Five Things To See Before You Dine - The Godfather

Written by Nancy Johnson | 19 August 2010

Two

The Godfather I & II: I can’t even think of this series without wanting to sauté some veal cutlet. Not only do we have The Godfather series, we’ve got its dark-haired stepchildren: Good Fellas, Analyze This and The Sopranos. Connecting the dots even further back in history, the HBO series Rome boasted a renegade band of thugs who knew how to make a buck out of a bad situation. My father, born in Italy, refused to watch such rubbish because he felt it gave Italians a bad name. What can I say? I’m a sucker for a movie in a pinstriped suit. Bada Bing.

veal scallopine
My grandfather, Giuseppe Lucarelli, was a cook in the Italian army. He was a quiet man, sometimes rattled by his boisterous grandchildren, but always kind and quick to smile. This is a dish he often made for our family.

6 veal cutlets
1/2 cup flour
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion, sliced
1/2 pound mushrooms
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp minced fresh parsley
Heat oven to 300˚F.

Mix the flour, salt and pepper in a wide bowl. Dredge the cutlets in the flour mixture.
In a large skillet, heat 1 tbsp of oil. Add three cutlets. Reduce heat to medium and cook until browned on one side, about 1 minute. Turn the cutlets over and cook 1 minute or until cooked through.
Transfer cutlets to a baking sheet and set in warm oven. Repeat with remaining cutlets.
Add the remaining 1 tbsp oil to the skillet and sauté onion and mushrooms until cooked through, about 7 minutes. Add the wine, scraping up the browned bits.
Cook until reduced, about 2 to 3 minutes. Whisk in the butter, lemon juice, and parsley. Arrange cutlets on a platter; pour sauce over cutlets.

Grandpa Lucarelli would have set out jugs of his homemade wine, which, in retrospect, tasted a lot like Primitivo to me.