Lidias Veal And Eggplant Gratinate For One Food

VEAL CAKES ON SILKY EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Heat 3 tablespoon oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat until it shimmers, then cook eggplant with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 5 minutes.
• Stir together tomato paste, sugar, water, and vinegar and add to eggplant with 1/3 cup scallions, then braise, covered, over medium heat until eggplant is tender, about 12 minutes.
• While eggplant braises, gently mix veal, dill, remaining 1/3 cup scallions, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl, then form into 4 (4-inch) cakes.
• Heat remaining 3 tablespoons oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot. Dredge veal cakes in flour, shaking off excess, then fry, turning once, until golden-brown, 8 to 12 minutes total for medium. 3Divide eggplant among 4 plates and top with veal cakes.

SKILLET GRATINATE OF ZUCCHINI AND CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preparing the Chicken and Zucchini
• Place a rack in the center or upper third of the oven and preheat to 425°.
• If the chicken breasts are whole, cut them in half. Trim off any bits of fat, skin, or tendon. Flatten each breast half with a mallet (or the flat bottom of a heavy pan) to an even thickness, about 3/4 inch.
• Trim the stem and blossom ends of the zucchini and wash well. Slice across the squash on a sharp angle, creating long ovals, 1/4 inch thick. You should have about twenty pieces at least 3 inches long, and a few shorter pieces from the ends.
• Put 3 tablespoons of the olive oil in the skillet, tilt to coat the bottom, and set it over medium heat.
• Toss about half the zucchini pieces in flour to coat well (set flour aside to use for chicken), pat off any excess, and lay them in the pan. Keep the heat moderate, and let the pieces caramelize slowly for about 4 minutes. Turn when the edges are nicely browned on the underside; fry for about 2 minutes on the second side. With a slotted spatula, lift the pieces to a plate or tray (no paper towels are needed here) and salt lightly. Fry the remaining zucchini ovals in the same way and salt them. While frying, monitor the heat, keeping it high enough to brown the zucchini but not let them burn.
• When the zucchini are done, turn off the heat but leave all the oil in the skillet.
• Starting on the Stovetop
• Have all of your gratinate and sauce ingredients handy to the stove.
• You should have at least 2 tablespoons of olive oil in the skillet (add a bit if needed). Add 1 tablespoon of the butter and set the pan over medium-low heat.
• Salt the chicken pieces lightly, flop them in the dredging flour to coat on both sides, and pat off excess. When the butter is just beginning to sizzle, arrange all six cutlets in the pan. Cook them gently for 1 1/2 minutes, then turn them over; they should be very lightly colored, with no browning.
• Maintain the gentle cooking while you assemble the gratinate.
• Sprinkle the chicken again with salt (using 1/2 teaspoon total for the dish).
• Spread a heaping tablespoon of tomato sauce on top of each cutlet.
• Arrange the zucchini slices on top of the sauced chicken, overlapping the ovals so each portion is neatly covered. Use all the zucchini.
• Now raise the heat a bit and begin to develop the sauce:
• Sprinkle the peperoncino onto an open "hot spot" where it will sizzle and toast briefly.
• Drop the remaining butter, in small pieces, in between the layered cutlets.
• After a few seconds, pour in 2/3 cup of the wine around the cutlets and let it heat briefly, 10 to 20 seconds.
• Spoon the rest of the cup of tomato sauce into the pan (not on the chicken).
• Bring to a simmer, then drop the mint into the sauce all around the pan.
• Give the pan a gentle shake or two, to mix and emulsify the sauce ingredients.
• Finally, sprinkle 2 tablespoons of grated cheese evenly over each zucchini-topped mound.
• At this point, the sauce should be about 1/3 inch deep in your pan or even higher, coming well up the sides of the chicken cutlets. If not, pour in the rest of the wine and as much hot vegetable broth or stock as necessary. Raise the heat again to bring the pan sauce to an active simmer.
• Finishing in the Oven
• When the sauce is simmering, place the skillet in the oven. (Put the handle in front and the food in the back.)
• Bake for about 10 minutes-and have thick pot holders or dry towels in hand before you touch the handle or the skillet!-then open the oven and check the pan.
• Right on the rack, give the skillet another gentle shake. There should still be plenty of sauce, and the cheese should be lightly colored. If the sauce appears syrupy, or close to evaporating, add more vegetable broth, stock, tomato sauce, or wine to raise the level.
• Bake for another 8 to 10 minutes, until the chicken is fully cooked and tender and the gratinate top is deeply and evenly browned. If the cheese layer still appears too light, raise the heat in the oven as high as possible (turn on the broiler if it is top-mounted) and bake briefly until it is as dark and crispy as you like.
• Carefully remove the skillet from the oven, handling it with plenty of thick cloths. I carry it right to the dining table, where it makes a beautiful presentation (see the photo on page 286). While it is on the table, leave the cloths covering the hot handle. With a large, angled spatula, lift one portion of chicken-and-zucchini gratinate onto a dinner plate, then spoon over it some of the sauce.

CHICKEN WITH EGGPLANT (LIDIA BASTIANICH)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400ºF degrees.
• Trim the eggplants, and peel if you prefer. Lidia stripes them,
• Slice on an angle, so that you have 12 good slices in all.
• Dredge the eggplant in flour that has been seasoned with salt, pepper & Italian seasoning.
• Heat a large skillet (preferably with a lid), add enough oil to coat the bottom, and fry the eggplant on medium-high heat until caramelized on both sides.
• Set aside on paper towels to drain while you make the chicken.
• Lightly pound the chicken breasts and dredge in the seasoned flour.
• Reheat the same skillet on medium heat, add two tablespoons of oil and tablespoons of butter, swirling to mix.
• Cook the chicken until caramelized on the one side.
• You want the chicken to brown--but do not try to hasten the process by cooking it on high heat.
• You want to do it over gentle heat so as not to toughen the meat.
• Turn them over to caramelize on the other side, and top each breast with two slices of eggplant, then a spoonful of sauce, two basil leaves, and a good sprinkling of cheese, and as much Italian seasoning as you want.
• Let cook for about two minutes, turn up the heat to medium-high, add the wine to the pan, then the remaining tomato sauce.
• Shake the pan a bit to mix, add in the last two tablespoons of butter and shake again to mix.
• Put the lid on the pan (if your pan does not have a lid, cover with foil that has been sprayed with cooking spray) and finish cooking in the oven--approx 20 minutes.
• Remove from oven and serve with a flourish.
• Try to use homemade tomato sauce, this is one of those dishes where you will be greatly rewarded for using the homemade sauce.
• To cut down on the fat/calories, you can grill or roast the eggplant instead.
• It is this final oven cooking that makes the chicken meltingly tender and the wine, tomato sauce and butter transform themselves into an incredible sauce.

LIDIA BASTANICH'S BAKED EGGPLANT IN TOMATO SAUCE (MELANZANE IN T

Steps:

• Trim the stem and bottom ends of each eggplant and, with a vegetable peeler, shave off ribbons of skin lengthwise, creating a zebra-striped pattern all around. Slice the eggplants crosswise into 1/2-inch thick rounds. Lightly salt the slices on both sides, using about a tablespoon in all, and layer them in a colander, set in a bowl or the sink. Invert a dinner plate over the piled slices, and weight it with cans or other heavy objects. Let the rounds drain for 30 minutes to an hour, then rinse them, and pat dry with paper towels.
• Meanwhile, arrange a rack in the middle of the oven, and heat to 400 degrees F.
• Put the tomato sauce in a bowl, and stir in the olives, sliced pepperoncini capers, and basil. Spread about 1/2 cup of the sauce over the bottom of a baking dish (I used a 9 X 9 dish, but the extra thick layers required an extra 20 minutes of baking time). Lay in half the eggplant slices in a single layer, overlapping if necessary. Drop spoonfuls of tomato sauce, another 1/2 cup total, on top of the eggplant layer, and sprinkle over it half the grated cheese. Lay in the remaining eggplant rounds in an even layer, spoon and spread the remaining sauce over them, and scatter the rest of the cheese all over the top.
• Tent the baking dish with a sheet of heavy aluminum foil, arching it so it doesn't touch the cheese topping, pressing it against the sides. Set the dish on a baking sheet, place in the oven, and bake for 45 minutes, until the juices are bubbling actively. Remove the foil, and continue baking for another 15 minutes or so, until the cheese topping is golden brown and eggplant is caramelized on the edges yet tender and easily pierced with the tip of knife.
• Let the eggplant rest for 20 minutes (to absorb the sauce). Cut portions with a knife, and lift them out with a wide spatula into warm shallow bowls.