Kitchen Nightmare

Sometimes I feel very fortunate that I enjoy cooking. It must be a struggle to feed yourself and family healthy, yummy food if you don't enjoy the process.
Part of the cooking process involves clean up and dishes. Yuck.
I am also very fortunate that when I moved in with Jerry, he enacted the "You cook, I'll clean" rule.
Yup, you read that correctly.

I don't do dishes.

Last night for dinner I  made chicken piccata, garlic mashed potatoes, roasted acorn squash, and steamed broccoli.

Poor Jerry.

Poor, poor Jerry.

I like to think that I don't usually make a mess of this proportion every night. I usually at least use a garbage bowl and put the dirty dishes in the sink. But last night I had a lot of things happening at once. My mess got a little out of control....
Good thing chicken piccata is one of Jerry's favorite meals.

Chicken Piccata
Serves 4

• 2 chicken breasts, butterflied lengthwise (so you have 4 pieces of chicken)
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup flour
• 3 Tbls olive oil
• 1 Tbls butter
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 cup capers, rinsed
• 1/4 cup parsley, chopped

Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge in flour and shake off excess. Brown chicken in the olive oil and butter on Med/High. You want to cook for about 2 minutes per side. The chicken won't be done, you just want it nice and brown on the outside.
Transfer the chicken to a plate. Add your wine to the pan and reduce for a few minutes. Turn to Med/Low and add chicken stock, capers, lemon juice, and parsley.
When it comes to a simmer, add your chicken (and any juices that are on the plate) back into the pan.
Let the chicken cook all nestled in the pan sauce with the lid on, until it is cooked all the way through.

I normally serve this with angel hair pasta, but Jerry requested mashed potatoes yesterday. He has been known to put the sauce from the chicken piccata on pretty much everything on his plate.
Not that I can blame him.

I have made this dish about a dozen times. I love the bright lemon juice and the briny capers. I love that the flour from the chicken thickens the sauce slightly, but not so much that it is a gravy.

Jerry must have loved it too.

I am one lucky cook.


Would you cook more frequently if you didn't have to do dishes?