Chicken Piccata

I think this was the first time I actually liked chicken piccata.  I've tasted it in restaurants before, but I always thought it had too much wine, lemon, or caper flavor.  This chicken piccata is just right.  It has juicy, tender chicken swimming in a light, lemon-wine-butter sauce.  This is the perfect dish for the summer, and looks very impressive...not to mention incredibly easy to prepare!  I recommend serving it over rice or pasta, but it's so good any way you wanna have it.  It's also super yummy to dip some garlic bread or roasted potatoes in the tasty lemon sauce.  I would tell you how it tastes the next day after sitting in the sauce over night, but there weren't any leftovers (and I doubled the recipe).

Yield: about three servings

Ingredients:

• 3 large skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, pounded thin
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup low sodium chicken broth
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 1/2 lemon, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons capers
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons minced Italian (flat-leaf) parsley

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees F (95 degrees C). Place a serving platter into the oven to warm.
2. Season the chicken breast pieces with salt and pepper and dredge them in flour. Shake off excess flour. Heat the olive oil and butter in a skillet; pan-fry the chicken pieces until golden brown on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Work in batches and do not crowd skillet, adding oil as needed . Place the chicken pieces onto the warmed platter in the oven. When finished with all the chicken, drain most of the oil from the skillet, leaving a thin coating on the surface of the pan.
3. Cook and stir the minced garlic in the skillet until fragrant, about 20 seconds. Pour in the chicken broth and white wine. Scrape and dissolve any brown bits from the bottom of the skillet. Stir in the lemon slices and bring the mixture to a boil. Let cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce reduces to about 2/3 cup, 5 to 8 minutes.  Remove lemon slices and discard. Add the lemon juice and capers; simmer until the sauce is reduced and slightly thickened, about 5 minutes more. Drop the butter into the skillet and swirl it into the sauce by tilting the skillet until the butter is melted and incorporated. Add the parsley; remove from heat and set aside.
4. Arrange the chicken medallions on serving plates and spoon sauce over each portion to serve.