BELOW STAIRS: Recipes for Readers and Writers

Readers and writers do not live by intellectual sustenance alone—sometimes they need the real thing! I was fortunate in having an Italian mother who came from a very large family of talented cooks. My nana was the best of them, and never used a recipe in all the years she turned out fantastic pastas, roasts, Italian pastries, and pizza. My mother, Flora, was a great cook too, often developing her own special dishes or expanding on family recipes.

Here are some of the best recipes from my childhood. I’ll be updating them frequently, so be sure to check back. And, if the mood strikes me, I might even throw in a Regency recipe, or two!

And don’t forget to check my News page to find out the latest news about my Books.

Flora’s Roman Veal Scaloppini

In my family, veal scaloppini would always bring out the hordes. It was only cooked for special dinners since it was fairly long on the preparation – at least back when I was a kid. My mother and aunts used to carve the veal slices themselves from whole cuts of meat. A very time-consuming process, as you can imagine! They would then pound the veal slices into tenderness. Fortunately, good veal now comes already sliced into scallops, so this fabulous recipe doesn’t take long at all to prepare.

• 8 Tbs. butter
• ¾ lbs. mushrooms sliced
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 clove garlic, peeled
• 3 cups chopped, peeled tomatoes
• 2/3 cup dry white wine
• ¼ tsp crushed, dried tarragon leaves
• 12 thin veal scallops, about 1½ lbs.
• salt & pepper to taste
• grated parmesan cheese

Melt 5 Tbs. of the butter in a large pan. Sauté the mushrooms until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the onion and garlic and cook another five minutes over a medium low heat. Add the tomatoes, wine, tarragon, and ¾ tsp. salt, stirring until well blended. Bring the sauce to a low boil then reduce heat, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, wipe veal with a damp paper towel. Sprinkle each piece with a bit of salt and pepper. Heat the remaining butter in a large skillet. Add veal a few pieces at a time and cook until lightly browned on both sides – about five minutes. Remove and keep warm.

When the sauce is finished, return all the veal to the skillet. Remove the garlic clove from the sauce and pour the sauce over the veal. Cover and simmer for five minutes. To finish, sprinkle with parmesan cheese and serve.

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