Veal Francese | Rachael Ray

For our "Bestaurants" show, Rach and her guests, chefs Curtis Stone and Jeff Mauro, each riff on a recipe from one of their favorite restaurants. Rach chose the veal Francese from Mamma Leone's in New York, which she visited every Christmas with her family when she was growing up. It's a simple, quick and delicious Italian-American classic of flour-and-egg-dipped cutlets served in a lemon, butter and white wine sauce. Mamma Leone's version includes cream, which isn't common. Rach kept it here in honor of the restaurant, but says the dish will be great without it, too. 

Rach likes to pair the Francese with an Italian-American salad (romaine, tomatoes, a little onion, big homemade or store-bought garlic croutons and a vinegar-and-oil dressing with dried herbs) and a little relish tray of old-school pitted black olives, celery sticks and diced mozzarella plated Mamma Leone's-style on a chilled sizzler tray or in a small metal rectangular dish. And last, but not least, round out the meal with garlic bread or charred ciabatta rolls seasoned with olive oil and salt.    

Pro Tip from Rach: Instead of veal cutlets, you can use chicken cutlets or thin pieces of white fish (preferably sustainable), such as tilapia, which is super affordable. 

Here's where you can find the other restaurant-inspired recipes from this show: Curtis' Chocolate-Hazelnut Croissant Bread Pudding and Jeff's Pizza Fundido Dip.