January 18: Turkey Saltimbocca Roll-Ups, Mushroom and White Bean Ragout, and Spinach with Pancetta and Onions

12 turkey cutlets, 1 to 1 1/2 pounds in all
6 slices prosciutto di Parma, cut in half
12 whole fresh sage leaves plus 2 tablespoons finely chopped sage
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
   Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 pound cremini (baby portobello) mushrooms, wiped clean and sliced
1 15-ounce can cannellini beans or great northern beans, drained
2 tablespoons wine vinegar, white or red
2 cups chicken stock or broth
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/8 pound (3 slices) pancetta or bacon, chopped
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 pound triple-washed spinach, stemmed and coarsely chopped
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated or ground nutmeg

Using a meat mallet or a heavy, small skillet, pound the turkey between sheets of wax paper or plastic wrap to 1/8-inch thickness.

Top each turkey cutlet with a half slice of prosciutto and a whole sage leaf.

Roll up the cutlets and drizzle them with EVOO, then season with salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of the EVOO. Arrange the roll-ups seam side down and cook for 6 minutes, then turn and cook for 6 minutes more.

While the turkey cooks, make the mushroom and white bean ragout. Heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons of the EVOO, then add the garlic, red pepper flakes, and mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes to deepen the color.

Stir in the beans and season up the mixture with salt and pepper. When the beans heat through, in a minute or two, add the vinegar and stir, then add 1/2 cup of the chicken stock to deglaze the pan. Turn off the heat.

After the turkey roll-ups have cooked on both sides, transfer to a platter and reserve. Add the butter to the skillet and reduce the heat to medium low. Add the flour to the melted butter and combine with a whisk. Whisk in the wine and cook it for about 30 seconds. Whisk in the remaining 1 1/2 cups of chicken stock to make a gravy. Add the remaining chopped sage, then season with salt and pepper. Slide the roll-ups back into the gravy and simmer over low heat until ready to serve.

For the spinach, heat a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the remaining tablespoon of EVOO, then the chopped pancetta. Brown the pancetta for 1 minute, then add the onions and cook together for 5 minutes, or until they are just tender and the pancetta bits are crisp.

Add the spinach to the pan and turn to wilt it while combining with the onions. Season the spinach with nutmeg, salt and pepper.

Serve 3 roll-ups in gravy with a portion of the ragout and the spinach alongside.

4 SERVINGS

In this recipe I used 10 turkey cutlet halves instead of 12 (it was from a 1 pound turkey tenderloin). So I used 5 slices of prosciutto instead of 6, and, of course, 10 sage leaves instead of 12. They were pretty small. I've been using the same container of sage for the past 2 weeks. It's lasted pretty long, but I only had little leaves left. That's probably all the better though, because my husband doesn't like sage. That was plenty of meat for us too, because we each only ate 2 roll-ups.

I can never find cannellini beans. It took me some time to find out, but they are white kidney beans. I always just sub in the big white beans: not the navy beans, but the great northern. I used white wine vinegar to go with the white beans. I could not find pancetta, so I used what I had: turkey bacon. I have made this before and it was much better with pancetta. It was actually very, very good. I would not make this again with turkey bacon but I suppose it might be okay with regular bacon.

This recipe turned out okay, but not great. My husband did not like the sage in the roll-ups and I though they were a little bland. The Ragout was very watery, but tasted good. The spinach was very very watery, and it had an off flavor. I would recommend getting a salad spinner to get all the liquid off after washing the leaves. I don't have one yet. Next time, I think I would skip the turkey and just make the ragout and the spinach. They would be plenty by themselves!