Voices of Huntsville is awarded to a local resident of Huntsville, Madison County, Madison City, Decatur, and surrounding areas to share their personal perspective of our community. Our Voices of Huntsville feature shares their creative passion and unique perspective about what they absolutely love about Huntsville in a format that best speaks to their own creativity, vlog, blog, photo essay. Interested in becoming a TSG Huntsville Voice of Huntsville? Apply here!

In December’s Voices of Huntsville Jill’s family history, rooted solidly in her Italian heritage, gives rise to her delightful foodie recommendations here in Huntsville. Read her entire Voices of Huntsville to explore her foodie fun, then and now! In this extra special feature, Jill shares a cherished family recipe with us that is sure to delight—Cousin Val’s Chicken Piccata!

Cousin Val’s Chicken Piccata

Ingredients

Olive oil
3 finely chopped shallots
3 chicken breasts (each butterflied, separated into two, and pounded out with a mallet)
Flour for dredging (season with salt, pepper and garlic powder)
2 beaten eggs 
3 tablespoons butter
4 large lemons
¼ cup capers

Instructions

Coat the pan with olive oil, and sauté the shallots over medium heat until translucent. Dredge chicken first in egg then in flour, and add to pan. Add the butter to the pan. Continue to cook until almost done, should still be a bit pink inside. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.

Juice the lemons, reserving some slices for garnish. Add the juice to the pan, and return the chicken to the pan. Get the chicken well coated with the lemon juice. Cover and cook for about 15 more minutes, turning frequently.

Take chicken out of the pan and put onto a serving platter. Put all of the pan liquid on top of the chicken, and then add the capers and lemon slices for garnish. 

Mangia Huntsville!

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Portrait Photography by White Rabbit Studios

About Jill Farkas and Mangia, Huntsville

Jill Farkas grew up the youngest of 6 children, with an Italian engineer father and an amazingly patient stay-at-home mother. Chaos was common, but “Mangia” (eat) was a word heard often around the house and what brought everyone together around the table. After a childhood in Connecticut in the ‘70’s and Virginia in the ‘80’s, Jill arrived in Huntsville in 1990 with her aerospace engineer husband Mike. Since then, they have enjoyed a wonderful life in South Huntsville raising two children who are both Auburn University alumni. Julie is 26 and works as a Communications Specialist at Northeastern University in Boston, and Sean is 23 working as a Systems Engineer for Torch Technologies here in Huntsville. Mike is currently in his 32nd year with The Boeing Company. Jill, when she’s not out sampling local dishes for her blog, is a former 5th Grade Teacher at Holy Spirit School, a former Assistant Registrar at Catholic High School (now known as St. John Paul II Catholic High School), and currently works part-time as a Legal Assistant for a local attorney in downtown Huntsville. Along with her daughter Julie, Jill created Mangia, Huntsville on social media as both an ode to her childhood and a way to celebrate and share all the food adventures that our Rocket City has to offer. You can follow her on Facebook and on Instagram. 

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Thank you so much Jill for sharing your amazing family history, your journey, and your family recipe with us and Huntsville! Be sure to make sure to follow @mangiahsv on the gram and Facebook for some more local foodie fun!

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