Chicken Cutlet Parmigiano with Warm, Fresh Grape Tomato Topping, Pesto, and Mozzarella

Hello my fine food loving friends! I woke up today in a wonderful mood. Possibly it was because there was actually a tiny bit of blue sky showing, or could it be that last nights dinner was an off the chart winner? Both help, but the latter made me so happy. I had the whole gang here last night and everyone, I mean EVERYONE, went on and on about how much they loved this meal! Jessi even went so far as to say it was two thumbs up and she wished she had three thumbs so she could really show how much she loved it.


This recipe was a bit of a pain at first though and I was wondering if I really even wanted to make it. Let me explain, I normally shop at the local Albertson's. I knew I had seen turkey breasts and turkey cutlets there in the past so I was not nervous about finding the ingredients I needed. Boy was I wrong. I went to do my shopping and could not find a package of turkey ANYTHING in the store. I also could not find a couple of things for other recipes but I will stick to just this story for now.


So off I go to the other side of town. Even though I don't live in a very large town I will still complain. I get to QFC and they don't have turkey breast anything either! Ggrrrrr why do they have to make it so difficult? I tell myself I have all week to get them so I go on with my weekly shopping, putting my quest for turkey cutlets on the back burner.


Now fast forward to yesterday, yes I waited until the last minute, and Kevin and I are back at Albertson's. I found whole turkey breasts and turkey legs, but still no cutlets. I know one of the guys that works in the butcher block so I asked what was up. He asks around. All the info I can get is they used to carry turkey cutlets, which I already knew, but for some reason they no longer do. Now I am in a pinch knowing I am scheduled to make this recipe that night. I look down and see chicken cutlets. Ok, not much difference except size really, so I grab them and we get on with the rest of our shopping.


We get home and both grab bags and put the items away. When the time comes to start dinner I go searching for the chicken cutlets and can't find them anywhere. I call Kevin to the kitchen so I can ask him if he put them somewhere, and he didn't bring them in either. He searched the car and then we both realize we had to have left them at the store. Kevin jumps in the car and heads back to Albertson's. Of course they are no longer there. Someone not only got 2 pounds of free chicken cutlets, but they got 4 1 1/2" center cut boneless pork chops too!


Poor Kevin calls me to tell me this and to ask what exactly I needed because the butcher was going to cut it for me. He picked up what we needed and headed home. He is so wonderful!


Anyway, now you can see the fiasco this recipe started out as. All of that aside, as long as you have all of your ingredients and don't leave them behind anywhere, you should be fine. This recipe is a bit more work than the last few, but it isn't really that much work, as it is so worth it!


Ok, we are on recipe #57 for those that have the book. I of course made a couple of slight changes, but not much. I sliced my grape tomatoes in half so they would cook out more and be like a sauce. It might not have been necessary, but with non tomato lovers in your family, you have to try to get tomatoes as close to sauce as possible. As it goes I really could have made them the correct way because Jessi just asked me to leave the tomatoes off of hers.


I also kept the onion, garlic, tomato topping simmering for pretty much the whole time I was cooking. I think it came out fabulous as did everyone else. Possibly the other way will give you more of a fresh tomato flavor (as the recipe suggests) but we liked it this way. Next time I may try to get the tomatoes closer to a fresh flavor.


Kevin helped as I cooked the cutlets and we ended up with a little assembly line from flouring to placing them on the cookie sheet to broil in the oven. Here is what they looked like at this point.

Don't they look good? I was so excited by this point I almost wanted to eat one before it went in the oven!

I made a simple side of asparagus and dinner was ready!! I think next time I will make my homemade pesto instead of the store bought though. Fresh just has much more flavor. 

Just looking at the picture makes me want more but Seth took the last one home with him last night. I had to make do with left over Italian Style Garlic Shrimp for lunch. Poor me right?

Turkey Cutlet Parmigiano with Warm, Fresh Grape Tomato Topping, Pesto, and Mozzarella

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil (lighter than EVOO), plus some for shallow frying.
• 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 3 to 4 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup Italian bread crumbs (three overflowing handfuls)
• 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (a couple of handfuls)
• 1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves (a generous handful), chopped
• 2 pounds turkey breast cutlets
• 1 pint grape tomatoes, red or yellow or a mix
• 1/2 cup dry white wine or chicken stock
• 1 cup store bought, good quality pesto sauce (the refrigerated stuff)
• 1 large ball fresh mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced or grated

Directions

For the grape tomato topping, preheat a medium size skillet over medium-high heat with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the onions, garlic, salt, and pepper. Cook until the onions are translucent, 2 to 3 minutes.

While the onions are cooking, set up the breading station for the cutlets. Place the flour in a shallow dish. In another shallow dish, thoroughly beat together the eggs with a splash of water. In a third shallow dish, combine the bread crumbs, Parmigiano, and the parsley. Heat a thin layer of olive oil in a large skillet, just enough to coat the bottom of the pan, over medium to medium-high heat. Season the cutlets with salt and pepper on both sides and turn lightly in the flour. Thoroughly coat the cutlets in the egg and then in the breading, and add to the hot oil. Cook the cutlets in a single lasyer, in 2 batches if necessary, for 3 or 4 minutes per side, until the juices run clear and the breading is evenly browned. Remove the cooked cutlets to a plate lined with a paper towel.

To the skillet with the onions, add the grape tomatoes and white wine or stock. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes start to burst and the wine has reduced by half.

Preheat the broiler.

Arrange the cooked cutlets on a cookie sheet. Top each cutlet with a little of the warm tomato topping, top that with a little pesto, then top that with 2 slices of mozzarella cheese. Place the cookie sheet under the broiler and broil until the cheese warms and melts but has not browned. Serve immediately.

Serves 4 (very hungry people)