ISO: Maggianos Little Italy; Favorite Dishes

[SoCal]

I received a gift certificate for Maggianos Little Italy restaurant from my sister. My friend was coming in from out of town and he always takes me to PF Changs for dinner when he is here so this time I thought we'd go to Maggianos with another friend of ours. I didn't even think to make reservations but when it was suggested I do, I called and the earliest reservation was at 7:15pm (on a Sunday!). Well, to make a long story a little shorter, I don't like to eat that late so opted to just have salad and a cup of soup (if the 'cup' of soup was that big, I'd hate to see what a bowl of soup looked like!!). Anyway, I'll definetly be going there again, of course I know now to make a reservation in advance and get seated earlier, so I wondered if anyone has eaten there and what you favorites are?

One friend and I split the 'small' Italian salad (and there were leftovers) and I had the Cream of Mushroom and Marsala soup. Both were delicious. We all split the Tiramisu (sp?) which was a first for me. It was absolutely heavenly. Any suggestions you would have for my next visit would be appreciated!

TIA

[kwormann]

Never been to Little Italy, (never heard of it..where are you located) but wanted to tell you that PF Changs ROCKS!!!!!

kim

[Kristi]

Maggiano's is actually one of my absolute favorite restaurants... Everything I've tried is truly excellent. My favorites are the rigatoni w/chicken and mushroom/wine sauce, Joey Z's Pomodoro, the Maggiano's salad, Four Cheese Ravioli,..., I could actually name a few more, but I'll stop right there.

[SoCal]

Thanks so much for the suggestions Kristi! The Rigatoni sounds wonderful. I will definately give it a try the next time I go there.

Kwormann, I'm in Southern California (Newport Beach area). I know that Maggianos is also in Chicago (don't know if they started there or not) which is where my sister moved from. It's a shame that Houston doesn't have this restaurant. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/frown.gif
You are right about PF Changs! It is one of my favorite places to eat although I wish we had a Pappasitos here (we lived in Houston for 5 years).

[BethR]

We have both Maggiano's and PF Changs in the Virginia suburbs of DC. I agree that PF Changs rocks! I love Maggiano's too. It's been a while, but the pasta with tomato-vodka sauce was excellent. Also, I tried a bite of a chicken dish which I just can't remember the name of, but I was told the literal translation of the Italian name is "jump in the mouth" (as in, it's so good it jumps into your mouth). I have to say it lived up to that name -- it was delicious. Does anyone know what this dish is called?

[SoCal]

Thanks for the response BethR! I hope someone comes up with the name of the chicken dish that 'jumps in the mouth'. That sounds very interesting. I've never had tomatoe vodka sauce (I wonder if they use Belvidere Vodka!) so I can tell already that I am going to have a hard time choosing a dish! I appreciate the suggestions. Thanks again.

[Natasha]

I believe you mean chicken saltimbocca. Here's a recipe from http://www.incitrus.com :

Recipe of the Month for September 2000.

"Chicken So Good It Jumps in Your Mouth"
(my version of chicken saltimbocca)

serves 4-6

Ingredients:
3 large chicken breasts, skinned , boned, and halved lengthwise
6 thin slices of prosciutto
3 slices of provolone cheese
1 medium sized tomato, seeded and chopped
1/2 teaspoon of dried, crushed sage
1/2 cup of bread crumbs (I use seasoned)
1/4 cup of grated Romano cheese
2 tablespoons of parsley
4 tablespoons of melted butter (or margarine)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pound chicken lightly, boned side down with meat mallet, until approximately 5 x 5 inches. place 1 slice of prosciutto and 1/2 a slice of provolone on each cutlet. Divided chopped tomato evenly and place on top of cheese. Add a dash of sage. Tuck the ends of chicken in and roll, like a jelly roll. Press end firmly to seal. Combine bread crumbs, Romano cheese and parsley. Dip each rolled chicken into melted butter and then roll in bread crumb mixture. Place in a shallow baking pan or Corning ware and Bake for 35 to 45 min. depending on oven. Chicken should be cooked, but juicy.

Hint: When pounding meat use a sheet of plastic wrap to cover the chicken. This makes for an easier clean-up and is more sanitary.

[SoCal]

THANK YOU Natasha! I immediately printed that recipe. It sound delicious and sooooo easy! Bethr, does this sound like what you were talking about? I'll look on the menu the next time I go to Maggianos...soon http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif
Thanks to each of you again. I knew I could count on this BB.

[Natasha]

SoCal,

You're welcome! I also had a quick look at other chicken saltimbocca recipes to see how they compare, and they were mostly pretty similar to the one I posted yesterday.

This recipe, though, looked a bit different. The Warm Tomato Coulis sounds good and would probably be even better with fresh tomatoes. (This is from an Australian website - I didn't jot down the URL.)

Chicken Saltimbocca with Warm Tomato Coulis

ingredients
4 chicken breasts, sliced in half lengthways
8 slices prosciutto
8 fresh sage leaves
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt
freshly ground black pepper
wilted spinach, to serve
Tomato Coulis
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
4 medium eshallots
375g tinned tomatoes
1 small bouquet garni
pinch sugar
6 peppercorns, crushed

method
Pound chicken breasts with a meat mallet to flatten. Arrange 1 sage leaf over each halved chicken breast, then cover with prosciutto slice.
Pound again to attach prosciutto to chicken, then fasten with toothpicks.
Heat oil in a pan and quickly cook the chicken fillets on both sides until golden. Season well with salt and pepper.
Remove chicken and set aside.
To serve, place spinach on the base of a serving plate, top with chicken saltimbocca and drizzle over coulis.

Tomato Coulis In a heavy-based saucepan, warm the olive oil with the garlic, eshallots and bouquet garni. After 2 minutes, add the tomatoes, sugar and crushed peppercorns, and cook very gently for approximately 10 minutes, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon until all the moisture has evaporated. Remove the bouquet garni and blend the contents of the pan in a food processor until smooth. Season to taste.

The coulis is ready to use immediately, but you can keep it in an airtight container in the fridge for 5 days.

[BethR]

Thanks Natasha! That's definitely the name of the dish! I think Maggiano's version had a tasty brown-colored sauce on the chicken. I've saved both of your recipes to try soon.
Beth

[This message has been edited by BethR (edited 11-09-2000).]