A recipe I tried last night - Chicken Picatta.. Yum!!

Chicken Picatta

2 large lemons
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds)
Salt and ground black pepper
1/2 cup Atkins Baking Mix
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 small shallot, minced (about 2 tablespoons) or
1 small garlic clove, minced (about 1 teaspoon)
1 cup chicken stock or canned low-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons drained small capers
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves


1. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position, set large heatproof
plate on rack, and heat oven to 200 degrees.

2. Halve one lemon pole to pole. Trim ends from one half and cut
crosswise into slices 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick; set aside. Juice
remaining half and whole lemon to obtain 1/4 cup juice; reserve.

3. Sprinkle both sides of cutlets generously with salt and pepper.
Measure Atkins Baking Mix into pie tin or shallow baking dish.
Working one cutlet at a time, coat with mix, and shake to remove
excess.

4. Heat heavy-bottomed 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until
hot, about 2 minutes; add 2 tablespoons oil and swirl pan to coat. Lay
half of chicken pieces in skillet. Sauté cutlets, without moving them,
until lightly browned on first side, 2 to 2 1/2 minutes. Turn cutlets
and cook until second side is lightly browned, 2 to 2 1/2 minutes
longer. Remove pan from heat and transfer cutlets to plate in oven.
Add remaining 2 tablespoons oil to now-empty skillet and heat until
shimmering. Add remaining chicken pieces and repeat.

5. Add shallot to now-empty skillet and return skillet to medium heat.
Sauté until fragrant, about 30 seconds for shallot, add garlic and
saute 10 seconds. Add stock and lemon slices, increase heat to high,
and scrape skillet bottom with wooden spoon or spatula to loosen
browned bits. Simmer until liquid reduces to about 1/3 cup, about 4
minutes. Add lemon juice and capers and simmer until sauce reduces
again to 1/3 cup, about 1 minute. Remove pan from heat and swirl in
butter until butter melts and thickens sauce; swirl in parsley. Spoon
sauce over chicken and serve immediately.

I didn't have capers in the house, so I used black olives instead. I
also forgot to put the parsley in, so I just sprinkled that on top and
it looked so nice.

Also, I made about 3 pounds of chicken, putting about 1 1/2 pounds of
it to the side for another meal.

I don't know where this recipe came from originally -- I got it off of
IRC in an ebook channel. The only thing I changed was Atkins Baking
mix -- it was flour.

Hope you like it as much as I.

Alex

Alexie wrote:


2 tablespoons drained small capers

This is the only part of the recipe that seems offputting for me,
otherwise I'd probably like it. I can't handle briny foods, like
stuffed green olives and, it would seem, capers. I'm getting my info
from http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/c...ets/caper.html .

Tell me, are capers actually as salty as they sound to me to be? If
so, I'd probably substitute them with mustard & black pepper to taste
(the flavor of capers as described in this article).


I didn't have capers in the house, so I used black olives instead.

Oops, I didn't read far enough before asking about capers!

So I assume this dish wasn't extremely salty the way you made it? I
love black olives!

I saw the reipe a while back on one of the LC sites and thought it
sounded pretty good but since I don't use capers, I passed on it. IME,
there is usually one ingredient that makes or breaks the intended
flavor. Appeared to me it might be the capers in this one. So...

Since you recommend it, I may just try this now, with your
substitutions or maybe with a little mustard and pepper instead, since
Gunny will not eat black olives (I could put them on my serving,
though).

~ ~ ~ ~
Sh0rtcircuit (Deb)
Clean out the junk.

Started LC 04/03/04
Me: 186/157/100 5'0"
Gunny: 280/238/180 5'11"
========
"Keep on keepin' on!"
[My Dad, 8/13/10-12/1/94.
His memory lives on.]

Capers are not as salty as they are vinegary (depending on the brand).
Here in Canada, I can't find the *really* salted ones - all of them are
packed in vinegar.

Anyway, it is easy to "freshen them up" - just rinse (or soak for a few
minutes) in cold water, then pat dry in a paper towel.

Capers add a nice touch to salads, sauces, etc.

Regards,

Deb
260/211/135


sh0rtcircuit (Deb) wrote:
snip

Tell me, are capers actually as salty as they sound to me to be? If
so, I'd probably substitute them with mustard & black pepper to taste
(the flavor of capers as described in this article).

barrdbarrbarr wrote:

Capers are not as salty as they are vinegary (depending on the brand).
Here in Canada, I can't find the *really* salted ones - all of them are
packed in vinegar.

Anyway, it is easy to "freshen them up" - just rinse (or soak for a few
minutes) in cold water, then pat dry in a paper towel.

Capers add a nice touch to salads, sauces, etc.

Regards,

Deb
260/211/135

Thanks, Deb! I usually just avoid really salty foods, and I'm not real
keen on vinegary stuff, either, but I'm game to try it. (I'm glad you
didn't recommend putting an aspirin in the water...that's what I've
always been advised to help cut flowers last longer. Capers are
just flower *buds*, tho.)

I never dreamed I would someday eat flowers, but I'm curious now. I'll
have to look for them next time I shop and try out this chicken
picatta recipe. I love chicken, but I need lots of different ways to
cook it to keep it from getting boring. I might just add some black
olives, too, and call it chicken picatta a la Alexie. Sounds good to
me!

Sh0rtcircuit (Deb)