Jeff, the A.D.D. Chef

Eggplant Rollatini

Two years after I came out of the A.D.D. closet and began to earnestly grapple with that problem, I decided to take over the chore of the family dinner. I started with simple things like chicken fingers and french fries (turn on oven, put in stuff, take out 20 minutes later…tough, no?) then graduated to Swedish meatballs, chicken francese, various forms of pork tenderloin and then…one day…eggplant rollatini. I’m still not sure why I wanted to make that dish. I don’t like eggplant and cooking it required every cooking skill I had acquired (all seven of them ) and lots of patience. The first time it took two two hours to do it and I was not thrilled with the results. But by the third time I made it, I had it down to an hour and decided that I did like eggplant…as long as I peeled off the skin and sliced it very thin.

INGREDIENTS

You will be able to get about 20-25 pieces using the quantities listed below.

• 3 cups of plain bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 tbsp of chopped fresh basil
• 1/4 cup of chopped fresh basil
• At least 2 cups of flour
• 4 eggs
• 32 oz of riccota cheese (you can purchase it in this size…so no measuring needed)
• 2 cloves of chopped garlic
• 2 quarts of tomato sauce (if not homemade, then you’ll need about 1 1/2 jars of sauce. I used Barilla marinara sauce and use 1 1/2 jars (26 oz jars))
• 1/3 lb thinly sliced prosciutto
• 1/2 lb mozzarella
• Olive oil
• 2 large eggplants (I used three small eggplants that came from my garden)

DIRECTIONS

1. Cut off the top of the eggplant. If you like, you can peel the eggplant (that’s my preference).
2. Cut thin slices 1/4 inch in thickness or less (I like it real thin). You want to get approximately 20-25 slices.



3. In a large bowl mix the bread crumbs, 1/4 cup of grated cheese, about 2 tbsp of chopped basil and some salt and pepper.
4. In a separate bowl put in the flour.
5. In another bowl put in the eggs and beat well. You may want to do two eggs at a time. When it runs out, add more eggs.
6. Heat up a skillet and add olive oil to a depth of about 1/4 inch or so. Temperature should be medium to high.
7. The procedure is:
   • Dredge the eggplant in the flour.
   • Dip the eggplant in the egg.
   • Dip the eggplant in the breadcrumb mixture.
   • Fry it up till it is just golden brown.
   • Place the fried pieces on a plate that has a paper towel to absorb some of the oil.

   

8. After completing all of the frying, combine the following ingredients in a large bowl: the riccota cheese, the 1/2 cup of grated cheese, 1/4 cup of chopped basil, 1/2 cup of tomato sauce, chopped garlic and 1/4 cup of olive oil. Mix well.



9. Take a baking tray and cover the bottom with a coating of tomato sauce.
10. Here’s the “rolling” procedure:
    • Take a heaping tablespoon of the mixture and place it on a piece of the fried eggplant.
    • Using the back of the spoon, smear it across the eggplant as if you were smearing a thick layer of peanut butter.
    • Place a slice of prosciutto on top.
    • Roll it towards you. Don’t press too hard or the cheese will get pushed out.
    • Place it in the tray with the seam (the point where the two ends of the eggplant meet) facing down.
11. Hang in there…we’re in the home stretch.
12. Slice the mozzarella into thin strips if it is fresh mozzarella or grate it if it is not fresh.
13. Take your tablespoon and run a line of tomato sauce across the top of the rollatini.
14. Place your mozzarella cheese across the top of the rollatini.



15. Bake in a 350 F degree oven for about 15 minutes.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS

1. Give it at least five minutes to cool down after baking. This allows the cheese to re-solidify a bit and not be too runny.
2. This needs some nice Italian bread.

The recipe below will serve three people or two fairly hungry people. It should be served with linguine and some nice Italian bread in order to fulfill federal nutrition guidelines.¹ You’ll note that in most cases no specific quantity is listed for the ingredients. With this recipe it is proportion - not precision - that makes it “easy to make.”² When you purchase ingredients you will almost always have more than needed. More is better than less since leftover ingredients can be used in another recipe.

So to help you get started with this recipe, here are some quantities needed based on my experience: six thinly sliced chicken breasts, 1/4 lb. of prosciutto³, 1/2 lb. package of mozzarella.

INGREDIENTS

• Thinly sliced chicken breasts (two chicken breasts per person…total of six needed)
• Thinly sliced prosciutto (you need one slice per chicken breast)
• Whole or skim milk mozzarella cheese (purchase only a name brand…not a store brand)
  • Place it in the freezer till it begins to freeze (well…not quite freeze…when it gets stiff).
  • Remove it and then make nice thin slices.
  • You will need one slice per chicken breast.
• Grated cheese (Parmigiano-Reggiano…try to get real cheese…avoid imitation)
• Chopped garlic (chopped garlic from a jar works fine)
• Butter or margarine (like SmartBalance®)
• 1/3 cup white wine (cooking wine is okay…some Pinot Grigio may be better)
• 1/4 cup olive oil

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat your oven to 325 degrees F.
2. If you are cooking with Pinot Grigio, now is a good time to sample some of it…to make sure it has not gone bad.
3. Lay the chicken breasts on a platter and sprinkle with grated cheese.
4. Turn over the chicken breasts…sprinkle more cheese.
5. Make sure the Pinot Grigio is not going bad so sample some more of it.
6. On each chicken breast you will place:
   • About 1/4 teaspoon of chopped garlic.
   • About 1/2 teaspoon of butter (or margarine).
   • A slice of mozzarella cheese.
   • A slice of prosciutto. (Tear off a piece of it for placement on top of the rolled up chicken breast.)



7. Roll up the chicken breasts and arrange them in your favorite CorningWare® Dish.
8. Place a small piece of prosciutto on top of each rolled up chicken breast.



9. In a separate container, mix the white wine and olive oil.
10. Slowly pour the wine/oil mixture on top of the chicken breasts.
11. Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes if the chicken breasts are very thin…closer to 45 minutes if they are a bit thick.

Chicken Rollatini - Up Close & Personal

1. What’s a “nice Italian bread”? It is a bread that has a crust with a bit of a crunch but the bread is soft inside. The crust should not be mushy and squeezable. And I believe some nice wine is part of those federal guidelines. [↩]
2. Precision can, in some cases, make a recipe easy to make because you know that if you follow it precisely (redundant…no?) it will come out right. [↩]
3. That equals about ten slices…one slice per chicken breast for a total of six slices with a few left over for the chef to taste. [↩]

If there was ever an award to give out for the most pleasantly aromatic dish then Chicken Marsala would certainly deserve an award. While the Marsala wine lends a wonderful aroma and color to the chicken breast¹ it also adds a delicate flavor. I’m so impressed with the way it transforms the ordinary into the extraordinary that I’ve been adding it to many other dishes. However I’m still not convinced that Pancakes Marsala is going to be a hit anytime soon.

INGREDIENTS

• 6 thinly sliced (or pounded) chicken breasts
• 1 teaspoon of garlic salt
• 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• Olive oil (a few tablespoons)
• 2 tablespoons of butter
• 1 cup of fresh sliced mushrooms
• 1/2 cup of Marsala wine

DIRECTIONS

1. Mix the flour, pepper and garlic salt.
2. Dredge each of the chicken breasts and place them on a platter. (Don’t stack the chicken breasts…you don’t want to accidentally remove the flour coating.)
3. Heat up a skillet with about 3 tablespoons of olive oil and the 2 tablespoons of butter. Keep in mind that you will probably need to add a bit more olive oil as you go along since it will get absorbed by the chicken.
   
4. Lightly brown only one side of the chicken breasts and then, when that is done, flip them over and start to lightly brown the other side.
5. Add the mushrooms and keep browning the chicken breasts.
6. When both sides have been browned, pour the wine over the chicken, cover the skillet and simmer for about 10-12 minutes.

NOTE

1. Since the chicken breast is very thin, it doesn’t take long to lightly brown. It’s a judgment call as to how long it takes to brown each side. If the skillet is fairly hot and the chicken breast is about 1/4 inch in thickness then it may not take more than two minutes to lightly brown each side. If you are concerned about undercooked chicken, keep in mind that you will be adding wine and cooking the chicken - at a simmer - for an additional ten minutes. (However, see Note 2 below.)

2. One way I judge when the simmering is done is by standing very close to the skillet, removing the cover and then breathing deeply. If I no longer smell the alcohol from the wine then I know it has simmered long enough.

3. I like to serve this dish with pasta and a nice Italian bread.²

VARIATIONS

1. Substitute veal cutlets for the chicken.
2. Add fresh spinach.

1. Or veal, if you decide to use that instead. [↩]
2. What’s a “nice Italian bread”? It is a bread that has a crust with a bit of a crunch but the bread is soft inside. The crust should not be mushy and squeezable. [↩]

When I took over cooking duties in my home (my wife is a great cook but she works long hours) this was one of the first recipes I tried. It is simple and the results are fantastic.

INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 4 eggs, beaten
• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (Buy thin-sliced chicken breasts or slice them yourself. I prefer the latter. It’s much cheaper. To do this I use a boning knife and VERY CAREFULLY slice through the chicken breasts horizontally. I can get at least two good thin slices. Sometimes three. If the third slice doesn’t look too good, I save it to make my own chicken fingers.)
• 1/2 cup white wine (I’ll admit it…I use the stuff from Goya.)
• 2 cups chicken broth (Two small cans (14.5 oz) of College Inn Chicken Broth will do. Stay away from light/fat-free broths…they are as tasty as tap water.)
• Salt and pepper to taste.
• 1/4 cup butter (Smart Balance works fine)
• 2 lemons, juiced (Or…the less ambitious may prefer ReaLemon lemon juice. I use about 7 tablespoons. The result is a sauce that has a lemony flavor but not overpowering, that is, you do NOT pucker as a result.)
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch dissolved in some cold water. (You may find that you need another tablespoon of cornstarch.)

DIRECTIONS

1. Coat the chicken with flour, then the egg beat, then saute in a large skillet until almost cooked through. Chicken should be a very light brown in color. “Doneness” is a function of how thin you sliced the chicken. (Note: I usually use olive oil.) Place cooked chicken in a large, deep platter (a casserole-type dish is fine…remember…you’ll be adding sauce to this so you need some depth).

2. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. (Don’t forget to remove anything you store in your oven BEFORE turning it on.)

3. In a medium saucepan (2-quart about right) combine the wine, broth, salt and pepper to taste, butter or margarine and lemon juice over medium low heat. Stir together while heating slowly. When butter or margarine has melted, slowly stir in cornstarch until sauce thickens slightly.

4. Pour sauce on the chicken. (You placed it in that oven-safe deep dish…right?)

5. Bake at 300 degrees F for about 15 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.

Options/Variations

Spinach: Fresh spinach is a great addition. Cover the chicken with as much spinach as you can get into your dish. Fresh spinach will tend to spring back up so push it down on the chicken to sort of flatten it out. Pour the sauce over it…then bake. The spinach will absorb a lot of that lemony flavor. Fish or Shrimp: You can substitute a mild fish - tilapia, catfish (yes…catfish) - or shrimp. The fish, of course, will require a gentle hand when turning over to saute. Be warned that if the fish is over baked it will tend to fall apart. So you may want to try shrimp instead. Do not buy precooked shrimp. Get fresh shrimp and clean them yourself.

Additional Comments

1. This tastes great reheated so save those leftovers.

2. This recipe scales well…I’ve cooked it for twenty people.

[updated on Sept. 11, 2007]

For another perspective on this cooking process, see: Conservation of Chaos: The A.D.D. Improvement Process.