Chicken Cutlets with Bell Pepper Ragout

I received my June/July copy of Fine Cooking and as usual flipped through and drooled over all of the awesome recipes inside. One of the recipes that caught my eye was Chicken Cutlets with Bell Pepper Ragout. This section of the magazine provided some great seasonal recipes utilizing boneless skinless chicken breasts. The main ingredients for this recipe had me running to the grocery store! It combines chicken, tomatoes, bell peppers and onions. Sounds delicious, doesn't it?

Chicken Cutlets with Bell Pepper Ragout (Serves 4)

1 1/4 lb plum tomatoes (6-8), cored, halved lengthwise and seeded
1 medium orange bell pepper, seeded and cut into 3/4 inch pieces
1 medium yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into 3/4 inch pieces
1 small yellow onion, cut into medium dice
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp cayene, kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 medium clove garlic, mashed into a paste (click here to find out how!)
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 1/2 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, sliced into cutlets (click here to find out how!)

Now, before I go on with the recipe I just want to point out the links that I added above. Isn't that neat? In the back of the magazine there is a "Test Kitchen" section filled with tips, techniques, equipment, etc. This recipe referenced it for info on how to make garlic paste and how to slice chicken cutlets, just in case you didn't know! I love this magazine... but I digress...

Position a rack 6 inches from the broiler element and heat the broiler on high. Line a heavy-duty-rimmed baking sheet with foil. Put the tomatoes cut side up on one side and the peppers and onion on the other side.

Drizzle everything with 3 tbsp of the olive oil and sprinkle with the cayenne, salt and pepper. Toss the peppers and onions. Broil until the tomatoes are collapsed, about 7 minutes. Flip the tomatoes, toss the peppers and onions and broil until the tomato skins have large black spots and the peppers and onions are tender, about 5 minutes more.

Use tongs to pull the skins off the tomatoes. With a slotted spoon, transfer the tomatoes to a cutting board. Put the peppers and onions in a large bowl; add the garlic paste. Chop the tomatoes and add to the bowl with the other vegetables. Mix well, season to taste with salt and pepper and keep warm.

Heat 1/4 cup of the olive oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Put the flour in a shallow pan. Season the chicken with 1 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper; dredge in the flour. Working in 2 batches, cook the chicken, flipping once, until just cooked through, 2-3 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to serving plates and serve with the ragout.

I love peppers, onions and tomatoes, but the boyfriend isn't too fond of vegetables. Even he liked this! The red, yellow and orange colors of the vegetables are beautiful. The garlic paste gives the vegetables a nice depth of flavor and dredging the chicken in flour gives it somewhat of a "breading." The cutlets cook super fast so it's great for a weeknight meal. I'll definitely be making this recipe again. I had some leftovers and they were gone the next day.