The smell of breaded cutlets pan frying instantly takes me back to my grandmom's house.

My Italian grandmom was the master of many foods, but her fried chicken and various fried seafood were certainly her specialties. While everyone in my family misses those particular recipes now that she has passed, I miss it even more since I no longer eat meat and there aren't many substitutes. I love fried tofu, but it is just not the same texture. I set out to create a vegetable version and I have to say I think I succeeded! The sweet potato is hearty, has the right amount of liquid and cooks all the way through during the frying process. While I was a little worried about the sweetness, I love it. It creates a pleasing savory-sweet flavor combination not found in meat.

The sweet potato is a little drier than a juicy meat cutlet, so I added an easy smoked paprika brown butter sauce that kicks things up a notch. If you don't end up making the sauce, add the smoked paprika to the breadcrumbs. You will thank me for the sweet, smokey combination it provides. The arugula salad will freshen and lighten your dish up. Try it on the side or even on top of the cutlet!

This recipe is perfect for both vegetarians craving classic fried flavors and textures and non-vegetarians who just want to mix things up. I think we can all agree you can't really go wrong with fried potatoes.

Fried Sweet Potato Cutlets with Arugula Salad

Fried thinly sliced pieces of sweet potato served with a smokey brown butter sauce over a salad

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons (57 grams) butter
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 large sweet potato (white flesh), halved and cut into 1/4 inch slices
1 cup (125 grams) all purpose flour
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups Italian breadcrumbs
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Vegetable oil, for frying
4 cups arugula
1 large or 2 small avocado(s), cut into bite sized pieces
12 ounces cherry tomatoes, halved
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper, for seasoning

Instructions:

Melt 4 tablespoons butter over medium low heat until browned*. Remove from the heat and whisk in smoked paprika. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside
Whisk together the balsamic vinegar and 2 tablespoons olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside
Lay the sweet potato slices out on a large cutting board and season both sides with salt and pepper
Prepare the breading stations by taking out three large shallow bowls. Add the flour to the first bowl and stir in 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper. Add the eggs to the second bowl and whisk together. Lastly, add the breadcrumbs to the third bowl and stir in the Parmesan cheese
Dip each sweet potato slice in the flour, coating both sides and shaking off the excess. Move to the second bowl and briefly dip both sides in the egg. Shake off the excess egg and coat both sides in the breadcrumbs. Now repeat the process for the same sweet potato slice so there are two layers of the flour, egg and breadcrumbs
Place each breaded cutlet back on the cutting board
When all the cutlets are breaded, add 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil to a large skillet over medium heat
When the oil is hot, add one batch of cutlets to the skillet. Brown each side for approximately 3 - 5 minutes. Pierce the cutlets with a fork to make sure the potato is tender
Transfer the cooked cutlets to a paper towel lined plate and season with salt and pepper
Cook the remaining cutlets in batches, adding more oil as necessary
When the cutlets are complete, toss together the arugula, tomatoes and avocado
Plate the salad with the cutlets on top. Drizzle the brown butter sauce on top of the cutlet and grate Parmesan cheese on top, if desired