Prep Time: 15 minutes   Cook Time: 20 minutes

The secret to making a good piccata is stirring butter into the sauce just before serving (and OFF of the heat), as it not only cuts the acidity of the fresh lemon juice but also thickens the sauce through the same “emulsion” process used to thicken a vinaigrette. We have been mindful of the amount of butter and used lean chicken breast, to make this a perfect meal. Serve with ½ cup whole grain pasta (per person), and your favorite vegetable…goes great with broccoli.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

4 (6-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin

Salt and pepper

1/2 cup all-purpose flour (can use gluten-free)

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons finely diced red onion

1/2 cup chicken stock

Juice of 1 large lemon

2 tablespoons capers, drained

2 1/2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley

Directions:

1. Season both sides of the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Place the flour on a wide plate, adding a pinch of salt and pepper.
2. Dredge the chicken in the seasoned flour, pressing down to coat on all sides before shaking off any excess.
3. Add olive oil to a large skillet over medium-high heat, and heat until oil thins and coats the skillet.
4. Place the dredged chicken into the skillet and cook for 4–5 minutes on each side, until browned. Remove the skillet from the heat and transfer the chicken to a plate.
5. Add the red onion to the skillet and return to the heat, just until sizzling. Deglaze the pan with chicken stock and lemon juice, scraping any browned chicken from the bottom. Bring the sauce to a simmer and let reduce to about half.
6. Add the capers to the sauce before returning the chicken to the pan to cook for an additional 2 minutes.
7. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in butter to thicken the sauce. Serve garnished with fresh chopped parsley.

Mona Dolgov

Nutritionist, cookbook author, publisher and health and wellness entrepreneur Mona Dolgov lives her lifelong mission of creating healthier food products, recipes and inventing simple culinary tricks to easily create practical and healthier lifestyles. She is President of You Live Right, LLC, where she has authored and published over 20 cookbooks for top-selling kitchen appliances, health and wellness products and grocery retailers, focused on simplicity and using nutritious ingredients. She also is a private nutritional coach, offers educational and fun dinner classes at Mona’s Kitchen,  and is a speaker on nutritional well-being. Plus, she is very excited about launching Cook U. Follow Mona on Facebook or Instagram @monadolgov

She recently co-authored The Perfect Portion Cookbook, a 5-star rated cookbook (with Hollywood star Anson Willams) that makes American classics healthier and guides consumers to healthier portion control. This book (and Mona) was featured on the Today Show, The Doctors, and The Huffington Post. Learn more at www.theperfectportion.com

She is completing her second cookbook, Satisfy,  that will be launched in 2020, focused on simple nutritionally balanced meals all 500 calories or less with real ingredients and real portions. All of the recipes are gluten-free.