Make-Ahead Chicken Piccata

This has been a hectic week. But the highlight was having my son Matthew come home from college! After having food from the cafeteria for 4 months, he requested this recipe from my cookbook. Matthew will only be home for 3 weeks as he will be going on a 4 month voyage around the world with Semester at Sea. As much as we’ll worry about him, we know that this will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience and look forward to hearing about his amazing journey. I hope to share some pictures of him on my blog as he travels to:

• San Diego, CA USA *
• Hilo / Honolulu, Hawaii USA
• Yokohama / Kobe, Japan
• Shanghai / Hong Kong, China
• Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam
• Chennai / Cochin, India
• Port Louis, Mauritius
• Cape Town, South Africa
• Tema (Accra), Ghana
• Salvador, Brazil
• Fort Lauderdale, FL USA

And now…back to the recipe!

Make-Ahead Chicken Piccata
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
3 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 2-inch strips
4 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons butter
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons flour
2/3 cup Pinot Grigio wine
2/3 cup Light and Fat Free College Inn Chicken Broth
4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

~A Day Ahead~

In a shallow bowl, combine 1 cup of flour with salt and pepper. Coat the chicken pieces in the flour and set aside. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Brown the chicken on both sides until lightly brown. (You will need to do this in 3 or 4 batches.) Place the cooked chicken in a 12 x 8 x 2-inch baking dish. Cool the skillet off the burner for a few minutes. Return the skillet to medium heat. Melt the butter and add the garlic. Stir constantly for 30 seconds. Add 2 tablespoons of flour to the pan. Stir for 1 minute. Add the wine, broth, and lemon juice; mix well. Pour the sauce over the chicken and stir until all the chicken is coated. Cool, cover, and refrigerate.

~Reheat~

Remove the baking dish from the refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Stir the chicken, cover the dish with foil, and bake for 20 – 25 minutes until heated through. Serves 5.

Note: There are some days where we eat this on the same day that I prepare it. In that case, you still need to bake the chicken covered at 400 degrees F for 18 – 20 minutes as the chicken is not thoroughly cooked in the skillet.