Sunday Italian

Since we'd just had bits of turkey right from the foil it was wrapped in for lunch, I decided to make my Beloved a special dinner Sunday night. The kids have usually eaten with their father before being dropped off, so the Sundays of visitation weekends are generally good for making grown folk-friendly meals. J adores pasta as much as she adores steak and vodka sauce is her favorite. So, I decided I would try making it at home instead of opening a jar of it. I made penne to go with the sauce, chicken scalloppine to go with the penne and a bagged Caesar salad to go with the chicken. Or something like that. Oh, and we had some Italian bread, too.

Chicken Scalloppine

1 egg, beaten
1 c. breadcrumbs
1 1/2 lb. chicken cutlets, pounded thin (if you can't find cutlets, as I couldn't, just pound some
boneless, skinless chicken breast halves thin...or you can use veal cutlets, but I am squeamish about veal)
2 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 lemon, cut in wedges

Mix the egg with a couple tablespoons of water. Dredge the chicken in the egg, then in the breadcrumbs. Melt 1 tbsp. butter in a skillet. Add 1 tbsp. oil and allow to get hot. Fry the cutlets in this, 2-3 minutes per side, adding more butter and oil as needed. Serve with lemon wedges. Serves 4.

Vodka Sauce

1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/2 c. vodka
4 tbsp. butter
1 red onion, sliced
4 tbsp. tomato paste
1 1/2 c. heavy cream
1 1/2 c. freshly-grated parmesan
Salt & pepper

Steep the pepper flakes in the vodka while you get pasta water going and prepare the onion. Melt butter and sauté onion on medium-high until golden and translucent, about 7 minutes. Add vodka. Simmer a couple minutes. Add tomato paste, mixing in thoroughly. Reduce heat to low and add cream and parmesan. Heat through. Season as desired with salt & pepper. Serve with your favorite kind of pasta. Serves 4.