It's rare that someone mentions a type of food or a particular dish and I have never heard of it.   This happened to me recently when I was out with a few girlfriends.  Someone mentioned Caponata and I had no idea what they were talking about.  So the next day I did a litte research and I found a "million" recipes/versions of the Sicilian dish/appetizer Caponata.  I couldn't wait to make it and try it for myself.  I decided on this particular recipe from No Recipes because the combination of ingredients appealed to me the most out of all the recipes that I read.  I really loved the combination of sweet eggplant, smokey roasted peppers, salty capers and tangy balsalmic vinegar.  I brought this to the beach for an appetizer last weekend and everyone loved it.  I will defintely be making this again.

 

Ingredients:

 

1 medium eggplant peeled and cut into 1/2″ cubes
1 Tbs kosher salt (less if you’re using table salt)
1 red bell pepper quartered, seeds removed
1/4 C olive oil
1 small onion chopped
1 tsp fresh thyme
3 Tbs balsamic vinegar
2 Tbs drained capers
1 clove garlic minced
1/4 C leaf parsley, stems removed and chopped

Put the eggplant in a colander and sprinkle with 1 Tbs kosher salt. Toss to coat and leave it over a colander for an hour.

Grill red pepper directly on your BBQ or over a flame on your gas stove top until the skin is charred then wrap in foil or put into a brown paper bag and seal.  Leave the pepper until cool. Trapping the steam like this makes it much easier to remove the skins. When cool, peel the pepper and remove any excessively charred bits. Slice into thin short strips.

When the eggplant is done salting, rinse in a bowl of cold water to remove excess salt. Squeeze the eggplant with your hands to wring out as much moisture as you can.

Heat the olive oil over medium heat and saute the onions until until they are translucent and just start turning brown around the edges. Add the eggplant, bell peppers and thyme. Salt and pepper to taste stirring until the eggplant is very soft and starts to loose its shape.

Add the balsamic vinegar and capers and stir until there is no liquid left. Take off the heat and add the garlic and parsley. You can serve this immediately with some crusty bread, but it tastes even better the next day.

 

 

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This is Martha Stewart Everyday Food recipe. I have tweaked it a bit. It is one of those chicken dishes that I can get everyone in my family to eat..even my picky eater. I serve it with whole wheat angel hair pasta but I think it would be equally good with couscous or rice.

Ingredients:

course salt and ground pepper

1/4 cup all purpose flour

8 thin chicken cutlets (about 1 1/2 pounds total)

2 T olive oil

1 cup reduced sodium chicken broth

1 can (14 0z.) artichoke hearts packed in water, rinsed, drained and quartered

2 T rinsed and drained capers

1-2 T fresh lemon juice

2 T butter or margarine

1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves chopped

Preparation:

Place flour in a shallow dish, and season with salt and pepper. Dredge cutlets in flour mixture, shaking off excess. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Cook chicken in batches, adding remaining oil as needed, until light golden, 1 to 3 minutes per side; transfer to a dish.

Add broth to skillet, and bring to a boil; cook until reduced by half. Add lemon juice and swirl in butter or margarine until melted. Add artichokes, capers and the chicken with any juices. Gently heat through. Top with chopped parsley. Serve hot with pasta, cous cous, or rice.

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Tonight's Dinner - 1/4/11


This is so delicious and easy to make.  It's one of my husbands favorite dishes (even though it's a newer dish I started to make)  If you don't like artichokes or capers just leave them out.  This recipe makes a big family portion (10-12) so just halve the ingredients to make a smaller amount. Serve over pasta or rice with roasted asparagus.  YUM!

Ingredients:

12 chicken cutlets (thin)
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Garlic powder to taste
All-purpose flour
4 tablespoons butter - divided use
2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (also known as Italian parsley)
Lemon slices for garnish (optional)
1 can of artichoke hearts drained
1/4 cup of capers drained and rinsed

Preparation:

Season cutlets with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Dredge in flour, shaking off excess.
In large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons butter and oil over medium-high heat until hot. Cook cutlets on each side until golden brown, about 5 minutes or until the juices run clear. Remove from pan; keep warm.
Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in same skillet, add 2 tablespoons flour and cook for 1 minute. Stir in chicken broth, stirring up any browned bits from the bottom of skillet. Heat to boiling and cook until thickened, about 2 to 3 minutes.
Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice and parsley. Season with additional salt and pepper, as desired.

Arrange chicken cutlets in a baking dish and add artichoke hearts, capers and lemon slices.  Pour lemon sauce over the top, cover and bake in a 350 degree oven for 25 minutes until heated through.  
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