Chicken Saltimbocca

serves 4
2 boneless chicken breast
2 Tbsp. olive oil
8 oz button mushrooms, halved
1/2 cup dry marsala
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 oz prosciutto chopped (1/2) cup
2 tbsp sage
2 tbsp butter

-Slice chicken breast in half lenght wise
, and pound each piece with a mallet
-Saute pieces of breast in the olive oil until browned, 3 to 5 mins. Transfer to a plate.
-Saute mushrooms in the same pan until starting to brown. About 5 mins.
-Deglaze pan with marsala wine, scraping all the brown bits on the bottom. Add broth and bring to a boil, simmer until liquid is reduced by half.
Off heat, stir in prosciutto sage and butter.
Serve everything with chicken.

Meatballs

I went to bed at 9:00 the night before last. This isn't anything out of the ordinary for me though, I like my sleep. The thing about that night is that it was New Year's Eve, so I totally felt like I missed out on the fun, to say the least.
I know its the beginning of the year and my plan was to eat healthier and drink less, but I started with the complete opposite. I drank vino all day and made meatballs! I stuffed myself with spaghetti and meatballs for lunch, then of course made meatball subs for dinner with the leftovers. But that's it! I will start eating healthy on Monday!

I wasnt really in the mood to make tomato sauce from scratch so I used Mario Batali's Arrabiatta Sauce thats made with San Marzano tomatoes. Its delicious.

Meatballs
2 large garlic cloves, peeled
2 pounds of ground veal/pork/beef mix
2/3 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
2 large eggs
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon minced fresh marjoram
2 teaspoons dried crushed red pepper
1/2 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper


Meatballs

Mix all ingredients for meatballs in a large bowl and mix with your hands. Let stand 15 minutes. Using moistened hands roll meat mixture into 1 1/2-inch meatballs. Add a drizzle of oil onto a med frying pan heat over med heat and start adding meatballs and saute until brown.

In a separate pot bring the sauce to a boil, add meatballs and simmer for about 10 mins. DONE!!!

Pesto Sauce

2 oz olive oil
1 1/2 oz toasted pine nuts
3 oz basil leaves
1/2 oz garlic
2 oz parmesan cheese
2oz romano cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and puree.

Rice Balls

This is a great recipe to make when you have left over rice, also very fast to make.

MAKES 6

INGREDIENTS

1 egg
2 cups of cooked rice
4 oz shredded mozzarella cheese
3/4 cup breadcrumbs

1. Beat the egg and add to the cooled rice along with cheese, and roll into a 2 inch ball.
2. Roll in seasoned breadcrumbs.
3. Deep fry the balls until crispy. Serve with pesto and marinara.