Sole Piccata

"Piccata" is an Italian style of cooking where you use a flat or butterflied protein (veal, chicken and sole are most common) dredge it in flour, fry it up, and then use the pan drippings to make a sauce reduction that's finished with butter.  A little caper, a little lemon, a little parsley... you can't go wrong!  And any recipe that has you using the pan drippings to make the sauce means that you're only using *one* pan, which always makes me happy.  (And greatly increases the potential that I will make the dish again someday!)

ingredients

• 5 to 8 oz. sole filets per adult serving
• 2T all purpose flour
• salt/pepper
• 2T butter
• 1T olive oil
• 1/4 cup white wine (two splashes)
• 1T capers
• 1 fresh lemon
• handful fresh parsley

On a plate, place the flour and then add a heaping 1/2 tsp of salt and shy 1/2 teaspoon of pepper to the flour and mix with a fork to create a 'seasoned flour'. Get a nice big frying pan heating over medium-high heat, and add the olive oil and 1T of the butter - swirl the pan to combine as the butter melts.

Dredge the sole filets in the flour on both sides, then place in the pan. Cook (and we want it fairly sizzling to get a nice golden color on the fish) for 2 minutes, then flip carefully and cook for two minutes more. 

Transfer the filets to a plate. (If you want to get fancy you can heat a plate in the oven so it's nice and hot, and put your fish on the heated plate to keep them from cooling too fast while you're making the sauce.)

In the empty hot pan, pour the wine in and give it a good stir to dislodge any pan drippings or crusty bits (deglaze, if you will) and then add the juice from the lemon and the capers.  Boil heartily for 2 minutes to reduce, (my sauce was minimal at that point) and then turn the heat off.  Add the remaining 1T of butter and swirl the pan to let it melt into the hot sauce and combine. Pour the buttery wine-caper-fabulous mixture over the fish filets and sprinkle with some chopped parsley to finish. Serve with a starch such as rice, pasta or potatoes (you can smash some boiled potatoes and use the piccata sauce to season those as well) and enjoy!  Fancy, fabulous Italian fish!