Wine Saves the Day

Good evening everyone!  We always say that the simplest recipes are often the best.  Whether the ingredient list is short and sweet or the preparation is ready in a snap, there are dishes that don't require a lot, yet they taste the best.  Tonight, I'll be preparing one of those dishes and you'll be blown away at how incredibly tasty this dish is.

The Recipe:  Chicken and Artichokes in Wine Sauce
Original Recipe Adapted from a recipe found on:  www.pinterest.com

What You'll Need:
2 Cups Artichoke Hearts
2 boneless skinless Chicken Breasts, about one pound
1 Cup Flour
2 Tablespoons unsalted Butter, divided
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil, divided
2 Cups dry White Wine
1 Teaspoon Lemon Juice
1 Cup Orzo pasta

To start, preheat a medium saucepan with water over medium-high heat.  Once the water is at a boil, add the uncooked orzo and cook according to package directions.  To drain, cover with a lid and pour over a colander.  The majority of orzo will stay in the saucepan, any leftovers will be caught in the colander.  Scoop any leftover pasta back into the saucepan, cover, and set aside.

Next, cut the artichoke hearts in half lengthwise and set aside.  On a cutting board, cut the chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces, about one inch to a side, and set aside.  In a medium mixing bowl, add the flour and season with salt and pepper and mix until well combined.  Add the chicken pieces to the bowl and toss to coat.

Once the chicken is coated, heat a large, nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Heat one tablespoon of butter and one tablespoon of olive oil.  Once the butter is melted and the skillet is heated through, add the artichokes and cook for about five minutes, or until lightly browned on each side.  Carefully removed the artichokes from the skillet to a plate and set aside.

After the artichokes have cooked, melt the remaining tablespoon of butter, along with one tablespoon of olive oil.  Once heated again, lift the chicken pieces out of the flour and arrange in the skillet.  Saute the chicken pieces for five to seven minutes or until well-browned on both sides.  After the chicken is done cooking, add the browned artichokes back to the pan.

Slowly, add the wine to the skillet and scrape any browned bits on the bottom of the pan.  Bring the skillet to a simmer and cook for another eight to ten minutes over medium heat or until the liquid begins to thicken.  Add the lemon juice and orzo and stir to coat all the ingredients.  Serve and enjoy!

The End Result:

All the flavors in this dish are super bright and give a crisp to the pallet.  Unfortunately, the artichokes don't enhance the flavor of the dish too much, because they give an incredible flavor boost.  But the real star of this dish has to be the wine sauce.  If you don't enjoy white wine, I would not advise to cook this recipe.  I felt like there could have been other ingredients to mellow out the flavor of the wine, but when a simple wine sauce is all that's needed, it's pretty good.  Overall, a few tweaks could have made this recipe a superstar, but when only a few ingredients are needed to create a lovely dish, there's no room to complain.

Thanks for joining us this week.  Check back next week as we present a batch of new recipes for you to try.  Until then,

~Cheers!