In our family, making food is a hobby and a passion, not a chore. We love complex weekend cooking projects, traveling to source a rare ingredient, or entertaining 10, 20 or 30 friends over dinner. Yet sometimes, we all need an easy weekday dinner that:
• takes little to no time
• uses few pans and cooking tools
• is nutritionally balanced, and on the light side
Today’s recipe, Italian pizza-style scaloppine, checks all the boxes – without giving up on flavor.
This classic Italian dish is said to have originated in Naples, where a crafty pizzaiolo (pizza maker) decided to repurpose some leftover pizza sauce to flavor his veal. The result was surprisingly good, and in a short time, the recipe spread throughout Italy, gaining different regional variations on its way.
Chances are you already have most of the ingredients in your pantry - and if not, feel free to adjust it to your taste. In Piemonte, for example, we often start with a mix of oil and butter - but Southern Italy skips the butter. Many recipes call for browning a couple of cloves of garlic in the oil, then discarding them before adding the tomato. Some families skip the mozzarella, and add capers instead for extra saltiness. Our suggestion? Whatever you choose to add, keep it simple. Pick a few high-quality ingredients, like Italian tomatoes picked at their ripest, and enjoy!
