Opa! Wait...or is that Oh, Pass the Chicken? It's all Greek to me..

Opa! Wait…or is that Oh, Pass the Chicken? It’s all Greek to me..

Chicken / February 21, 2017

Midweek meal planning can be a droll job. I know, I actually just said that. The reason is by Tuesday you are just plain tired. It also when you realize that your Sunday grocery shopping was woefully incomplete. It is at this moment one can hear me tearing through my pantry and reading the label of a can far below knee reach. Grrr… Good thing there is one ingredient that I am never without…Yes…the good news every time I say the word, “artichoke” to my husband he perks up. We love the saltiness, the zip, the deep almost citrus notes and we love it WITH CHICKEN.

I must say canned artichokes really are easy. Which is good because they will take center stage tonight. And because I was tired, remember I said I was tired? Yes, I am TIRED… I decided that I didn’t even want to bring out a saucepan. I would bake the chicken in the oven, and recline, nearly prone, across the countertop while it cooked… Blah, blah, blah….

I’m not sure when the “happy” kicked in. Maybe it’s when I whack that first clove of garlic and it released that familiar pungent perfume. Maybe it’s when I started to cut up the kalamata olives eating one then cutting one, then eating one. For sure I got happy when I began whisking the creamy tzatziki and we’ve cranked up the music nice and loud. I think that’s when I stopped being tired and started getting danged excited.

By the time the chicken began roasting and the rosemary was gently perfuming the thinly sliced yukon potatoes sauteeing in butter, (yes, I did pull out a pan….well, it got fun!) we were laughing and forgetting about the fact that Tuesday can be a tough day. We were glad I was low on fresh ingredients. And we simply raised a fork to scavenging.

Opa!!!!!

Paprika Roasted Chicken with Tzatziki, Artichokes and Olives

Serves 4

Ingredients:

4 medium bone-in and skin on chicken thighs
2 t vegetable oil
½ t salt (+ or – to taste)
½ t white pepper
1 very large clove garlic rough chopped
3 T chopped preserved lemon
1 t lemon zest
1 t good paprika
1 ½ C canned artichoke hearts, halved
15 kalamata olives, halves
4 sprigs fresh rosemary

Direction:

Pour a bit of oil in the bottom of a small glass roasting dish, just big enough to lay the 4 thighs without them touching. Place each of the thighs in the pan and sprinkle with a bit of kosher salt.
In a glass bowl combine the yogurt, garlic, more salt, white pepper, preserved lemon, lemon zest and half the paprika. Stir to combine. Divide the mixture evenly over the chicken breasts, covering the top of each. Place the drained artichokes and olives all around and on the chicken. Sprinkle the rest of the paprika over all of it and drizzle with a bit more oil. Place a sprig of rosemary on top of each breast.
Roast in a 375 degree F oven for about 45 minutes or until the chicken is done. Remove, cover and let sit for about 5 minutes. Serve with butter sautéed Yukon potatoes.