salad
From: Nick Fauchald, Food & Wine magazine, JUNE 2008

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
1 small shallot, minced
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 pint cherry tomatoes
4 4-ounce veal cutlets
4 cups baby arugula (4 ounces)
1/2 cup shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (1 1/2 ounces)

Directions:
Light a grill. In a large bowl, whisk the olive oil with the sherry vinegar, minced shallot and Dijon mustard. Season the vinaigrette with salt and pepper.

Heat a medium cast-iron skillet on the grill. Add the tomatoes and cook over high heat, shaking the pan a few times, until the tomatoes are charred and the skins begin to split, about 4 minutes. Add the tomatoes to the vinaigrette and lightly smash the tomatoes to release some of their juices.

Season the veal with salt and pepper. Lightly oil the grill grate. Grill the veal, turning once, until just cooked through, about 2 minutes. Transfer to plates.

Add the arugula and the cheese shavings to the tomatoes and toss well. Place the salad alongside the veal and serve.



The Result:
So far, this has to be my favorite at-home veal recipe. It was delicious! I had to make quite a few substitutions, so I think I will just list my recipe differences and call it a day. We served our veal with some steamed broccoli and Creamy Goat Cheese Polenta...YUM! Seriously, if you happen to get some veal at a good price, I would recommend trying this dish.

Okay, here goes:
*I didn't have sherry vinegar, so I combined a tablespoon of sherry with a tablespoon of cider vinegar as a substitution.
*I didn't have cherry tomatoes, so I halved Roma tomatoes, smeared them in olive oil and then grilled those. Then, I peeled them and mashed them into the vinaigrette.
*I didn't use an outdoor grill, but used a grill pan instead.
*No arugula for us...I used mixed salad greens.
*Lastly, I didn't have shallot on hand, so I grated a quarter of an onion on a box grater and incorporated that into the vinaigrette instead.

Despite my long list of substitutions, this dish was still fantastic! I can only imagine it would taste even better if I made it as written.

Polenta Lasagna

We had some friends over for dinner, which was an excellent excuse to try this recipe that my friend, Claire had posted on her blog. Claire got the original idea from her friend Heather, and then took it from there. I basically took Claire's version and did my own thing. This was a delicious twist on traditional lasagna that we all enjoyed. A fresh green salad rounded out our meal. Yum!

Polenta Lasagna

Ingredients:
olive oil
2 tubes of heat and serve polenta
1 onion, diced
1 package of sliced mushrooms (I used crimini)
5 garlic cloves, minced
1 lb. of hot Italian pork sausage
1 lb. of lean ground beef or bison
1 jar of your favorite marinara sauce
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried thyme
sprinkle of garlic powder (optional)
sprinkle of chili powder (optional)
1 tablespoon of tomato paste
salt and pepper to taste
1 ball of part-skim mozzarella, shredded
Parmesan cheese, grated
1 container of low-fat ricotta cheese
cooking spray

Directions:
Spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Pour 1/3 of the marinara sauce in the bottom of the baking dish and set aside.

Slice polenta into rounds and brown on both sides in a non stick skillet. Set aside.

Saute onions, mushrooms in the same skillet with a tablespoon of olive oil until the veggies are soft. Add garlic and saute for another 30 seconds. Set aside.

Remove casings from pork sausage links and brown in the same skillet with the ground beef (or bison). While browning, season with salt, pepper, and the dried herbs and spices. When meat is cooked, pour the remaining marinara sauce in with the meat and stir to combine. Add tomato paste and reduce the meat/sauce mixture until thick and bubbly. Set aside.

In the 9 x 13 baking dish place a layer of the cooked polenta rounds, the cooked veggies, a layer of half of the shredded mozzarella cheese, a layer of the ricotta, a layer of the meat/sauce mixture, another layer of the polenta rounds, a layer of the remaining mozzarella cheese, and Parmesan cheese for topping. Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes, uncovered. Remove from oven, and cool for 5 minutes before cutting. Cut into squares and serve immediately.

The Result:
Oh man, this was fan-freakin'-tastic! We all loved this take on lasagna and substituting polenta in place of traditional noodles made it really special. Once again, we were so eager to start eating I forgot to take a photo. It ended up plating a little messy, but it tasted awesome. The photo would not have done it justice. Anyway, I highly recommend this dish! Yum!!!

Lemony Chicken Saltimbocca with Creamy Goat Cheese Polenta

I had almost completely forgotten about this dinner, until I checked my camera. I am so glad I don't erase my food photos until I upload them to my blog. Otherwise, there would be a whole lot of meals that I would neglect to post due to my faulty memory. Anyway, this was a fantastic Sunday night dinner that did not take a whole lot of effort. The polenta was especially fantastic and paired well with the chicken and sauce. I really need to include polenta more in our menu, because we really love it. I must say this goat cheese version was our favorite. Yum!

Lemony Chicken Saltimbocca
From: Sandy Gluck, Cooking Light magazine, JANUARY 2011

Ingredients:
4(4-ounce)chicken cutlets
1/8 teaspoon salt
12 fresh sage leaves
2 ounces very thinly sliced prosciutto, cut into 8 thin strips
4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1/3 cup fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
Lemon wedges (optional)

Directions:
Sprinkle the chicken evenly with salt. Place 3 sage leaves on each cutlet; wrap 2 prosciutto slices around each cutlet, securing sage leaves in place.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil to pan, and swirl to coat. Add chicken to pan; cook for 2 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm.

Combine broth, lemon juice, and cornstarch in a small bowl; stir with a whisk until smooth. Add cornstarch mixture and the remaining 1 teaspoon olive oil to pan; bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Cook for 1 minute or until slightly thickened, stirring constantly with a whisk. Spoon sauce over chicken. Serve with lemon wedges, if desired.

Nutritional Information:
Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 cutlet and 2 tablespoons sauce)
Calories:202
Fat:7.5g (sat 1.5g,mono 4.3g,poly 0.9g)
Protein:30.5g
Carbohydrate:2.3g
Fiber:0.2g
Cholesterol:77mg
Iron:1.1mg
Sodium:560mg
Calcium:18mg

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Creamy Goat Cheese Polenta
From: The Pioneer Woman website

Ingredients:
1 cup Yellow Cornmeal
1 teaspoon Salt
2 Tablespoons Butter
4 ounces, weight Goat Cheese

Directions:
Bring 4 1/2 cups water to a boil.

Add cornmeal to the water in a thin stream, whisking constantly to avoid lumps.

Reduce heat to a simmer, and cook for 15 minutes, adding salt and extra tablespoons of water as needed.

When polenta is done, stir in butter and goat cheese. Check seasonings, and add salt to taste.



The Result:
As I said, both recipes were pretty darn great. The highlight of our meal was to watch our baby girls eat the polenta. They got it absolutely everywhere; it was hilarious! Seriously--in hair, ears, on the back of the neck, down the clothing, hidden in the high chairs, smeared on faces, crusted on hands--just everywhere. I don't know why it is so amusing to watch our babies make a total mess of their dinner, but it is entertaining nonetheless. Thanks to my two favorite resources, PW and Cooking Light, I will have fond memories of these yummy dishes.