By Selma Williams Gila Community College Wellness Center Coordinator
I hope the week has gone as great for you as it has for us here at the Wellness Center. The semester is starting up and, if you have not enrolled yet, please do so soon.
The other day I had a student ask me if I knew what a “caper” was. I know about the capers I used to watch on TV with my dad, but I knew nothing about the capers a person eats.
The caper is a flower bud from the flinders rose bush that is picked right before blooming. A rose bush a person may ask? Actually the caper is a closer relative to the cabbage plant. Capers can vary in size from pea size to the size of the tip of a pinky.
Capers do not like getting too cold. The main areas for growing capers are in California, parts of Italy and on the Mediterranean. They often grow wild and, since they are drought tolerant, can be found on the sides of the road or climbing buildings.
The taste is slightly astringent and pungent, and it can lend piquancy to many sauces and condiments. They can also be used as a garnish for meat and vegetable dishes. Sometimes they are used as an olive substitute.
For being small they have some great nutritional values. One ounce of capers has 11.2 mg of calcium and potassium, 51 mg of omega 3s. The down side is they are high in sodium so, if used, rinse them to lower the sodium content.
The recipe I found this week is from Herbs-TreatandTaste.blogspot.com.
Piquant Chicken with Capers:
Ingredients:
Serves 4
- 4 halves of chicken breasts, pounded until very thin
- 1 large onion, thinly sliced
- 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1 glass white wine
- 2 Tbs. lemon juice
- 2 Tbs. capers
- 2 oz. butter
- olive oil
- freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- salt to taste
Directions:
Put flour, black pepper, oregano and a little salt in a plastic bag and shake to mix, then add chicken a piece at a time and coat evenly with the flour mixture.
Melt butter with the oil and fry the chicken pieces for 3 minutes each side or until they are golden brown.
Remove chicken pieces and add onion, capers and garlic to the pan and fry until cooked. Then add the liquids and stir so that all the brown bits are incorporated into the liquid. Cook for 2 minutes then serve over the chicken and pasta of your choice.
Let me know how you liked it.
WooHoo!
Selma