Chef Driss Tahari is in charge of Bella Tuscany’s kitchen, tucked inside the Cornerstone at Summerport Plaza in Windermere. The restaurant is Italian, but the chef is from Morocco.
“Let me tell you something,” he said, smiling. “This is a dish from my first visit to North Italy.”
Tahari is referring to his Veal Valdostana.
“This is the first dish that I had over there,” he said.
He’s comfy now at Bella Tuscany, having worked there for about a decade. But to Tahari, comfy means constantly creating and getting heads to turn when a dish is delivered.
Hungry? Let’s cook!
Veal Valdostana – by Bella Tuscany
Ingredients:
16 ounces Veal chop
3 slices Mozzarella Cheese
3 thin slices of prosciutto
1 tablespoon of shallots
4 tablespoon olive oil
3 large eggs beaten
2 cups fresh bread crumbs
2 tablespoon butter
1 cup Marsala wine
2 tablespoon Bechamel
2 cup chicken stock or bouillon
1 cup slice fresh shiitake mushroom
8 ounces capellini pasta
4-5 pieces shaved Parmesan
Directions:
With a meat tenderizer, pound veal chop (both sides) to 1/8-1/4 inch thick. Season with just a dash of salt and pepper, but keep in mind the prosciutto is salty.
Spread flour on a plate, line up bowls (one containing beaten egg wash the other containing bread crumbs)
Dredge both sides of the chop in flour and then dip into egg wash. Make sure egg wash covers both sides of the entire chop, shake off excess and dip chop into the bread crumbs (pressing crumbs into meat until fully covered). Place the breaded chop to side and let sit for 30-45 minutes.
Heat sauté pan over medium heat, add oil and place breaded chop into pan, cooking one to two minutes on each side or until golden brown. Remove chop place on sheet pan. Top with bechamel, prosciutto slices, and mozzarella cheese, and bake 450 degrees for 15 minutes.
In sauté pan, add the rest of the butter, chicken stock, mushrooms, shallots and Marsala wine over a medium flame. Cook for 5 minutes while stirring until you achieve a light thickness.
Boil pasta for 5 minutes.
Plate pasta, remove veal chop from oven and place on top of pasta. Pour Marsala wine and mushrooms over veal chop, sprinkle shaved Parmesan on top of sauce and serve.
