CHICKEN PICCATA

I just tried this recipe this past weekend and absolutely wanted to share since it's so dog gone tasty!  I had been looking for main dish recipes since I had some guests coming to town and this recipe was one of two that I was considering while they were here.

As it turned out, I chose not to make this one since it took a little bit more prep time and I wasn't sure with everything else we had going on during their visit if I would have time to pull it off.  Instead, I chose to make it for my husband and me... but gosh, my guests totally missed out!!!

As it turned out, it really didn't take all that long to put it together.  So now I know.......

INGREDIENTS:

4 skinless and boneless chicken breasts, butterflied, pounded thin and then *cut in half

1 cup all purpose flour, for dredging

salt and pepper

4 Tbsp. unsalted butter

¼ cup olive oil

2 lemons, 1 juiced, 1 sliced

1 cup dry white wine

1 cup chicken stock

1 bouillon cube (I used one Swanson chicken flavor boost packet instead)

2 Tbsp. capers, drained

1/3 cup fresh parsley

DIRECTIONS:

On a cutting board, filet each chicken breast and trim off any fat.  Place two pieces of chicken at a time between two pieces of parchment paper,.  Pound with a flat mallet, until the cutlets are about ¼ inch thick.  Set aside and repeat until all the chicken is pounded thin.   (*While the instructions/ingredients indicated to cut the butterflied breasts in half I chose to leave them as is.  If you were cooking for a larger group, I could see taking the time to make additional portions)

Season each side of the chicken with salt and pepper, then dredge each cutlet lightly on each side with flour.

Heat olive oil in a skillet.  Brown the meat for 3-5 minutes on each side until golden.  Once brown, place the pieces in a single layer cookie sheet with a rim or a glass casserole dish.  The chicken will continue to cook in the oven.

After all the chicken has been browned, turn up the heat and pour the wine into the pan and boil down for a minute so the alcohol cooks off.  Add the lemon juice, stock, bouillon, butter and then the capers.  Allow the sauce to cook for a minute or two.   At this point, the recipe indicated to pour the sauce over the chicken, place the lemon slices on top, cover with foil and place in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes.  I felt the sauce was too thin, so I placed  a heaping Tbsp. of cornstarch and about the same amount of cold water in a cup and stirred to make a thickening agent.  I added that to the sauce and it thickened to just the right consistency.

Before serving add fresh parsley.

Because I was making such a small batch, I actually eliminated the oven stage and did everything in the same pan; simmering the sauce and chicken on the stove top for approximately 15 minutes.

Enjoy!