On a recent trip to the north, we were treated to chicken piccata served by my wife’s cousin, Patty. We enjoyed the meal very much and we brought the recipe home with us. We have made it several times, each time tweaking it to our particular tastes. I have also researched other chicken piccata recipes. Some are made with lemon, some are made with wine. In our version we have combined the two and we enjoy the crispness of the citrus tang and the mellowness of the wine reductions sweetness, neither overpowering the other. We hope you will enjoy our version of chicken piccata ala Patty Rose.

• 2 large skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 1/2 cup aLl-purpose flour
• 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 small shallots, peele and fine diced
• 2 cups chicken broth
• Salt and ground white pepper, to taste

• 6 lemon slices
• 4 vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup wine*
• 3 tablespoons rinsed and drained capers
• 3 tablespoons butter
• Fresh chopped flat leaf parsley

1. Preheat oven to lowest setting, about 170°. Place a heat proof dish, a pie tin or cookie sheet, in the oven. Cut 6 slices from the center of the lemon. Save the lemon ends for a bit of juice to drizzle over the chicken.
2. The following steps can be done with room-temperature chicken but it is easier if the chicken is partially frozen. Butterfly cut each chicken breast into two identical thickness pieces. I use a meat tenderizer, stamping overlapping patterns vertically and then horizontally, turn the meat over and tenderize the other side. You can skip that step if desired but you will need to use the mallet or substitute to pound and tenderize the chicken.
3. Place a large sheet of plastic wrap on your cutting board. Place on of the half chicken breasts iin the center of the plastic wrap and cover with another sheet of plastic wrap. The plastic wrap will keep the raw chicken fluids from splashing all over and contaminating your kitchen. With the smooth side of the tenderizing mallet, gently tap and scoot the mallet across the chicken. The tapping will break down the fibers in the meat and reduce the thickness of the chicken while the scooting of the mallet will change the shape of the chicken breast. Using the mallet tenderize until you have a uniform thickness of about one-quarter inch. Set aside and tenderize the next pieces of chicken.

   

4. Season the chicken, both sides, with salt and ground white pepper. Squeeze the lemon ends and drizzle a bit of lemon juice over the chicken pieces. Cut the chicken into serving-sized pieces. Dredge in flour and lightly pat. Shake off the excess flour and set aside. If using a small frying pan, do in batches to avoid overcrowding the pan. Heat the frying pan and add the oil. Fry the chicken over medium-high heat until golden brown both sides, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Place the chicken on the heated pan in the oven and cover with a slightly damp kitchen cloth. Cook the remaining chicken pieces.

   

5. After cooking the chicken, remove all but about 1 tablespoon of the cooking oil. Add the shallots and cook over medium heat until fragrant. The shallots are diced fine and will cook quickly, about a minute. Add the wine and stir and scrape the bottom of the pan to deglaze. If cooking over an open flame, be careful; the alcohol may flare. Add the butter; when melted, add three tablespoons of the dredging flour and cook the roux for about three to five minutes (or until the raw flour taste is gone).
6. Add the chicken broth and cook and stir until the sauce has thickened as desired. I like a sauce that is thick enough to stay on the chicken and cling to the pasta but not as thick as traditional gravy. Add the lemon slices and the capers and simmer for five minutes. Add the reserved chicken pieces and simmer, coating all sides of the chicken with the sauce, for an additional five minutes.

   

7. Arrange a swirl of pasta on a plate; angel hair pasta does well. Place a piece of the chicken on top and spoon sauce over the top as desired. Garnish with the chopped parsley and a lemon slice as desired.

   

   *This version of the recipe pairs wine and lemon. It is a tasty dish if you make it all lemon or all wine; your choice. You may use any cooking wine you desire. This time I used a sweeter wine, a blackberry merlot. The sweetness of the wine contrasted nicely with the tartness of the lemon. As well, a slightly sweet, slightly peppery white wine like Gewürztraminer works wonderfully well.