November 2, 2007

Secret Sauce welcomes Emmy-winning Food Network personality Michael Chiarello and his favorite dish, Panko-Crusted Turkey Scaloppine with Homemade Marinara and Arugula Salad:

Says Chef Chiarello, "Cooking is all about gathering family and friends together for a great meal—a meal that starts with great ingredients. This Panko-Crusted Turkey Scaloppine recipe uses one of the tricks I learned as a restaurant chef. I use Italian-style panko bread crumbs to keep the scaloppini light and crispy. I serve it with a side of homemade marinara sauce. But once you've mastered the basic technique, you can vary the dish for the season. For a Thanksgiving twist, serve the crusted turkey with my Cranberry Brown Butter.”

Get ready for the holiday season with this delicious dish. Here's how:

Procedure:

• Cut turkey breast diagonally into ½-inch-thick slices. Between sheets of plastic wrap, pound turkey to 1/8-inch thickness with meat mallet or rolling pin. Sprinkle with dash salt and dash pepper; press seasonings into turkey with fingers.

• In small bowl, mix bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, parsley, 1 teaspoon salt and dash pepper. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil; work with fingers to moisten the crumbs lightly. Spread mixture on dinner plate. Spread flour on another dinner plate. In shallow bowl or pie plate, beat eggs slightly with fork.

• Dip turkey slices into flour to coat both sides; shake off any excess flour. Dip into eggs, letting any excess drip back into bowl. Coat completely with bread crumb mixture, pressing crumbs in place; place on tray. Cover; refrigerate until ready to fry.

• Heat 12-inch skillet over high heat. Add ¼ inch of olive oil for frying; heat to almost smoking. Add as many turkey slices as skillet will hold; do not crowd. Cook about 2 minutes or until bottom is golden. Turn slices; cook about 30 seconds longer. With tongs, remove turkey as each slice is done, allowing any excess oil to drain back into skillet; place on several thicknesses of paper towels. Repeat with the remaining turkey slices.

• Place arugula in large bowl. Drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil to coat leaves lightly. Add squeeze of lemon juice, additional salt and pepper; toss, taste and adjust the seasoning.

• Divide turkey evenly among dinner plates, placing in center of plate. Spoon 2 tablespoons of Marinara Sauce on each side of the turkey. Mound salad evenly on top of turkey. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top of each salad. Garnish plate with lemon quarter. Serve immediately.

For Sauce:

Marinara

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup finely chopped onion (1 medium)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian (flat-leaf) parsley
1 large clove garlic, finely chopped
1 can (28 oz) Progresso Crushed Tomatoes with added puree
1 large fresh basil sprig with leaves removed
1 teaspoon sea salt or kosher (coarse) salt
Pinch baking soda or sugar, if desired

Directions:
In 3-quart nonreactive saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium heat. Add onion; cook 4 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until translucent. Stir in parsley and garlic; cook about 30 seconds or until fragrant.

Stir in tomatoes, basil stem and salt. Simmer uncovered 20 to 30 minutes, stirring frequently, until thickened. (If sauce tastes too acidic, add pinch of baking soda and cook 5 minutes longer. If sauce needs touch of sweetness, add pinch of sugar and cook 5 minutes longer.) Remove basil stem before serving.

Cranberry-Sage Brown Butter

Ingredients:
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter
4 tablespoons minced fresh sage
1-½ cups fresh cranberries
3 tablespoons dark molasses
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
1 cup chicken stock or low-salt, canned chicken broth

Procedure:
To make the sauce, add butter med-large sauté pan and place over medium-high heat. When butter begins to turn light brown, add fresh sage.

Stir for a few seconds and then add cranberries and sauté until skin begins to burst. Add molasses, balsamic vinegar, and stock, scraping bottom of the pan to pick up all the flavor of the browned butter.

Simmer until cranberries are soft and the sauce coats the back of a spoon, about 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Be sure to taste sauce for seasoning before you pour it over the turkey!

Serves 4.

Michael Chiarello is the tastemaker behind NapaStyle, Chiarello Family Vineyards, Consorzio Flavored Oils, and Tra Vigne Restaurant as well as an Emmy-winning Food Network personality and cookbook author. Over his 20-year career, Michael has drawn on his Southern Italian roots and Napa Valley way of life to pioneer culinary and lifestyle innovations that inspire friends and family to gather around the table to create meaningful traditions in their own lives

Born in 1962 and raised in the central California, Michael followed his childhood dream of becoming a world-class chef. During his 20-year tenure as Executive Chef of Tra Vigne and seven other restaurants, Michael was twice named Chef of the Year: in 1985 by Food and Wine magazine while at Toby’s in Miami; and in 1995 by the Culinary Institute of America.

Food Network’s Easy Entertaining with Michael Chiarello, has won three daytime Emmy Awards, more than any other Food Network show. Michael’s other television shows include NapaStyle on Fine Living, and the PBS television series, Michael Chiarello’s Napa.

His latest cookbook, At Home with Michael Chiarello, follows Michael Chiarello’s Casual Cooking, which won the 2002 IACP Award. Other books include Napa Stories, The Tra Vigne Cookbook, Flavored Vinegars, and Flavored Oils.

Get more recipes from Michael Chiarello on the web @ ProgressoFoods.com.