Artichoke Mushroom Chicken Picatta

This tasty dinner came about because I had some mushrooms to use up. I was thinking of just doing something like spaghetti, but then chicken picatta popped into my head and the idea of doing a variation of it sounded great. Plus I knew my chicken-loving husband would be happy, especially if it was served over rice.

I typically think of chicken picatta as having white wine, but I didn't have any, and I included artichokes as well as the mushrooms, so it wasn't quite traditional, but it was delicious. Sage loved how tender the chicken was. I intended on thickening the sauce up at the end, but as I was plating it, I realized I'd forgot. It was fine though because the rice soaked up the thin juice.

We ended up having my cousin and her son join us for dinner, and I wasn't sure how far 2 breasts would go, but with the additional of a big salad and having the chicken over rice, it was plenty of food for three adults and two toddlers. (Okay, the little guys didn't eat much, but there was still some leftover chicken.) This was an easy dinner to make and a nice one for deciding on last minute, as most of the ingredients were things I always have one hand.

2 chicken breasts
sea salt and fresh ground pepper

3 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tsp paprika

2 tbsp light butter substitute, divided
1 tbsp olive oil

3/4 cup chicken broth

1 small onion, choppped

3 cloves garlic, minced

4 oz. sliced mushrooms (using the entire 8 oz. pkg would be good too)

1 (14 oz.) can quartered artichoke hearts, drained, tough parts removed and coarsely chopped

1 tbsp capers

juice of 1 lemon (around 3 tbsp)

3 cups cooked brown rice

Pound chicken to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut each breast into 3 fairly equal sized pieces. Season with salt and pepper

In a shallow bowl, mix flour and paprika together. Dredge each piece of chicken into flour mixture. Tap off excess. In a skillet over medium heat melt one tbsp of butter and the olive oil together. Add chicken to pan, and cook for about 3-4 minutes on each side or until cooked through and no longer pink inside. Remove from pan.

Use a small amount of the broth to deglaze pan, scraping up any browned bits. Add remaining tbsp of butter to pan. When melted, add onions, and cook for 3 minutes. Add garlic and mushrooms, cook for 3 more minutes. Add the rest of the broth, the artichokes, capers, lemon juice, and season with salt and pepper. Return chicken to pan. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 10 minutes. Serve over hot cooked rice.