Woe Is I, A Second Father's Day

Strangely, Woe is I is correct, as pointed out by Patricia O'Conner in her Guide to Better English; a book that Matt was reading like a novel the other day. I too am fascinated with the language even though I make mistakes it is fun to have a redo now and then. In fact, Woe was I last Sunday because I thought it was Father's Day. I made a big standing rib (less) roast, corn on the cob, salad, and baked potatoes roasted with the meat. For dessert we had a pineapple walnut cake, from a Internet recipe, with cream cheese icing. Now, I have to do it again on the actual Father's Day, this Sunday. I blame it all on the TV. If 'they' would not start harping on a holiday months in advance, we might keep our dates straight. Any way, for this Sunday it is Buca di Beppo's lemon chicken, Mike's favorite. I have a grandson who is working his way up at Buca, but he did not give me the recipe. It was on line from a chef Vittorio Renda, Buca di Beppo. It is made at the last minute, so if everything else is ready, I can whip it up to a gentle state, which is how we like it, tender and lemony.

Here is the authentic recipe from Buca:

Buca Chicken with Lemon
Source: Chef Vittorio Renda, Buca di Beppo

Ingredients:
2 six-ounce boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt
1 cup of flour
1/4 cup of olive oil
1/4 cup of white wine
4 large lemons
1/2 stick of unsalted butter softened
Small handful of drained capers

Preparation:
Cut three lemons in half and use for fresh lemon juice. Pour the juice
through a fine strainer.
Cut the last lemon into wedges for garnish.
Begin to heat the olive oil in a 12 inch sauté pan on med-high.
While oil is getting hot, lightly season both sides of the chicken breast
with salt.
Lightly dust the chicken breast in the flour. Shake off excess flour.
Place chicken in the sauté pan.
When the chicken is golden brown, turn over and brown the other side as
well. It is important to brown both sides to ensure the chicken is
completely cooked through.
When both sides are nice and brown, add white wine and lemon juice.
Continue to cook for approximately two to three minutes. The liquid should
reduce approximately half.
Once the liquid is reduced, remove the chicken breasts from the pan and turn
off heat.
Check to make sure the chicken breasts are cooked by turning each piece of
Buca Chicken with Lemon

The thing is, I actually think they poach their breasts because when I had it, it was completely white and tender. Any way, I am going to have Carfagna's skin, bone, and even out (pound) the chicken breasts to a flat even prep. Then I will go from there with this recipe.

After Sunday we must think about July 4th. We are actually having a family reunion here on that date. Usually it is before or sometimes after, but this time we are hitting the date on the nose. It is a potluck, so I don't have to go too crazy. I furnish all the meat, Beth brings the corn on the cob, I fix a few starters and the rest will be brought in. We have a lot of wine, so I'll furnish that too. Easy does it this time.