1 stick margarine**
12 medium-sized mushrooms, sliced
1 TB. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. salt
1-1/2lb. veal scaloppine (12 pieces, 4"x6" each)*
6 slices proscuitto ham
6 slices mozzarella
1 C. chicken broth
salt and pepper to taste
Heat 2-3TB margarine in a skillet. Add in mushrooms, lemon juice, and salt. Saute 5-6 minutrs. Remove from heat. Lay one piece of veal scallopine on a cutting board. Lay on top two slices of proscuitto, 2 slices or mozzarella, and some mushrooms. Place another piece of scallopine on top and pound the edges together. Season the outsides of the layered scallopines with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle both sides with flour. Heat 3 more TB. margarine in a skillet over medium heat. Saute the veal scallopines 3-4 minutes on each side. Remove to a plate and keep warm. Remove margarine from the skillet. (This is not how I would do it, I would leave the margarine in, but that's what the recipe says. Possibly the use of margarine results in a bitter-tasting product after being heated in the pan, and thus necessitates discarding it. Using butter eliminates the need to discard the remaining amount of fat in the pan and, coincidentally, a significant portion of the flavor.) Add in 3 TB. lemon juice and 1 C. chicken broth. Cook 8 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoonto scrape all the brown pieces from the bottom of the pan. Add in the remaining 1/2 stick of margarine a small chunk at a time and rotating the skillet so each piece melts thoroughly. Correct the seasoning to taste. Pour the resulting sauce over the scallopine slices on a serving dish. You can garnish it with chopped parsley or lemon slices, if desired.
*The term "scallopine" means flattened or pounded meat. IE, it is an adjective. Any meat can be (and probably has been in an Italian woman's kitchen) "scallopine". It is pure genius when it comes to applying the dual principles of thrift and taste to cooking. To make a piece of meat "scallopine", you take your off-the-animal slice (ie, chicken breast, cut of veal, beef, pork) and, using a meat tenderizer/mallet or, in a pinch, the edge of a durable plate or the edge of a chopping knife, pound the bejeezus out of it in a systematic fashion (longways and then across on both sides) until the meat is about 1/4" thick (about 0.5 cm). This makes the meat tenderer and cook quicker and juicier. What happens to the width of the meat
is the genius part: the scallopine process turns one 8oz steak into at least 4, one chicken breast into 2-3 portions, and so forth. And it tastes better that way! These days, you can buy scallopine meat in the grocery store under that name ("veal scallopine") or called "breakfast chops" or "breakfast steaks" (in the case of pork and beef, respectively). But the thrifty cook can also do it him- or herself. For this recipe, I think the intent is that one purchases 1-1/2 pounds of meat, and then makes 12 pieces by scallopine-ing it. 4" x 6" is about the size of a deck of standard playing cards, or 10 x 15 cm.
**I would use butter. There are few real reasons to use margarine if butter is available. (A little-known exception is French Silk Pie, which, if made by the original recipe, MUST be made with margarine or it will not solidify.)
12 medium-sized mushrooms, sliced
1 TB. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. salt
1-1/2lb. veal scaloppine (12 pieces, 4"x6" each)*
6 slices proscuitto ham
6 slices mozzarella
1 C. chicken broth
salt and pepper to taste
Heat 2-3TB margarine in a skillet. Add in mushrooms, lemon juice, and salt. Saute 5-6 minutrs. Remove from heat. Lay one piece of veal scallopine on a cutting board. Lay on top two slices of proscuitto, 2 slices or mozzarella, and some mushrooms. Place another piece of scallopine on top and pound the edges together. Season the outsides of the layered scallopines with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle both sides with flour. Heat 3 more TB. margarine in a skillet over medium heat. Saute the veal scallopines 3-4 minutes on each side. Remove to a plate and keep warm. Remove margarine from the skillet. (This is not how I would do it, I would leave the margarine in, but that's what the recipe says. Possibly the use of margarine results in a bitter-tasting product after being heated in the pan, and thus necessitates discarding it. Using butter eliminates the need to discard the remaining amount of fat in the pan and, coincidentally, a significant portion of the flavor.) Add in 3 TB. lemon juice and 1 C. chicken broth. Cook 8 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoonto scrape all the brown pieces from the bottom of the pan. Add in the remaining 1/2 stick of margarine a small chunk at a time and rotating the skillet so each piece melts thoroughly. Correct the seasoning to taste. Pour the resulting sauce over the scallopine slices on a serving dish. You can garnish it with chopped parsley or lemon slices, if desired.
*The term "scallopine" means flattened or pounded meat. IE, it is an adjective. Any meat can be (and probably has been in an Italian woman's kitchen) "scallopine". It is pure genius when it comes to applying the dual principles of thrift and taste to cooking. To make a piece of meat "scallopine", you take your off-the-animal slice (ie, chicken breast, cut of veal, beef, pork) and, using a meat tenderizer/mallet or, in a pinch, the edge of a durable plate or the edge of a chopping knife, pound the bejeezus out of it in a systematic fashion (longways and then across on both sides) until the meat is about 1/4" thick (about 0.5 cm). This makes the meat tenderer and cook quicker and juicier. What happens to the width of the meat
is the genius part: the scallopine process turns one 8oz steak into at least 4, one chicken breast into 2-3 portions, and so forth. And it tastes better that way! These days, you can buy scallopine meat in the grocery store under that name ("veal scallopine") or called "breakfast chops" or "breakfast steaks" (in the case of pork and beef, respectively). But the thrifty cook can also do it him- or herself. For this recipe, I think the intent is that one purchases 1-1/2 pounds of meat, and then makes 12 pieces by scallopine-ing it. 4" x 6" is about the size of a deck of standard playing cards, or 10 x 15 cm.
**I would use butter. There are few real reasons to use margarine if butter is available. (A little-known exception is French Silk Pie, which, if made by the original recipe, MUST be made with margarine or it will not solidify.)
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