Chicken Piccata

    I've been doing pretty good on my mission to eat healthier! I've taken little steps by eating at home instead of at work. Also, I've switched to using coconut sugar in place of regular sugar in my coffee, it's so good! I loved this chicken piccata recipe! Frankie and I had it for dinner this week with some fresh steamed corn on the cob and I whipped up some fresh coleslaw with greek yogurt and a little siracha. One thing I will say, you're going to want to use a non-stick or cast iron pan, I made the mistake of attempting it in a metal pan first and it didn't go so well, the parmesan stuck to the pan instead of the chicken. Round two in a non-stick pan went great. You're going to love this light lemony sauced chicken!

Chicken Piccata

Ingredients:

- 2 large chicken breasts, pounded flat

- 1/2 cup fresh grated parmesan

- 3 tablespoons of olive oil

- 1/2 cup of onion or shallot, diced

- 1 tablespoon of minced garlic

- 1 cup of chicken broth

- 2 tablespoons of capers

- juice of 1 lemon

- salt and pepper to taste

    Take two large chicken breasts and pound them flat with a meat pounder (I carefully used a full bottle of wine). Lightly salt and pepper each breast and then toss them in the grated parmesan cheese. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large non-stick skillet and cook the chicken until golden brown and the chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pan and add another tablespoon of olive oil. Add the onions and cook until translucent. Next, add the garlic and cook for another minute. Once the garlic is fragrant, add the chicken broth. Bring to a boil and then simmer uncovered for a few minutes, until the liquid has reduced to half. Toss in the capers, lemon juice, and a little salt and pepper. Add the chicken back to the pan heat for a minute, top with a little more parmesan, and enjoy.

Lemon Butter Cookies

    This recipe is so simple! It's basically a sugar cookie recipe with a little pop of lemon! I started my new job at Lockheed Martin last week, it's pretty tough. Getting up at 3 in the morning to make it to work by 4:30. It's definitely going to take some getting used to. I really like the people that I work with though, and I'm working in a kitchen. So, I am definitely in my element. I can't wait to try out new recipes with my new friends! I brought my lemon cookies in this morning so they could taste test them for me, I got two thumbs up!

Lemon Butter Cookies

Ingredients:

- 1 cup of butter at room temperature

- 2/3 cup of sugar

- 1 egg

- the zest of one lemon (about 2 teaspoons)

- 1 tablespoon of lemon juice

- 2 1/2 cups of flour

- confectioners sugar for dusting

     Beat together the butter and sugar. Then, mix in the egg, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Slowly incorporate in the flour. Place the dough in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a cookie sheet with non-stick spray. Remove from the refrigerator and roll dough into 1- 1 1/2 inch balls. Place on the prepared cookies sheet, about two inches apart. Lightly press down the cookies with the back of a fork and bake for 15-20 minutes or until the bottoms start to become a golden brown. Remove from the oven and dust with confectioners sugar.