The beauty of living with a plethora of other students is that when it comes time to cook dinner, it is easy to delegate tasks, which makes the process easier. While it can be tempting to pop a frozen dinner in the microwave if you have too much homework, including your housemates in the cooking process is actually a great strategy to motivate yourself in the kitchen; more hands-on deck means each chef can tackle an individual part of the recipe, making the prospect of producing a full course meal on a school night a little less daunting. Besides, it allows for a fun group activity with the reward of a delicious dinner. I encourage you to try this approach with your friends or family next time you want to cook something that seems more complicated!

Crusted Lemon Chicken Piccata with Roasted Broccoli

SERVES: 2-5 people

PREP TIME: 10 minutes 

COOK TIME:  20 minutes

EASY TIPS: Not a fan of broccoli? You can substitute it for any other vegetable of your choice. You can also save leftover vegetables to put in salads or sandwiches the next day!

INGREDIENTS: 

For the Chicken:

• 4 skinless boneless chicken breasts, sliced in half
• ½ cup all-purpose flour
• Salt & pepper
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• ¼ cup lemon juice
• 2 lemons, thinly sliced
• ½ cup chicken stock
• ¼ cup white wine
• 2 tablespoons butter
• ¼ cup capers
• 3 slices of bacon, cooked and sliced 
• ⅓ cup fresh parsley, for garnish

For the Pasta:

• One box of your favorite pasta (or other grain)
• Water, for boiling

For the Broccoli:

• 1 pound broccoli, cut into florets
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped,
• Salt & pepper

INSTRUCTIONS: 

1. Heat a large pot of water for the pasta. When it begins to boil, add the grain of your choice, let it cook, then drain with a colander and rinse.
2. Preheat the oven to 475°F. Add aluminum foil to a sheet pan, and spread the chopped broccoli florets out. Douse in olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper, then cook for up to 25 minutes, or until crispy.
3. Dredge the prepared chicken breasts in flour, salt and pepper. This will help to ensure the chicken is tender when cooking.
4. Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Cook each piece of chicken until it is almost cooked through. Remove the chicken from the skillet and let rest.
5. In the same skillet, add the chicken stock, wine, lemon juice and butter, and let simmer. Add the capers and bacon after a few minutes.
6. Add the chicken and lemon slices and allow to cook for 5 minutes in the sauce. This will help finish cooking the chicken, as well as allow for it to soak up the sauces.
7. Serve with pasta and broccoli, and garnish with parsley.
8. Enjoy!