No Half Steppin'

Not one to hold her opinion, Mariesa informed me earlier this week that the past couple of weeks she has found our performance to be less than satisfactory and somewhat off course, and suggested that Mario and I step up our game. To put it more clearly, and in her exact words, she said "no half-steppin' dad!"

I took her comment and shared it with Mario. Both of us looked deep into each others eyes and realized she was right! Like Mickey and Rocky, we both felt the fire stroked by her Apollo Creed, larger than life, grandiose type comment and with Gonna Fly Now playing in our heads we were ready to step up to the challenge of our rival! So for tonight's menu... working out of the red corner, in the orange crocs is the Scaloppine alla Marsala - Veal Scaloppine with Mushrooms, Marsala and Thyme (page 358) with a side of sautéed spinach and Rustic Classico bread.

To prepare for tonight's meal I went to Eataly to purchase all of our ingredients, unfortunetly they did not have the veal medallions required by the recipe. So instead, I took 4 veal chops and bravely attempted to butcher them down into medallions myself. I cut them somewhat thicker than I would have preferred. Inspired by the meat locker scene, Mario stepped up his game and began to pound the meat into thinner slices, all the while both of us whistling the theme to Rocky!

With our medallions prepared we heated up the pan with 1/4 cup EVOO, dredged the veal in flour and began to fry. Once all of our veal was cooked we added the quartered oyster mushrooms (a family favorite) and allowed them to brown before adding in the 1 cup of Marsala wine. After allowing it to reduce by a third we reintroduced the fried veal and allowed the mixture to cook for another 5 to 6 minutes, all the while, cooking the spinach and garlic in a separate pan.

With everything smelling delicious and cooked perfectly we began our walk down to the ring and rang the bell... Ding... Ding! Mariesa came out fighting, but we quickly took her to the mat with a one two punch of great tasting scaloppine and spinach. The count hit 10 and we knew we had won back the belt! With Mariesa leading the crowd in cheers we all agreed this was a great tasting meal!

As we celebrated our victory, and the unofficial start to Summer this Memorial Day weekend, we took time out to remember all of the brave men and women who have served in our Armed Forces. Their bravery has granted us the freedom to pursue this culinary journey. Our prayers go out to all active duty members and their families currently serving around the world and we hope for a quick and safe return.

Ciao,
Mario & Mario
The Three Tocayos