Snap Your Fingers and Snap Those Peas!

I noticed a sign at the local farm stand on my way home that said
"fresh peas". Suddenly the thought of their aroma popped into my mind and I had to stop.
There they were....bright green, fresh, dew still glistening on their tender pods...I had to have them! Before I got them home, I crunched on a couple of the fat pods that contained the sweet peas that I knew I would find. They did not disappoint.

The peas went into a Cooking Light recipe that I found in the May 2009 issue. Chicken Scallopini is a quick night supper that is full of flavor. This particular dish is one that is also filled with healthy benefits! It contains those plump peas and asparagus as an accompaniment. If you can find the small new asparagus, that is the best for a dish like this. After cooking the chicken, you make a little sauce to pour over everything, so I served couscous on the side to soak up all the goodness. The one really nice thing about the way this dinner looked was that it was definitely company worthy. It prepares easily, does not use a whole kitchen's worth of pots, pans and dishes and it presents beautifully. That leaves you a lot of time to enjoy your guests. It can also be easily increased to serve a crowd. We really enjoyed this dinner and I had it on the table in about a half hour. That left plenty of time to quickly clean things up and talk a walk after dinner.

Chicken Scallopine with Sugar Snap Peas, Asparagus and Lemon Salad
3 cups julienne-cut trimmed sugar snap peas (about 1 pound)
2 cups (1-inch) sliced asparagus (about 1 pound)
6 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
3/4 tsp. salt, divided
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
Cooking spray
1 cup fat-free, less sodium cooking broth (I used College Inn...excellent!)
1/3 cup dry white wine
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp chopped fresh mint
2 1/2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp. grated lemon rind
1 1/2 Tgbsp. fresh lemon juice
6 lemon wedges

1. Steam peas and asparagus, covered, 4 minutes or until crisp tender. Rinse pea mixture with cold water; drain. Chill.
2. Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/4-inch thickness using a meat mallet or small heavy skillet. Sprinkle chicken evenly with 1/2 tsp. salt and pepper. Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add 2 breast halves to pan; saute 2 minutes in each side or until done. Repeat procedure twice with remaining chicken. Add broth and wine to pan; bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Cook until reduced ti 1/2 cup (about 5 minutes). Remove from heat; stir in butter.
3. Combine remaining 1/4 tsp. salt, mint, oil, rind and juice, stirring well with a whisk. Drizzle oil mixture over pea mixture; toss gently to coat. Serve pea mixture with chicken and sauce. Garnish with lemon wedges.