Tag Archives: Giada

Old Friends and Chicken Piccata with Parmesan Lemon Asparagus

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Friday night was spent with two of my high school girlfriends, Paula and Loriel. We drank chardonnay, listened to the 90′s music channel and looked through our high school yearbooks. Our 10 year reunion is in June (I still can’t believe how fast the time flew) so we spent the whole evening reminiscing and laughing. Here’s a picture of the three of us at Loriel’s wedding two summers ago!

Here’s a high school picture of us! Loriel is to my left (yes that’s me in the middle with all those curls LOL) and Paula is at the far left end. :)

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In between all of this nostalgic fun, we whipped up quite the delicious dinner. When I say we I mean I cooked while Loriel squeezed the lemons and spent about 20 minutes digging the lemon seeds out of the juice she had collected, and Paula cleaned up behind me and tried to help cook but I kept bossing her and taking over. Then I listened to the girls go on about how bossy and Type A I am. Oh well, they sure liked the dinner we I cooked. :)

Chicken Piccata was one of the first things I learned how to cook when I started playing around in the kitchen a couple of years ago. While it isn’t exactly the healthiest meal and I don’t eat it often, it is one of my go-to dishes when entertaining. It always turns out delicious and is so simple to make. It tastes much more complicated and gourmet than it actually is, which I love!

The asparagus is healthy and low calorie, so it makes a great side to this indulgent dinner.

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I hope you enjoy it as much as we did! I suggest pairing the dish with a bottle of wine, some Mariah Carey and your oldest friends! :)

Enjoy!

Chicken Piccata (Serves 4)

Adapted from Giada De Laurentiis

Ingredients

  • 2 skinless and boneless chicken breasts, butterflied into 4 total pieces
  • Sea salt, freshly ground black pepper, lemon pepper, garlic salt
  • All-purpose flour, for dredging
  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup chicken broth
  • 1/4 cup white wine
  • 1/4 cup brined capers

Directions

  • Season chicken with salt, pepper, lemon pepper and garlic salt.
  • Dredge chicken in flour and shake off excess.
  • In a large skillet over medium high heat, melt 2 tablespoons of butter with 3 tablespoons olive oil.
  • When butter and oil start to sizzle, add 2 pieces of chicken and cook for 3 minutes.
  • When chicken is browned, flip and cook other side for 3 minutes. Remove and transfer to plate.
  • Melt 2 more tablespoons butter and add another 2 tablespoons olive oil.
  • When butter and oil start to sizzle, add the other 2 pieces of chicken and brown both sides in same manner.
  • Remove pan from heat and add chicken to the plate.
  • Into the pan add the lemon juice, broth, wine and capers.
  • Return to stove and bring to boil, scraping up brown bits from the pan for extra flavor. Check for seasoning.
  • Return all the chicken to the pan and simmer for 5 minutes.
  • Remove chicken to platter. Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter to sauce and whisk vigorously.
  • Pour sauce over chicken and serve with parmesan lemon asparagus. Recipe below.

Parmesan Lemon Asparagus (Serves 4)

Adaped from Ina Garten

Ingredients

  • 1 bushel fresh asparagus (about 15-20)
  • 1 tablespoons good olive oil
  • salt, pepper, lemon pepper
  • 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
  • 1 lemon

Directions

  • Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
  • Lay asparagus in a single layer on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil.
  • Season with salt, pepper and lemon pepper. Toss to coat evenly.
  • Roast for 15 to 20 minutes, until tender.
  • Sprinkle with the Parmesan and return to the oven for another minute ro melt the cheese.
  • Squeeze the juice of one lemon over the asparagus and serve.

Roasted Lemon, Garlic, Caper Salmon with Parmesan Lemon Roasted Broccolini

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I like to roast things.  I literally roast just about everything I cook.  It’s easy and it brings out the flavors in all the food.  I also like to use lemon and garlic in almost everything I cook.  When cooking healthy meals, lemon and garlic are perfect ingredients because they are full of flavor without added calories.  You will see a lot more roasted things covered in lemon and garlic in my future recipe posts.  :)   This is a delicious, summery dinner that is full of nutrition and flavor.  It was also featured on Sigona’s Farmers Market blog!

Roasted Lemon, Garlic, Caper Salmon (Serves 2)

Adapted from Giada De Laurentiis 

Ingredients

  •  2 6-oz  salmon fillets (or 1 10-12 oz filet, which is what I used above)
  • olive oil
  • juice of 1/2 lemon
  • 4-5 lemon slices
  • 1/4 cup white wine
  • 2 tsp capers
  • 1 garlic clove, diced
  • sea salt, pepper, lemon pepper, garlic salt
  • Aluminum Foil

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 425.
  • Line a baking pan with aluminum foil.  Put the fillets on the aluminum foil and brush them with olive oil.
  • Season with diced garlic, sea salt, pepper, lemon pepper and garlic salt.  I like mine pretty seasoned.  You can put as much or as little you like.
  • Put a teaspoon of capers on each fillet and then top each piece with lemon slices.
  • Mix the lemon juice and white wine together.  Using a spoon, pour the mixture over each piece of salmon.
  • You can also wrap each piece in the aluminum foil, sealing in all the juices.  I have tried it this way and I prefer not to do this.  It makes the salmon overly moist in my opinion.
  • Cook in the oven at 425 for about 10-15 minutes, or until done.
  • Serve with a side of roasted broccolini, recipe below, and brown rice.

 Parmesan Lemon Roasted Broccolini (serves 2)

Ingredients

  • 1 package of broccolini (I usually buy Mann’s.  Trader Joe’s also has it and they call it baby broccoli)
  • 1 tb olive oil
  • 1 garlic clove, diced
  • juice from 1/2 lemon
  • zest from 1/2 lemon
  • red pepper flakes
  • sea salt, pepper, lemon pepper, garlic salt
  • grated parmesan cheese

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 425.
  • Wash the broccolini and dry it really well.  It won’t roast properly if it’s at all damp.
  • Once dry, put it in a large freezer bag.   Pour in one tablespoon of olive oil.  Add in the diced garlic and season with salt, pepper, lemon pepper, red pepper flakes and garlic salt to taste.  If you prefer less seasoning, just salt and pepper will be fine.  Get the air out of the freezer bag and seal it.  Mix all the broccolini around in the olive oil and seasoning.
  • Once equally coated, lay the broccolini out on an unlined baking sheet.  Separate each piece so they aren’t touching.  If you overcrowd them they won’t roast as well.
  • Roast at 425 for about 10 minutes, or until it pierces well with a fork and some of the heads are turning a bit crispy and brown.
  • Take it out of the oven and put the grated parmesan evenly over the broccolini.  We like a lot of cheese on ours.  Put on as much or as little you like!  Put it back in the oven for 1 minute to let the cheese melt.
  • Then pour the juice of 1/2 a lemon over the broccolini and evenly distribute the lemon zest.

Enjoy!