Before you all start freaking out over the thought of cooking veal, I think this recipe would work just as well with steak. Done with a filet it could be more upscale, or with a sirloin it would be ore rustic. Either way, I would consider swapping out the pasta for some sort of potato.
This recipe was a really fun experiment in combining and layering flavors, and for the most part it came out really well. The blackberry complimented the veal perfectly, and a healthy dose of pepper kept it from being too sweet. The vanilla was subtle, but added a warm background note.Really the only complaint that I had was that the sauce was very thin. Next time, I’ll thicken it with a little arrowroot and maybe finish it with a small pat of butter.
It didn’t photograph very well at all, so I’ll spare you the second picture….
Veal with Blackberry Vanilla Sauce
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 Tbs black pepper
- 1 tsp thyme
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 lb veal
- 6 oz blackberries
- 5 oz pinot noir
- 2 cups beef stock
- 1 leek, chopped
- 1 rib celery, cut into 1″ pieces
- 1 clove garlic, peeled
- 1 vanilla bean, split
- 1 pt. baby bella mushrooms
- 1 onion, sliced
- 1 T butter
- Pasta to serve (I used Trader Joe’s Lemon-Pepper Papperdelle)
Combine garlic, black pepper, and thyme. Rub this mixture into the veal.
Puree the blackberries and wine. Pour into a small simmer until reduced by half. Strain to remove seeds.
In a sauce pan, simmer stock, leek, garlic clove, and celery until slightly reduced and flavorful. Remove leek, garlic, and celery and discard. Remove from heat and add vanilla bean. let steep for 10 minutes.
Remove vanilla bean and add pureed berries and mushrooms. Return to heat and simmer until heated through.
In a large sautee pan, sautee mushroom until cooked and tender. Add to the sauce. In same sautee pan, heat butter. Add onion, and cook over medium heat until carmelized.
Grill veal until thoroughly cooked. Serve on top of pasta with blackberry-vanilla sauce. Top with carmelized mushrooms.
Serves 4.
Bread and Jam says
05/10 at 10:18 pmThis sounds and looks so elegant! A nice dish to impress!
LK says
05/09 at 9:51 amSophie- I love the taste of veal too. It so delicate.
Thanks, Kim!
Natasha- we used a shoulder chop for this
Thaks Dana and Deb
CG- wahoo!!! thanks!
ValleyWriter- I had a feeling a lot of people here wouldn’t do veal. 😉 i want to try it again with steak too… I’m thinking a charred sirloin.
DebinHawaii says
05/07 at 9:28 pmWhat a great and interesting flavor combo! (I am a big veal fan!)
ValleyWriter says
05/07 at 5:07 pmThough I don’t do veal – I love the idea of using steak instead. This looks yummy!
CG the Foodie says
05/07 at 10:48 amCongratulations!!!! You won the April Mystery Box Challenge!
http://www.uncoveringfood.com/2009/05/may-mystery-box-challenge-and-april.html
Dana Fallentine says
05/07 at 10:43 amGrilled veal… divine!
Natasha - 5 Star Foodie says
05/07 at 7:41 amWhat veal cut are you using here? I love the idea of the blackberry vanilla sauce – brilliant!
Kim, Ordinary Recipes Made Gourmet says
05/07 at 6:31 amHey, I know you said the blackberry sauce was a little too thin, but it looks amazing and I will have to try this as I love just any kind of berry. The first pic looks amazing too!
Sophie says
05/07 at 3:43 amWaw…..What a superb looking & tasty dish! I love veal!! I love its taste!! This veal dish is defenitly something for me & my husband!!!
LK says
05/06 at 7:27 pmI’m not sure if chicken would hold up to the sauce as it- its pretty intense. If I were to do it with chicken, I think I would try using chicken stock instead of beef and a dry white wine instead of the pinot noir.
Doggy- the pasta is papperdelle.
Marisa (Trim The Fat) says
05/06 at 4:08 pmHow interesting! I think I would like it with chicken, too!
doggybloggy says
05/06 at 3:23 pmI want to try that sauce too – and what kind of big noodles are those?
jenn says
05/06 at 2:13 pmI want to try that blackberry vanilla sauce. I although I’ve never been much for veal, glad you can have the option to cook this with steak. How about chicken?