Skinny Chicken Piccata Pasta

Summer is officially here in the south! Ok, yes I know that “officially” according to the calendar, summer doesn’t start until Saturday. But, we have had afternoon high temperatures in the mid to upper 90’s now for several weeks!! We are getting our classic afternoon thunderstorms (that last 5 minutes) and the humidity is on the rise. So I am sticking with my point that summer is here 🙂 And with the weather steering us toward summertime, I wanted to steer myself toward foods that remind me of summer. Fresh, bright, lemony, comfort-food goodness that just makes you smile…and what can accomplish that feat you might ask? Well, chicken piccata of course! And if you make it a pasta dish that that can still be labeled “skinny,” this girl is grinning from ear to ear!!

Skinny Chicken Piccata Pasta was born because I had a major craving for summertime flavors and pasta! Who am I kidding, really, I always have a craving for pasta!! I swear, I could eat pasta or pizza everyday for the rest of my life and be just fine! I know that sounds crazy for a “health coach” and for someone who has a “healthy recipes” blog to say, but it is true. I have just had to learn how to lighten up my two favs and eat smaller portions to keep myself in check.

My Skinny Chicken Piccata Pasta is a recipe for chicken piccata pasta that is lighter on fat and calories, but bursting with the all the bright. summertime flavors of this traditional dish. The recipe that was my inspiration for the dish was from A Spicy Perspective and you can see the original recipe here. Don’t get me wrong, Sommer’s version looks AMAZING!! However, it does have a whole stick of butter in it, and I just couldn’t go there. I made a few other changes. I used 2 tbsp. of extra virgin olive oil in place of the whole stick of butter, no flour (just used a bit of cornstarch to thicken the sauce), no rosemary (because I forgot…I do actually have two rosemary plants, so I really should have…next time) and adding wine (duh…everything is better with wine), and whole wheat angel hair pasta in place of the gemelli (just what was in the pantry). 

Here is the recipe and nutrition information for Skinny Chicken Piccata Pasta:

Skinny Chicken Piccata Pasta

 

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Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

30 mins

 

A recipe for chicken piccata pasta that is lighter on fat and calories, but bursting with the all the bright. summertime flavors of this traditional dish.

Author: Becky's Best Bites

Serves: 8

Ingredients

• 1 box (14.5 oz.) whole wheat angel hair pasta
• 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast, chopped into bite size pieces
• 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 1 large sweet yellow onion, chopped
• 3-4 cloves of fresh garlic, minced or pressed
• ½ cup dry white wine
• Zest and juice from one fresh lemon (approximately ⅓ cup)
• ½ cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 3 oz. capers, drained
• 1 tbsp. cornstarch
• ⅓ cup parsley, chopped
• ⅓ cup parmesan cheese
• sea salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Reserved ½ cup of the starchy cooking water and drain. Return pasta to hot pot, add reserved cooking water and zest of one lemon. Set aside.
2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once the skillet is hot, add olive oil and chicken. Saute chicken for 3-4 minutes per side. Remove from the pan and keep warm. (Note: chicken will not be cooked all the way through at this point.)
3. Add onion and garlic to the pan. Sautee for 3-4 minutes or until onion is translucent.
4. Add wine to the pan to deglaze the pan. Reduce the wine by half (approximately 2-3 minutes).
5. Add lemon juice and chicken broth to the pan and stir to combine.
6. Add cooked chicken back into the pan and cook for 4-5 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
7. Dissolve cornstarch in about ¼ cup water and add to pan along with the capers. Constantly stir to thicken the sauce.
8. Once sauce has reached desired consistency, add chicken and sauce to pasta. Toss with parmesan cheese and parsley.
9. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve warm.

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