Lemon Thyme Chicken

For some reason, I never added Annie's Eats to my Google Reader. I've made some things from her blog before, via other bloggers, but I made sure to do it when I found this recipe. Today, I was looking for something with chicken (which I actually remembered to make sure was defrosted--an aside, I have about 30 vacuum packed chicken breasts in the freezer because I forget to defrost and then buy more when I need to cook dinner. BRILLIANT) and had a craving for some kind of creamy sauce. I stumbled upon this recipe, and knew it to be just what I wanted... although the sauce wasn't very creamy. I digress.
So, this is a Chicken Francese kind of thing. Except that it adds in thyme and some butter. It's also very smart in butterfly the chicken instead of POUNDING the chicken... so. much. easier! Also very smart to start browning in the pan and then continue cooking in the juices--so moist and juicy and not overcooked!
So, if you're reading this, and you haven't yet added Annie's Eats, do it NOW!
Lemon Thyme Chicken
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Ingredients:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt and pepper
3/4 cup flour
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 tsp. fresh thyme leaves, chopped
2/3 cup dry white wine I substituted vegetable broth
Juice of ½ a large lemon (or the juice of 1 whole lemon, if desired)
2-3 tablespoons butter
Directions:
Butterfly the chicken breasts to create four halves. Season both sides of the chicken pieces with salt and pepper. Place the flour in a shallow bowl, and dredge the chicken pieces in the flour, shaking off the excess. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken pieces to the pan and saute until lightly golden, about 2 minutes; flip and cook on the other side, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and thyme leaves to the pan and saute just until fragrant, about 1 minute. Off the heat, add the wine to the pan. Return the pan to the heat and bring the liquid to a simmer. Reduce until the sauce has thickened and the chicken has become golden brown on each both sides. Add the lemon juice to the pan and stir in the butter until completely melted. Serve immediately, and spoon the extra sauce over the chicken.

Oh, yum. The hubs made mashed potatoes while I took care of the chicken, and the sauce tasted so good over those taters. I wish there had been more sauce leftover, but I might have reduced it just a little too much.