Chicken Piccata

Do you ever sit there wondering...what can I do differently with chicken today? Sometimes I get bored with the same chicken recipes, if you know what I mean. I was drawing a blank so one day, I googled "chicken breast recipes" and stumbled across Giada De Laurentii's Chicken Piccata. With a few adjustments, it became a hit.

Chicken Piccata
Adapted from Giada De Laurentii

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts (skinless and boneless), butterflied and cut in half
salt and pepper
flour, 1/2 a cup or so for dredging (optional)
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup chicken stock or water
1/4 cup rinsed brined capers
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, optional

Directions:

After having butterflied your chicken, make sure it is relatively thin, maybe 1/2 an inch or so. If it isn't thin enough, I like to pound the chicken. Once you have your chicken as thin as you like, sprinkle on some salt and pepper.

In a dish, pour your flour. Take the seasoned chicken and coat in the flour - make sure to shake off the excess. I know this would completely change the chicken from being Piccata, but I found that you can take out this step and not use flour at all. Or, if gluten-free, substitute with gluten-free flour.

In a large fry pan, heat 1 tablespoon of butter and 2 tablespoons of olive oil until it sizzles, over med-high heat. If large enough, add all your chicken to cook or add two pieces of chicken and cook for 3 minutes on each side. Once finished, remove to a plate. Once removed, add another tablespoon of butter and 2 tablespoons of olive oil and cook the remaining two pieces of chicken for 3 minutes on each side. Remove these to the same plate as the other chicken.

Remove the pan from the heat and pour the the lemon juice, chicken stock or water, rinsed capers into the hot pan. Place the pan back onto the heat, bring to a boil and scrape down all the good stuff on the pan with a whisk. Check for seasoning and add all the pieces of chicken to the pan. Reduce heat and let it simmer for about 5 minutes. Remove the chicken to a serving platter and add the rest of the butter, 2 tablespoons, to the sauce in the pan and whisk quickly. Once it comes together, pour the beautiful sauce on top of the chicken and if you choose, garnish with parsley.

This is great with a side of veggies and quinoa or on top of plain pasta noodles. It's bright, light and for us, a change from our regular chicken go-tos!