Simple Weeknights

 

Weeknights can be crazy, so simple meals are best during the week. However, simple meals don't have to be boring meals. Here is a simple meal that looks like you put a lot more effort into it than you really did.

This recipe is similar to the chicken piccata recipe that we already posted, found here. Though it has fewer ingredients and the chicken isn't dredged in flour.

Chicken with Lemon-Caper Sauce

Ingredients:

1/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, divided
4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 tablespoon olive oil
Cooking spray
1/3 cup extradry vermouth (or chicken broth)
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons capers
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
Hot cooked spaghetti (optional)

Directions:

Sprinkle 1/8 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper over chicken. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add chicken, cook 6 minutes on each side, or until done. Remove from pan. Set aside, keep warm.

Add remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt, remaining 1/8 teaspoon pepper, vermouth, lemon juice, and capers to pan, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Cook until reduced to 1/2 cup (about 2 minutes). Stir in choped parsley. Spoon sauce over chicken. Serve over spaghetti, if desired.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 chicken breast half and 1 tablespoon sauce).

Recipe notes: You may want to consider doubling the sauce to serve over noodles or rice.

Source: Cooking Light Chicken cookbook, ISBN: 0-8487-3063-1. You can also find it here.

Notes: I used chicken broth in place of the vermouth. I also tripled the sauce and tossed my spaghetti noodles in the sauce. I then returned the chicken to the pan to coat it in the sauce as well. I also used a little more capers than the recipe called for. Just do it to your own taste. This is yummy stuff!

 

Above: You could skip the chicken and just make the sauce for some noodles by themselves if you wanted.