I have not written a
post in a while, but you will have to forgive me as I had two quite good
reasons. The first reason is that I am currently applying for jobs and was busy
with that and the second, more culinary, is that I have been trying to make
macarons. Now, this week was my 10th batch or so, so I am no expert
and realize how complicated they are. However, this is not a macaron post so
that is all I will say about them for now.
In the meantime, I have
developed a fun chicken recipe that I just loved. Bored in the kitchen one day,
I invented this mix that is good for anyone who likes to add a little bit of
sweetness to their chicken, but it is also great because if someone in your
household hates sweet chicken, they can just leave out the sauce off their
plate! Personally, I am a fan of sweet chicken, especially if I am making
chicken thighs… I will sweeten them with honey, brown sugar, just about
anything. Not too much certainly, but I do love the unexpected sweetness of
meat. Nevertheless, when experimenting with this recipe I decided not to cover
my meat in honey, but use a rhubarb jam I had in the fridge. Now the good thing
about this jam is that it is sweet as well as zesty. Since I got my jar in the
UK and I am aware that rhubarb jam can be hard to find in some places, I
suggest you substitute it for any slightly acidic jam, anything from a citrus
fruit or even apple would work just as well as the rhubarb jam.
This little meal can
make a great weekday lunch for the whole family! Then again, it is good as
leftovers too, so even if you are home alone, it wouldn’t go to waste.
Chicken with Parsley and Spinach Potatoes and a Rhubarb/Almond Milk Sauce
Difficulty: Medium
Time: 1h 20min
Ingredients
For the chicken thighs
Circa 1 kg chicken
thighs (4 pieces)
4 teaspoons Dijon
mustard
Salt
Cumin
For the potatoes
4 potatoes, cut into
wedges
Salt
Cayenne pepper
Oil
90g baby spinach
Bouquet of fresh parsley
For the rhubarb/almond milk sauce
1 teaspoon oil
2 tablespoons rhubarb
jam
100ml almond milk
Cornstarch
Prep your chicken by
seasoning with salt and cumin generously on both sides and by adding one
teaspoon of Dijon mustard to each thigh and rubbing it onto the meat with your
hands. Preheat your oven to 200°C.
Generously add oil to a
baking tray and put in the potato wedges, seasoning them with cayenne pepper
and salt and then mixing them with the oil with your hands. This is a little
messy, but it is important that each wedge is covered with a thin layer of oil.
Once the potatoes are seasoned, place the chicken thighs on them and over the
tray with aluminium foil and place in the oven; after 20 minutes remove the
foil. After another 20 minutes flip your chicken to the other side and leave in
the oven for another 15-20 minutes.
For the potatoes,
prepare baby spinach by cooking in boiling water for 2 minutes. Once done,
remove from water and cut into tiny strips. Wash your parsley and chop it into
equal size pieces like the spinach. Chop one clove of garlic and mix the three
ingredients together. When the potatoes are done, cover them in the spinach and
parsley mixture.
Once you have flipped
your chicken the final time, you may start making the sauce to accompany the
meal.
On a medium heat,
combine 1 teaspoon of oil with rhubarb jam and almond milk. Once it starts
boiling, dissolve cornstarch in very little water and add to the pan, mixing
swiftly for a short while, until the sauce has a medium thickness to it.
