Dinner with a Lemon Twist

Ken, a long time friend of my family, has recently taken an interest in cooking and baking. He called the other day and wanted to bring a new dessert by to share with Russ and me one night. We checked calendars and decided tonight would be perfect and that he should come in time to eat dinner with us too. So, then came the decision of what to make for dinner. I flipped through several cookbooks and with Russ’ help I decided to go with a lemon theme and make Ina Garten’s Chicken Piccata served Giada's Broccoli Florets with Meyer Lemon Olive Oil. Since neither the chicken nor the broccoli are very time consuming I decided to go ahead and have an appetizer of Late Summer Tomato Bruschetta (Michael Chiarello).

I made a few changes to the bruschetta recipe to make it a little easier and to try a few different variations of it. To make the bruschetta you slice the bread (I used a baguette instead of a country loaf). I then put the bread on a baking sheet under the broiler for just a few minutes on each side to get it toasty. While the bread is toasting then you chop the tomatoes and basil and mix them together with a little salt and pepper. Here is where I added some variation by adding a little balsamic vinegar to part of the tomato mixture. When you pull the bread out you rub it with the pieces of garlic. I then topped some of the pieces of bread with thin slices of fresh mozzarella and then topped all of the pieces of bread with the tomato mixture.

The bruschetta was very easy to put together and very tasty. We liked the addition of the balsamic vinegar and fresh mozzarella to it. Next time I might try cutting the mozzarella into small cubes and mixing it with the tomato mixture. The only thing we didn't like was the strong garlic flavor. I rubbed both sides of the bread with garlic and the bottom side had too strong of a garlic taste to it. The garlic rubbed on the top side works well with the tomato mixture, but the bottom side was overkill. Russ rates the bruschetta a 7.

I have made chicken piccata before, however, I have never made Ina's chicken piccata before tonight. The main difference I see in her dish is that she finishes her chicken off by baking it and simply pours the sauce over it instead of finishing the chicken cooking in the sauce. To make her chicken piccata you pound the chicken out to about 1/4 inch thickness. The chicken pieces are then dipped in the flour mixture, then the egg mixture, and finally the bread crumbs. Once coated the chicken goes into the pan with olive oil and sautes for 2 minutes on each side. After the chicken is browned on both sides you put it in the oven to finish baking it. Meanwhile you make the sauce of lemon juice, butter, white wine, salt, and pepper. You bring it to a boil and then reduce it by half. I served the chicken over a bed of angel hair pasta with the sauce poured on top. You top the chicken with parsley and a lemon wedge.

We all really liked the lemon flavor and the texture with the breading on the chicken. The chicken was tender and moist. While it did take several dishes to bread the chicken the most time consuming part was simply pounding the chicken. This was a fairly simple dish that looks impressive and is very tasty. Russ rates the chicken a 9.

As a side I tried Giada's Broccoli Florets with Meyer Lemon Olive Oil. This was a very easy, but different take on steamed broccoli. You cut the broccoli into florets and then steam it. Once it is done then you toss it with the lemon olive oil and sprinkle it with salt and pepper. I used the lemon olive oil that Jess and Scott brought us back from Italy.

While the lemon flavor is fairly subtle I thought it complemented the broccoli well. I also really liked the change from using butter to olive oil with the broccoli. As long as I have lemon olive oil around I will continue to dress our broccoli with it. Russ rates the broccoli a 8.

Ken ended our meal on a very high note with a spectacular dessert called a Mixed Berry Pavlova. It is one of Ina's recipe and it was a wonderful summery dessert. The bottom layer is a light, fluffy meringue with the center still somewhat soft and creamy. The meringue is topped with homemade whipped cream. The whipped cream is then topped with fresh berries that are tossed in a raspberry sauce. All in all a beautiful and tasty dessert that is just sweet enough for a hot summer night.

Russ and I enjoyed having Ken over and tasting his sweet creation!

Chicken Piccata, Barefoot Contessa at Home
Serves 4

4 split (2 whole) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 extra-large eggs
1 and 1/2 cups seasoned dried bread crumbs
good olive oil
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons), lemon halves reserved
1/2 cup dry white wine
sliced lemon, for serving
chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, for serving

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

Place each chicken breast between 2 sheets of parchment paper of plastic wrap and pound it out to 1/4 inch thick. Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper.

Mix the flour, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper on a shallow plate. In a second plate, beat the eggs and 1 tablespoon water together. Place the bread crumbs on a third plate. Dip each chicken breast first in the flour, shake off the excess, and then dip in the egg and bread-crumb mixture.

Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large saute pan over medium to medium-low heat. Add 2 chicken breasts and cook for 2 minutes on each side, until browned. Place them on the sheet pan while you cook the rest of the chicken. Heat more olive oil in the saute pan and cook the second chicken breasts. Place them on the same sheet pan and allow them to bake for 5 to 10 minutes while you make the sauce.

For the sauce, wipe out the saute pan with a dry paper towel. On medium heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter and then add the lemon juice, white wine, the reserved lemon halves, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Boil over high heat until reduced by half, about 2 minutes. Off the heat, add the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and swirl to combine. Discard the lemon halves. Serve one chicken breast on each plate, spoon on the sauce, and serve with sliced lemon and a sprinkling of fresh parsley.

Broccoli Florets with Meyer Lemon Olive Oil, Giada's Family Dinners
6 servings

1 and 1/2 pounds broccoli florets
3 tablespoons Meyer lemon olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Fill a large pot with 2 inches of water. Set a steamer rack in the pot. Cover and bring the water to a boil over high heat. Add the broccoli and steam until the broccoli is crisp-tender, about 7 minutes.

Transfer the broccoli florets to a large bowl and toss with the oil. Season the broccoli to taste with salt and pepper, and serve warm.

Note: As an alternative to the Meyer Lemon Olive Oil, use 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice and 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil. If you have fresh mint, add some, finely chopped.