Nonna’s Chicken with Tomatoes, Olives, and Capers

My mother-in-law is an impressive cook and for the past year I have been completely taking advantage of living near her. She brings over my favorite pasta with lentils on a whim and makes sure my freezer is always stocked with homemade tortelli. I almost never have to think about what to feed my kids for lunch because a couple times a week she will show up with a few meals and snacks for them (think: spinach “meatballs”, zucchini and ricotta pasta with a side of fish, and vegetable risotto). Mooching off my mother-in-law had been working really well for me, until I realized that April 26^th (the one-year anniversary of our move to Italy) was coming up. If I didn’t start taking advantage of her knowledge and actually learn something, we could seemingly soon leave Italy and quickly go back to eating sandwiches or Trader Joe’s frozen meals every night. Not only do I want to learn to cook from Fausta so that I can feed my family, but I want Scotty, Matteo, and baby no. 3 to be able to prepare their favorite recipes from nonna for their own families. I’ll be posting Fausta’s recipes on my blog so I can someday print them and create a cookbook (most of her recipes aren’t even written down!) and because Italian recipes are too tasty to not be shared.

                                           

This chicken will only take you 10-15 minutes to cook, but it feels fancy. Italians will eat this dish alone as a “secondo”, but Americans can throw it on a dinner plate with rice and a salad and call it a meal.

 

Nonna’s Chicken with Tomatoes, Olives, and Capers

Il pollo della nonna con pomodori, olive e capperi

 

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts

½ cup flour

Olive oil

2 cloves garlic (whole)

1 ½ cups cherry tomatoes (halved)

Up to ¼ cup capers

½ cup olives (green or black depending on preference and cut into halves or thirds)

1 cube vegetable bouillon (cut into four pieces)

Salt to taste           

¼ cup pine nuts

½ cup warm water

A few basil leaves  

Instructions:

1.     Either buy chicken breast that has already been thinly cut, or pound a regular chicken breast with a meat mallet (starting from the center and working your way out) until half as thick. Next, lightly flour both sides of the chicken.

 

2.     Pour a generous amount of oil into the bottom of a large frying pan. Over medium heat, add two whole cloves of garlic to the oil and sauté until partially transparent and the aroma has hit its peak.

3.     Add the cherry tomatoes and allow to cook for just a few minutes, until they begin to soften and emit their aroma. 

4.     Place the floured chicken in the pan and flip when the side laying on the pan bottom is no longer transparent. 

5.     After turning the chicken once, add capers (if from a jar, make sure you have rinsed the capers of any vinegar), olives, the cube of vegetable bouillon, and salt. Add ½ cup of warm water to help dissolve the bouillon and keep the chicken moist. If necessary, turn the chicken again. 

6.     Once the chicken is cooked through, in a separate pan toast pine nuts over medium heat for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Add the pine nuts and basil leaves to the chicken, and cook all together for an extra minute. 

7.     Pull out the cloves of garlic and serve.