At the end of 1867, the Garibaldians in Rome were waiting for the right moment to compel the city to rise up against the papal government.
Giuditta Tavani, a young patriot, used to host the Garibaldians and refuel them with delicious dishes. One of her most famous recipes was baked veal breast.
The story did not have a good ending, as 37 Roman citizens – including Giuditta, her husband, and her 12-year-old son – were murdered in the Ajani wool mill in Trastevere.
This dish is definitely out of date, because it’s also rare to find a butcher who prepares the right piece of meat.
Luckily mine does!

“Fornara-style” veal breast my way

  • Preparation time: 120 minutes
  • For 4 servings
  • Difficulty: Average difficult recipe

  • Ingredients
  • 4 lb. (1.8 kg) of boned veal breast, tied and cut into slices weighing 1 lb. (450 grams) each
  • 1 sprig of rosemary
  • Some sage leaves
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • 1 glass of white wine
  • 4 potatoes
  • Extra virgin olive oil to taste
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  1. Instructions
  2. Massage the meat with a little oil, season it with salt and pepper, and leave it to marinate for at least one hour with the garlic, rosemary, and sage.
  3. Preheat the oven to 300°F.
  4. Take the meat and put it in a fairly narrow pan with the oil and wine.
  5. Bake in the oven. After half an hour, turn the meat upside-down to be soaked by the wine on both sides.
  6. Meanwhile peel the potatoes and cut them into small pieces. Soak them in cold water and then boil them for 20 minutes. Drain and let them dry.
  7. After about an hour, increase the oven temperature to 400 °F. Cook the meat and potatoes for at least forthy minutes until they take on a nice color.

Tips to ensure the success of the dish:

  • The marinade is mainly used to flavor the meat and gradually bring it back to room temperature.
  • The veal breast is a very tasty cut but considered less noble because it contains a lot of nerves and cartilage. I prefer an initial low temperature cooking to melt the cartilage well, which would become rubbery at a high temperature.
  • The traditional recipe calls for a wood oven. Unfortunately, I don’t have one. I therefore adjusted the oven temperature and cooking times. Know that they are indicative because each oven is a world of its own.