Some people have issues with veal — I don’t. I’m not a big fan of sitting down to a veal shank (I may change my mind someday about that), but I love lean, thin cuts of veal (costoletta di vitello alla milanese, with  or without bone is one of my favorite dishes!). This dish is a bit more involved (say, Sunday afternoon) than some of my other posts, but it is well worth the effort — very delicious and elegant!. Once again, the ingredients a simple, and come together very well. Hope you give it a try!

12 veal scaloppine slices (about 1 1/2 lbs, no more than 1/4 inch thick), cut into roughly 4-inch x 4-inch squares, very lightly salted on both sides
1/2 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted and coarsely chopped
1/2 cup yellow raisins, soaked in 3/4 cup hot red wine for 10 minutes; drained
1 cup grated pecorino romano cheese
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
3 oz thick prosciutto from butcher, diced
1/3 cup coarsely chopped parsley
3 large cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
1 large egg
1/4 cup olive oil
1 1/2 oz pancetta, minced
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 28-oz can tomato puree
1 1/2 cups red wine
1/2 cup beef broth
1 tsp salt

In a medium bowl, combine pine nuts, raisins, cheese and black pepper.

In the bowl of a food processor, add the prosciutto, parsley and garlic. Pulse a few times until a paste forms (don’t over process). Add the paste to the pine nut mixture together with the egg. Combine well.

On a nice, clean spot on your counter, lay out the 12 scaloppine pieces. Place a good-sized spoonful of the prosciutto mixture on each piece of veal. Gently roll up each veal piece (stretch meat if necessary), and secure with three pieces of butcher’s twine.

In a large, shallow sauce pan (or something similar, that will easily fit all scallopini in a single layer), heat olive oil over medium heat. Add the pancetta and saute 2 minutes. Add onion and saute another 3 minutes. Remove pancetta and onion with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Add the stuffed scaloppine and brown on all sides (about 8 minutes). Remove and set aside.

Add tomato puree, red wine, beef stock and salt to the pan. Bring to a boil, while deglazing at the same time. Reduce heat to medium and cook about a minute. Add back the stuffed scaloppine, onions and pancetta. Gently ensure that the scallopini are well-covered in the sauce. Cover. Reduce heat to very low and simmer gently for 1 hour. Remove from heat and let sit, covered, for an additional hour (very important step!). Remove butcher’s twine from scaloppine. Serve over orecchiette that have been tossed in a bit of olive oil and a hint of salt.

Serves 4.