roast chicken pieces with sweet tomatoes and garlic

this dish, which should be called extremely clever roast chicken breasts with sweet tomatoes, has quickly risen in our rotation to occupy a top spot on our menu several times per month. it is extremely clever, and is the brain child of the brilliant jamie oliver. the chicken skin gets deliciously crisp and the meat is quite tender and succulent, while an incredible broth forms below. i adapted this dish from jamie oliver's recipe for tender and crisp chicken legs with sweet tomatoes from his book, jamie's dinners. i changed the recipe to adapt it for our family's particular tastes, by adding and omitting a few ingredients and changing the cut of chicken and doubling the cannellini beans, we love so much.

this recipe really only takes 10 minutes to put together and then roasts for an hour and a half. a brilliant recipe for weekends or whenever you have guests. it never fails and is highly adaptable.

roast chicken breasts and thighs with sweet tomatoes

serves 4-6

2 chicken breast halves

4 chicken thighs

2 15 oz cans cannellini beans, drained

2 potatoes, peeled and chopped

2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved or ripe plum tomatoes, quartered

1 whole bulb of garlic, broken up into cloves, skin left on

olive oil

salt

pepper

optional: 1 bunch swiss chard, spines removed, leaves chopped, or 8 oz baby spinach

preheat oven to 350 degrees F. season the chicken pieces all over with salt and pepper. first drizzle a little olive oil, then place cannellini beans across the bottom of a snug fitting oven proof pan several inches deep. next the chopped potatoes. scatter in the chopped chard or baby spinach, if using. scatter in a quarter of the tomatoes. mix around a little to distribute evenly. place the chicken breasts on top of this. tuck in the tomatoes and garlic cloves around the chicken pieces, pushing them into the gaps between. drizzle all with olive oil, add a little more salt and pepper if you like. roast for 1 and a half hours in the open pan. at the one hour mark, take it out of the oven and baste the chicken pieces with the collected juices. turn your oven on to convection roast setting if you have it, and cook for the remaining 30 minutes. serve at once. remember to warn your dinner guests to squeeze the garlic out of the skins before eating. we love to squeeze the garlic directly onto fresh bread, heavenly. jamie recommends some alternatives i haven't tried such as omitting the potatoes, but serving with simple mashed potatoes, or shredding the chicken and tossing all with a bowl of linguini or spaghetti. enjoy.

nearly perfect chicken marbella

well, as the story goes, i was in a classic pickle. no idea what to make for dinner and no food in the pantry as i was dropping my son off at the ball field tuesday night at 5:15. so i asked him, what did he want for dinner. "victory," was his reply. "sounds good," i smiled. "what else?" i asked, as he reached into the back seat for his large sports bag filled with bats and gloves. the door slammed in reply, as he strode happily and with determination toward the dugout, casually waving to his arriving teammates. oh the simplicity and focus of 12 year olds. how i yearn for such clarity in my own life.

as per usual, i was on my own on this one. i drove to the store. it was getting late. the game started in 20 minutes. out of the mists of history, my own history and our collective history, sprang a sudden taste for chicken marbella. that marvelous dish invented in the 80s in nyc, by those amazing silver palate women. i have always loved it, the sweet, tart, savory, earthy unctuousness of this dish transcends. come to think of it, i have never seen it served without oohs of delight from guests. a friend of mine, a marvelous cook, often makes it, a popular favorite that it is. familiar, lovely, goes great with wine, and basically fool-proof.

now the recipe calls for marinating overnight. i needed dinner ready at 7:30 when the game was over, and i needed the dinner to practically cook itself in my absence. sounds impossible but no. not for marvelous, nearly perfect chicken marbella. marinating, and many other forms of elaborate preparation, it so often turns out, are overrated. impetuously, i picked up a package of organic skinless boneless breasts and another of skinless boneless thighs, a container of green olives, a jar of french prunes, a small jar of italian capers. boldly reinventing as i went. no lines. one bag of groceries. not too expensive. everything was going my way.

as i confidently breezed in the kitchen door, i started the rice. i placed the chicken in a large bowl. turned on the oven. set about flavoring the chicken with an odd array of this and that. pulled out my favorite bright green ceramic roasting dish. placed said chicken in pan. placed in oven. called out to teenage daughter studying for finals in the dining room. "if you smell anything burning, please turn this down." i left for the game.

turns out my son (known far more for his hitting and fielding than his pitching), was pitching a near perfect game. an 11-0 shut out. in one inning, he twirled only 3 pitches. the first two batters grounded out to him. the third batter to the third baseman. i have never seen a three-pitch inning before. the catcher did not even touch the ball once in that inning. i snapped lots of pictures. my husband and i were giddy. he went on to pitch as the local paper called it, "a complete game masterpiece." he faced only one batter more than the minimum. wow. what a night. as incredible as it was unexpected.

i kept my head and texted my daughter to pull the chicken out of the oven after 30 minutes. it was cooling on the stove as we returned home in victory. happily, chicken marbella is good, hot, warm, or room temperature. it really was spectacularly delicious. as we ate, my lovely daughter read us a wonderful short story she wrote, just returned with an A+. so we dined in the glow of their recent successes. my kids said it was an a+ no-hitter of a dinner. as it turned out, victory tasted a lot like chicken marbella. completely memorable, savory, and delicious.

chicken marbella

superfast homemade adaptation

1lb organic boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 lb organic boneless skinless chicken thighs

1/2 cup white wine vinegar

3/4 cup french prunes

1/4 cup capers and juice

1/2 cup green olives (i used an italian brand pitted and filled with tiny bits of lemon)

8 to 10 cloves of garlic, sliced

1/4 cup olive oil

salt

pepper

2 teaspoons brown sugar sprinkled on top of chicken in the baking dish

preheat oven to 400 degrees F. i use a setting called "convection roast." mix chicken with the other ingredients and marinate while the oven is heating. when oven is fully heated, place the chicken mixture in a baking dish which holds them comfortably. sprinkle chicken pieces with sugar so they brown nicely. place in oven. return in 30 minutes. remove from oven. enjoy the amazing aroma. allow to cool for 10 minutes plus. enjoy with rice, cous cous or bread. a green salad would have been nice, next time.

lovingly adapted from silver palate cookbook. the traditional version uses herbs and white wine and red wine vinegar as well as chicken with bones and skin. the dish didn't suffer at all in this superfast adaptation, i swear. i think it's because without skin the chicken calls for less marinating, or none, in my case. they also use different quantities and proportions of most ingredients. chicken marbella is nothing if not adaptable.

green stir fry with mushrooms and chicken (or tofu)

if you are trying to add more green to your diet, and most of us are, this dish is a delicious way to start. a mixture of green vegetables including broccolini (sometimes called broccolette) baby bok choy, zucchini, kale, scallions, mushrooms and chicken breast, it is fast and heartwarming, any time of year. other greens such as chard, spinach, broccoli, chives, pea shoots, snow peas, long beans, or various asian greens would be excellent here. creativity only enhances this dish. use what you like.

green stir fry with mushrooms and chicken (or tofu)

1lb boneless skinless organic chicken breast, thinly sliced across the grain

1 TBSP cornstarch or potato starch

2 tsp dry sherry

1 tsp soy sauce

4 TBSP olive oil

1/2 cup stock or water

2 cloves garlic, sliced

1 large bunch broccolini or broccolette (cousin to broccoli, edible stalks, sweet flavor)

chopped into 1 inch pieces, stalks included

3 baby bok choy, sliced

1 zucchini, diced

small bunch of kale, stems removed, leaves stripped and chopped

1 bunch scallions, chopped into 1 inch pieces

8 oz mushrooms, cremini or shitake, trimmed and sliced

1 TBSP fermented black beans (optional, available at asian grocery stores)

steamed rice to serve.

slice chicken and place in a bowl with the cornstarch and sherry and soy sauce while you prepare the veg. chop away and set up your ingredients near the wok so you can work quickly once the heat is on high.

next, heat the wok. once hot, add 1 tbsp olive oil and mushrooms. stir fry on high heat for 2 minutes. remove from wok and set aside. next the greens, return the wok to high heat, add another TBSP olive oil, the green veg except for the scallions, which will go in at the very end after the chicken or tofu). saute for 1 minute, add 1/2 cup broth or water, stir for another 2 minutes. reserve with cooking juices in a bowl or plate to the side. now for the meat or tofu. return wok to high heat. add 2 TBSP olive oil to the pan, add in the garlic and stir around for a few seconds, then the chicken, allow to sear briefly, then stir and turn until opaque. add in the veg, stir briskly, add the scallions and fermented black beans if using. combine, taste for flavor, then serve immediately with steamed rice. delicious mixture of salty, crunchy, sweet, savory, and green.

tofu can easily be substituted for the chicken. no need to use sherry or cornstarch in this case. slice a 16 0z block of tofu into 1 inch by 1/2 inch pieces and saute at the end with the garlic. add in the soy sauce with the scallions at the end if needed. just as delicious.

chicken biryani

i am happy to report that chicken biryani at home is not very hard. my husband is absolutely crazy for biryani, so that i was able to make a decent version at home the first time is like well, magic. abracadabra.

usually the recipes i post on cup and table are tried and true and i have been making them for years, years. but this, this i've only made once, so it is a recipe under development. most likely it will change over time, as things tend to do around here. one great thing about biryani is that it has few ingredients. namely rice, chicken, yogurt, onions, cilantro and spices. it is not really that spicy in that it is mostly rice. and you can control it to make it as crazy spicy or super mild as you like at your place. we like it moderately spicy here. who knew this could be conjured up with so little skill? not me. a great secret. adding beneficial spices like turmeric, garlic, ginger, cayenne, couldn't be much easier.

chicken biryani

phase 1: marinate

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into medium size chunks

1 cup plain yogurt

3 teaspoons garlic smashed (in a mortar and pestle)

1 teaspoon smashed fresh ginger

1 teaspoon ground coriander

3/4 teaspoon cayenne

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

freshly ground pepper

1 teaspoon sea salt

cut chicken and place in a bowl to marinate. smash garlic and fresh ginger with 1 teaspoon sea salt in a mortar if you've got one, if not finely mince and mix together with the salt. add in the coriander cayenne turmeric cumin pepper and paprika. sprinkle the spice mixture onto the chicken. mix in the yogurt and stir to combine the spices, yogurt and meat pieces thoroughly. marinate for several hours, at least 2, as many as 6 hours.

next make the rice. you don't want to cook the rice all the way. just get it started. basmati is the best rice for this dish, traditionally. it cooks fast.

phase 2: prepare for the oven

now is a good time preaheat your oven to 375 degrees farneheit

2 cups basmati rice

1 teaspoon salt

3 large onions

1 /2 cup olive oil

1/4 cup (half a stick) butter

1 cup coriander leaves, freshly washed, separated from the stems

1/4 cup water

to make the rice, first rinse and then soak it for half an hour or so. drain. boil a medium pot of water. (about 8 cups or so). add in a teaspoon of salt. when the water begins to boil add in the rice. cook vigorously for 5 minutes, until the rice is tender but still quite firm, not done yet but a good way there. drain and reserve.

now the onions. slice up the onions and cook them in the pot you plan to bake the biryani in. you will need a dutch oven type pan with a good lid on it. i am lucky enough to have a cast iron pan that worked beautifully. any sort of dutch oven type pot with lid would work great. otherwise you will need to fashion a tight fitting foil lid underneath the lid of your regular pot.

and for the onions, saute them on medium high heat in the butter/olive oil mixture for 10 minutes until they are soft, translucent and have some lightly browned edges. remove them from the pan and reserve 2 TBSP of the oil you used for cooking and leave the rest in the pan.

now begin your layering. place in half the chicken, spacing it over the bottom of your pot, add half the rice over top, next layer half the onions, then half the coriander leaves, then repeat: chicken; rice; onions; coriander. now pour 1/4 cup water over the whole mixture. and the 2 TBSP reserved butter/oil from cooking the onions.

phase 3: bake for one hour

seal the top nice and tight, if you don't have a dutch oven you'll want to use foil to real seal the pan underneath the lid. cover it up and place it in your preheated oven for one hour.

phase 4: enjoy

when the hour is up remove the pot, remember both the lids and handles will be searing hot, use mitts. serve immediately with some plain yogurt, maybe a nice salad and or maybe some toasted naan. the crispy browned bits along the bottom and sides of the pan are delicious and highly sought after in my house, make sure to dig these magical crusty yummy bits out of the pan when serving. biryani at home, a new favorite.

note: for this recipe, i adapted one from naomi duguid and jeffrey alford's book mangoes & curry leaves, i changed several of the details and ingredients to fit my families' tastes, and to more closely mimic the texture of biryani's we've enjoyed in the past, but the process is nearly the same. their book is wonderful and the pictures alone are worth the price, but the recipes....superlative. very inspiring those two. and they really walk you through the recipes, which i both need and love when tackling a new cuisine.