I love chicken. I think it is my favorite protein (I remind Larry sometimes what a cheap dinner date I am!). While grilled poultry breasts are a good staple, sometimes you want a recipe that zings it up a bit. With its citrusy, briny, winey sauce, chicken piccata fits the bill. It does not take long to prepare, and it makes a splendid presentation; friends and family will say "wow" when you bring it to the table. 

The usual recipe calls for the chicken breasts to be lightly dredged in flour, and then browned. While this is my normal way to prepare this dish, sometimes I use Ina Garten's method, of dipping the pieces first in beaten eggs, then flour, and finally, in bread crumbs. My son, Chris says this makes it taste more like fried chicken. This is the technique that I am using in this recipe, but feel free to eliminate the eggs and bread crumbs, only lightly dredging the pieces with flour. All other directions will be the same.

Chicken Piccata

4 chicken breast halves, skinless and boneless

2 eggs

1 c. flour

1 c. bread crumbs

salt and pepper

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1/4 c. fresh squeezed lemon juice

1/2 c. chicken broth

1/2 c. dry white wine

2 Tbsp. butter

2 Tbsp. capers, drained

2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

thinly sliced lemon

Place the chicken breasts between two sheets of plastic wrap, and pound to a thickness of          1/4 to 1/2 inch, using a rolling pin or flat meat mallet. I recommend assembling and prepping all the ingredients as the next steps go quickly. Preheat the oven to 400. Set up an assembly line of beaten eggs, flour, and bread crumbs. Salt and pepper both sides of the chicken breasts. Preheat a heavy skillet over medium heat; add a tablespoon of olive oil. Dip a breast in the egg, flour, and then bread crumbs and gently lay in the skillet. Repeat with a second piece. Allow this to brown for several minutes, then carefully turn over and brown for two minutes on the other side. Remove from the skillet and place on a baking sheet. Add another tablespoon of olive oil to the skillet and repeat the process with the last two breasts. Place the baking sheet in the oven for 10 minutes, while you prepare the sauce. 

Wipe out the skillet with a dry paper towel (the little pieces of bread crumbs left over will turn black). With the skillet over medium heat, add the lemon juice, the chicken broth, and the wine. I like to cook with wine....sometimes I even put it in the food. (Julia Child). Add salt and pepper to taste. Whisk this together and let it reduce by half. This should only take a few minutes. Add the 2 tablespoons of butter and the capers. Remove from the heat, whisking to incorporate the melted butter into the sauce. Remove the chicken from the oven and transfer pieces to a platter. Lay sliced lemon on top, spoon on the piccata sauce, and sprinkle with the fresh parsley. Serves four.