Turkey Cutlets with a Marsala and Mascarpone Sauce and a Minor Accident!

Turkey Cutlets with a Marsala and Mascarpone Sauce and a Minor Accident!

I wanted to have a nice romantic dinner for me and Mr. Bunkycooks one evening a couple of weeks ago. We are really sick and tired of eating chicken were looking to find another “white meat” option, so I thought I would buy some turkey cutlets for a refreshing change. (I am not sure how different it really is, but at least it said turkey and not chicken on the wrapper!).

Anyway, I thought a nice little Italian meal would be appropriate since I am married to an Italian kind of guy, so I decided to make Turkey Marsala with a really yummy sauce (that I made up as I went along based on what I had!) and a little bit of really tasty garlic parsley fettuccine on the side.

We had some beautiful heirloom tomatoes from a local farmers market that were perfectly ripe. I made a simple green salad with baby lettuces and sliced the tomatoes on top. They have sooo much flavor all by themselves. There is no need to muck them up serve anything else with them. Just add a little olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper and you are good to go!

Mr. Bunkycooks had even pulled out a really nice bottle of Schug Pinot Noir to go along with our lovely dinner. Everything was going along just fine and dandy. I was out on the back deck taking some photos for this post. We were hungry and excited and almost ready to sit down for our little soiree.

Well then, I can tell you all heck (I could use another word here, but I won’t) broke loose! As I was slicing the Parmigiano-Reggiano to top the Turkey Marsala and pasta dish (so that I could make pretty pictures to post here), I also happened to slice the top part of my index finger off right along with the cheese! Can you say ouch (and other unmentionables) and oh my, this was so incredibly painful!

Needless to say, Mr. Bunkycooks had to finish up the photos while I nearly fainted from all the blood kept trying to put pressure on my finger. Obviously, the little romantic dinner was not so romantic after all of that mess and the wine acted as a pain killer instead of complimenting the dinner perfectly.

This combination of flavors was delicious (regardless of what happened after cooking) and I will definitely make it again. I will, however, use a real cheese plane and not a vegetable peeler (as I have done for years) to shave my hard cheeses onto dishes as a garnish. If a veggie peeler is capable of taking the hard skin off of a butternut squash, just think what it can do to your finger! I can tell you and it ain’t pretty!

I prepared the pasta and just drizzled it with a little of the sauce from the pan (since we are trying to watch our waistlines…watch them do what I am not sure!). You could also drizzle the pasta with a little olive oil or double the recipe for the pan sauce if you would like more sauce for the pasta. This particular pasta from Al Dente has a nice flavor, so I didn’t add much sauce to it, although Mr. Bunkycooks said he would have liked more (since it was so tasty!).

Enjoy!

My dog wanted to see what was happening on the back deck!

Turkey Cutlets with a Marsala and Mascarpone Sauce

Serves 3

Ingredients:

1 pound turkey cutlets (if they are very thick, pound them until they are 1/4 inch thick)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more as needed
10 ounces ( from a 12 ounce package) of Al Dente Garlic and Parsley Fettuccine, or other gourmet pasta of your choice
6 ounces portobello mushrooms, wiped clean and sliced
1/2 cup Marsala
1/2 cup low-sodium beef broth
2 generous tablespoons of mascarpone cheese
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Chopped fresh parsley for garnish
Generous amounts of shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano

Directions:

Mix flour with salt and pepper in a flat dish or bowl. Dredge each cutlet in the flour mixture, shaking off the excess flour. Set aside. Heat 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot, but not smoking, add one to two cutlets to the pan (whatever will fit with overlapping). Cook for four to five minutes or until browned. * You may need to add extra olive oil as the cutlets will absorb much of it. Turn cutlets over and cook until the other side is brown. Remove from the pan and keep warm. Add another two tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil. Repeat The process of cooking the cutlets until they are all browned. Keep them warm.

While you are cooking the cutlets, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil for the pasta.

Add a little more olive oil, if necessary, to the same non-stick skillet. Add mushrooms and saute for two to three minutes until they begin to sweat and turn brown.

Cook the pasta (this particular brand only takes three minutes to cook). Drain. If desired, drizzle a little olive oil over the pasta. Season with salt and pepper.

Add Marsala and beef broth to the skillet. Bring to a simmer and cook for a few minutes until the sauce is reduced by about a third. Whisk in the mascarpone cheese until the sauce is smooth. Taste for seasonings and add salt or freshly ground pepper as needed. Return the cutlets to the pan for just a minute or two to absorb the flavors and warm them through. The sauce should thicken when you add the cutlets. Serve immediately over the pasta. Garnish with fresh parsley and shaved Parmigaino-Reggiano.

* This sauce was so good, you might want to make a double recipe!

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