Lemon Artichoke Chicken & Penne

Last week my son ended his freshman year of college. Yay! I drove out to get him and we loaded up the truck and made the long drive home. I’m so happy he’s home but even more importantly that he had a great year.

OK, I’m pretty sure it was great except for the college food which leaves a lot to be desired. Fortunately, he’s doesn’t have food restrictions so it was easier for him than the kids who have food sensitivities, allergies or other conditions that require special diets.

Now that he’s home I’ll be cooking everything he missed while he was away. I’m going to have to work on converting more than a few of my old recipes to accommodate my food sensitivities but that will be half the fun and I’ll get to share them here.

This dish is one that is easily converted and it’s also one of my son’s favorites so it’s what we had last night.

It’s a little bit of work but worth it — if you like artichokes. (And, that’s not a problem because we love them!)

PS - I ate way too much!

Lemon Artichoke Chicken and Penne

1 pound chicken breasts
3 tablespoons GF flour (sorghum)
salt and pepper
1 teaspoon dried basil
2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
1 cup white wine
2 cups GF chicken broth
juice of half a lemon
1 jar capers, drained and rinsed
1 jar pitted kalimata olives, drained
1 bag of frozen artichoke hearts
1/2 pound of GF penne
Locatelli Grated Pecorino Romano Cheese
Feta cheese (sheep’s milk)
GF breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon olive oil

Cut the chicken — about 2 large breasts — into 2 x 1/2 inch strips. Dredge in flour seasoned with salt, pepper, and basil.

Pour the grapeseed oil in a deep, heavy frying pan and heat over medium high heat. Working in batches fry the chicken until fully cooked and browned on both sides. Remove the chicken to a plate.

Deglaze the pan with a cup of white wine scraping up all the browned bits. Reduce the liquid by half.

Add the chicken stock and simmer until it is reduced by about a third. Add the juice from 1/2 lemon and season with salt and pepper.

Make the penne while you’re waiting for the sauce to reduce. Boil it a few minutes short of being done (so if it is supposed to boil for 9 minutes reduce the time to 6 minutes). Drain, reserving 1 cup of the pasta water.

Add the penne to the sauce and mix in. Add the artichokes (cut into quarters). Simmer, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes. If the sauce boils down add some of the pasta water about ¼ cup at a time to keep things moist. Add the chicken pieces and heat another minute.

Pour the mixture into a large ovenproof serving dish. Stir in the drained olives and capers.

Sprinkle the pasta with a few tablespoons each of Locatelli Grated Pecorino Romano Cheese and Feta. Top with the GF breadcrumbs and drizzle with olive oil. Place under the broiler for a few minutes until the top is golden brown.

Note: this recipe can be made dairy-free by omitting the cheese. I use Locatelli Pecorino Romano because it is made with sheep’s milk and find I can tolerate it. And, I’ve found feta cheese made with sheep and/or goat’s milk at both Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods.

I happen to like Bionaturae GF pasta. It’s made with rice, potato, and soy flours.

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Citrus Salad over Dandelion Greens

I was thrilled to see Dandelion Greens in a local health food store this weekend. As children my sister and I  would pick them from the lawn to make salad. We lived in a rural area on 60 acres. We didn’t worry about fertilizer because my dad didn’t use it. Our lawn was green and that’s all that mattered.

My parents are first generation Italian—Rocco and Angelina. My mother would occasionally make dandelion salad or battered and fried zucchini flowers. And, she served artichokes way before they became popular. My grandmothers and great aunts were good cooks and my mother was a good cook. My sister and I learned from them.

We grew up in a rural section of New Jersey. (Yes, Virginia, there are rolling hills in NJ.) My dad would buy bushel baskets of fruits and vegetables from local farmers and we’d can or freeze them for winter meals. He had a huge garden with corn, lettuce, peppers, cucumbers, zucchini, eggplant, potatoes and tomatoes. Wonderful, juicy, red Jersey tomatoes. Just pick them, wipe them off on your jeans, and bite. Sometimes we’d bring a salt shaker into the garden so we could salt the tomato as we ate it. It doesn’t get any better than that!

Talk about eating local and seasonal. It was a way of living.

OK, I’m reminiscing and could do it all day. We didn’t eat citrus salad over our dandelion greens but I thought this might be a nice update. The citrus is sweet and tart and the dandelions are a little bitter. It’s colorful and would make a nice side for grilled fish.

Citrus Salad Over Dandelion Greens

One bunch of dandelions
1 grapefruit
1 large navel orange
1 tsp. of honey
1sp. of lime juice
salt and pepper
olive oil
3 strips of cooked GF bacon, cut into small pieces
1 slice of red onion, diced

Wash and dry the dandelions.

Cut the citrus into wedges removing pith and the section membranes. Sprinkle with the red onions, salt and pepper. Toss with honey, lime juice, salt and pepper. Let it sit for about 10 minutes.

Cut up the dandelions, drizzle with olive oil and a few tablespoons of the juice created by the citrus salad. Salt and pepper to taste. Spoon the oranges & grapefruit over the dandelions and top with the bacon pieces.

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