Chicken Piccata and Glazed Carrots

We ate this dinner on Sunday night and every time I make it, I have to dig around on the internet for the recipes and then remember how I adapt them. I'm finally getting around to putting them here on my blog for easy reference. Anyway, Chicken Piccata is a win for everyone in our house, so it automatically gets 4 stars.  The 5th star comes from the artichoke hearts. Yum.  This recipe also reheats decently for leftovers at lunchtime the next day. 

Serve with Jasmine or Riceland Medium brown rice and a veggie. Our favorite sides are steamed edemame, roasted broccoli, or glazed carrots (recipe below) with this dish.    

Ingredients:
Chicken:  Butterfly 3-4 breasts and them cut them in thirds crosswise into smaller pieces around 2x3" pieces. Chicken Tenders work as well and are a good easy button.

I use butterflied breasts and then cut them in half again crosswise into smaller pieces around 3 x 3"
Salt and ground black pepper
1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest (totally optional)

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Put the above ingredients into a bag and shake.(note: when I'm feeling awesome I make a 2nd batch of the flour, paprika, garlic seasonings in a little ziplock baggie and label it "Chicken Piccata Shake" and throw it in the spice cabinet for a low-prep 15 minute dinner another night.) 

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1 cup chicken broth
1 (14-ounce) can artichoke hearts (in water), drained and quartered

2TBS drained capers (I always leave these out…not a huge fan of capers, but hey, if you dig the caper, give em a go)

Directions: 
***Start your rice now if you want it to be done about the same time as the chicken. 
1) Mix the chicken and seasonings in a bag. 

2) Heat oil in large skillet (I like to use one with the flat bottom and vertical sides so everything cooks evenly.) and cook chicken pieces about 2-3 minutes on each side, until golden brown and cooked through (or almost all the way through). Turning chicken multiple times while cooking makes it rubbery, so try to avoid doing that. 

3) Add lemon juice and chicken stock (original recipe calls for 1/2c chicken stock and 1/2c white wine. I just use 1c of stalk) simmer 5-10 minutes until sauce thickens up a bit and the chicken is cooked entirely. It should almost fall apart when you try to pick it up with a fork. 

4) add (drained) artichoke hearts and let heat through while you steam up a side dish

Glazed Carrots: (10 min) 
1lb carrots cut into rounds about 1/4 inch thick
2-3 TBS butter. Real butter, people. It's the only way. 
1 heaping TBS white sugar
1/3 c chicken stock
dash salt
dash cinnamon (or two or three) 
pinch of nutmeg

1) Sautee carrots in melted butter and salt over med-hi heat for 3-4 minutes, toss the carrots around to keep them moving and coated in the butter. 

2) add heaping TBS of sugar, add stock, toss around the carrots, cover pan and cook another 3-4 minutes on med heat

3) uncover pot, add cinnamon and nutmeg, kick the heat up to high and cook out most of the liquid while tossing the carrots frequently.