Roast Lemon Chicken Thighs + Caramelized Cauliflower

Another meal from my year-long goal of trying new recipes.  Inspired by an amazing cauliflower recipe (usually a contradiction, I know!) from my boyfriend's sister, I wanted some cauliflower lovin' in my life and to add a go-to recipe in my growing Rolodex Pinterest board.  One of my newbie chef problems is I'm still learning what goes well with each other and thinking of appropriate side dishes (what to serve with tacos besides grilled corn is perpetually stumping), so this time I turned to the intimidating but useful Chowhound for answers.  The suggestion?  Roasted lemon herb chicken.  Easy enough!  So here's the result: roasted chicken thighs with lemon and oregano and caramelized curry cauliflower.  Highly recommended for an easy, quick, almost prep-free weeknight dinner!  And it passed the ultimate test, two thumbs up and a request for a repeat again soon from the kind but honest critic, my boyfriend.

Roasted Chicken Thighs with Lemon and Oregano

Recipe from Bon Appetit

INGREDIENTS

1 lemon

4 large or 8 small skin-on, boneless chicken thighs

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

3 teaspoons olive oil, divided

3 sprigs oregano

1 tablespoon minced shallot

1/2 garlic clove, minced

1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 cup dry white wine (such as Sauvignon Blanc)

1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 425°. Very thinly slice half of lemon; discard any seeds. Cut remaining lemon half into 2 wedges. Season chicken thighs with salt and pepper.

Coat a large room-temperature skillet with 1 teaspoon oil. Add chicken, skin side down. Place skillet over medium heat and cook, letting skin render and brown, and pouring off excess fat to maintain a thin coating in pan, until chicken is cooked halfway through, about 10 minutes.

Scatter half of lemon slices over chicken and half on bottom of skillet (the slices on top of the chicken will soften; those in the skillet will caramelize). Transfer skillet to oven, leaving chicken skin side down. Roast until chicken is cooked through, skin is crisp, and lemon slices on bottom of skillet are caramelized, 6-8 minutes.

Transfer chicken pieces, skin side up, and caramelized lemon slices from bottom of skillet to a warm platter. (Leave softened lemon slices in the skillet.) Return skillet to medium heat. Add oregano sprigs, shallot, garlic, and red pepper flakes; cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Remove skillet from heat. Add wine; cook over medium heat until reduced by half, 1-2 minutes. Add broth; cook until thickened, about 3 minutes. Squeeze 1 lemon wedge over and season sauce with salt, pepper, and juice from remaining lemon wedge, if desired. Drizzle with 2 teaspoons oil. Return chicken to skillet, skin side up, to rewarm. Serve topped with caramelized lemon slices.

Caramelized Curry Cauliflower

Recipe from Williams Sonoma

INGREDIENTS

1 head cauliflower, cut into 1 inch florets

2 tablespoons EVOO

1/2 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon curry powder

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoon turmeric

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Arrange cauliflower florets on a single baking sheet.  In a small bowl, stir together the extra-virgin olive oil and spices. Drizzle over the cauliflower, toss to coat evenly and roast for 25-30 minutes, stirring 1 or 2 times, until golden brown and crisp-tender. Transfer the cauliflower to a warmed serving bowl. Serve immediately.