Chicken

I feel a little funny blogging about gardens and chicken with the heartbreak of Haiti, but there it is. Melissa Clark had a big piece in today's New York Times with three recipes for boneless breast of chicken, all of which I want to make.

The recipes reminted me that when we were working on The Skinny, Melissa sent over a recipe for "Roasted Chicken Breasts with Rosemary Apples." For some reason, I wanted to cut it. She insisted it was delicious. I tried it. She was right. It's fast, it's easy, it's even elegant. Here it is. (You can also make it with salmon.)

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 garlic clove
1/2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Coarse salt
1 Tbsp butter (or olive oil)
2 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and coarsely chopped (about 2 1/2 cups)
2 Tbsp white wine or water
1 large sprig of rosemary

1) Preheat oven to 400. Rub each chicken breast with garlic. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet and roast until juices run clear, about 20 minutes.

2) Meanwhile, make the apples. In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat melt the butter. Cook until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes.

3) add the apples, wine or water, and rosemary. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and cook, shaking the pan occassionally, until the apples are tender and have broken down slightly, about 15 minutes. (It the pan juices dry out before the apples are soft, add another tablespoon or two of water and keep cooking.) Remove the rosemary sprig and season the sauce with salt and a generous amount of pepper.

4. Arrange the chicken on individual serving plates and spoon the apples on top. Serve hot.