Ingredients
For Tomato Sauce:
- 2 cans canned peeled tomatoes 28 oz each
- 1 large or 2 medium yellow onions small diced
- 2-4 garlic cloves sliced razor thin
- 2 teaspoon sugar
- Kosher salt to taste
- Black pepper to taste
- 3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoon basil finely chopped
- Optional: Parmesan cheese rinds
For Veal Scallops:
- 1 ½ cups unseasoned breadcrumbs preferably panko
- ¾ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- ½ tablespoon fresh parsley minced
- ½ tablespoon fresh basil minced (reserve a couple leaves for garnish)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 large or 3 medium eggs
- 1 teaspoon water
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 6-8 veal scallops thinly pounded veal cutlets
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 1 ½ cups tomato sauce from above
- 8 slices mozzarella cheese
Method
For the Tomato Sauce:
- Heat Dutch oven or sauce pot over medium-low heat and add olive oil.
- Once hot, add diced onion and cook 1-2 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are translucent, maintaining low heat to avoid browning.
- Add canned peeled tomatoes and sugar. You can use crushed tomatoes or crush whole peeled tomatoes yourself.
- Cook uncovered for at least 30 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, or up to 12–24 hours for thicker sauce (use lid if cooking long, monitor and stir frequently).
- Before serving, add chopped basil and season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Optional: Add parmesan rinds when starting the sauce for extra umami flavor.
For the Veal Scallops:
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C) with rack in center.
- Pound veal cutlets to about ¼ inch thickness if needed.
- Combine breadcrumbs (pulse panko if you want finer texture), ½ cup parmesan, basil, parsley, salt, and pepper in a shallow bowl or plate.
- Whisk eggs with water in a shallow bowl.
- Spread all-purpose flour on a plate.
- Set up breading station: veal cutlets → flour → egg → breadcrumb mixture → baking sheet/plate. Coat each cutlet thoroughly at each step.
- Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add veal scallops and sauté until golden brown on each side (~2-3 min per side), adding more oil if pan gets dry.
- Transfer cooked veal to paper towel-lined plate.
- Lightly oil an ovenproof baking dish. Spread ½ cup tomato sauce on the bottom.
- Arrange veal scallops on sauce, slightly overlapping. Sprinkle with ¼ cup parmesan.
- Cover with 1 cup tomato sauce (reserve remaining sauce for another use or freeze).
- Top with mozzarella slices and sprinkle remaining parmesan.
- Cover with foil and bake for 20-30 minutes until heated through.
- For browned top, broil briefly or use a kitchen torch.