Sometimes, it's the simple meals that are the best. The above meal was a hit and received "mmmmm's" all around.
Tuesday evenings are gymnastics night around our house. We get home around 6pm and the girls are hungry. Before I left, I popped some chicken breasts into a 325º oven (covered with foil so they wouldn't dry out). When I got home, I removed the foil and let them continue cooking for another 10-15 minutes or so while I put together the rest of the meal: buttered corn and a green salad with sweet onion and avocado in a mustardy vinaigrette.
I realize people might not feel comfortable leaving their oven unattended while not at home, but I'm okay with it when cooking something that isn't spattery. (Mom, I know.)
I marinated the chicken for about two hours in a combination of a mild and not-too-smoky barbecue sauce and honey. (I'm not a fan of most BBQ sauces because of that fakey liquid smoke taste. Check the ingredient list.) I seasoned them with sea salt and pepper before putting them into the oven. Originally I had paillard plans for those breasts, but when I realized too late that I wouldn't have time to pound them out and grill them, I turned to my oven. I written before about how unpounded chicken breasts really aren't my favorite part of the bird, but these came out moist, not dry.
This would have been really tasty on the grill, too, though I would definitely pound out the breasts before marinating.
A silly question, but how long were you gone? In other words, how long did the chicken bake? :)
Posted by: trish | August 09, 2007 at 07:15 AM
I was gone about an hour. Then I let the chicken bake uncovered for another 15mins once I got home.
Posted by: Stefania/CityMama | August 09, 2007 at 06:17 PM