About a month ago, when we still had black cherry tomatoes and leftover olives and capers, Señor Habanero and I knew we needed to do something tasty with them. Something very tasty. (Thanks again to our friends who helped us figure out that these were black cherry tomatoes, after all!)

And yes… we’re fully aware of how behind we’ve been on posting! I was barely able to complete last month’s Daring Bakers’ challenge in time. Other parts of our everyday existence sometimes sneakily take on a life of their own, if you know what I mean.

Anyway, the Señor and I still remember how we savored our chosen dish of chicken with roasted lemons, cherry tomatoes, green olives, and capers. The original recipe (which can be found here on epicurious.com) doesn’t include tomatoes, but we decided to throw a few in anyway based on one commenter’s suggestion.

Another commenter recommended briefly brining the chicken beforehand, a tip which we also followed.

As you can probably tell from the name, this dish incorporated a handful of different flavors, from the brininess of the olives and capers, to the bright acidity of the lemon, to the subtle sweetness of the black cherry tomatoes.

Our palates were seriously stimulated (in a good way!), and we will definitely make this again – but with two major caveats:

1. To skip pre-salting the chicken breasts (before dredging them in flour), as there is already plenty of sodium from the capers and olives, and also from brining the chicken.
2. To make sure the chicken breasts are pounded to an even thickness, to ensure that different parts of the chicken are equally seasoned.

Without further ado, here’s our tweaked version of the original recipe.

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Chicken with Roasted Lemons, Cherry Tomatoes, Green Olives, and Capers

adapted from an epicurious.com recipe

Roasted Lemons

• 12 thin lemon slices (from 2 lemons)
• Olive oil

Chicken

• simple brine solution, cold – basically about 3-4 Tbsp salt dissolved in 1 quart of water. (The linked article gives a great description of what goes on during the brining process!)
• 4 large skinless boneless chicken breast halves
• All-purpose flour
• 5 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved lengthwise
• ½ cup sliced pitted green Sicilian olives or other brine-cured green olives
• 2 Tbsp drained capers
• 1½ cups chicken stock or canned low-salt chicken broth
• ¼ cup (½ stick) butter, cut into 4 pieces
• 3 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
• pepper, to taste

For roasted lemons:
Preheat oven to 325°F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Arrange lemon slices in single layer on prepared sheet. Brush lemon slices with olive oil; sprinkle lightly with salt. Roast until slightly dry and beginning to brown around edges, about 25 minutes. (Lemons can be made 1 day ahead. Transfer to container. Cover; chill.)

For chicken:
While lemons are roasting, let chicken sit in a brine solution for about 30 minutes; remove and pat dry. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge chicken in flour to coat both sides; shake off excess. Heat 5 tablespoons oil in heavy large skillet over high heat. Add chicken and cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side. Stir in cherry tomatoes, olives, and capers. Add stock and bring to boil, scraping up browned bits from bottom of skillet. Boil until liquid is reduced to syrup consistency, turning chicken over after 3 minutes, about 5 minutes. Add butter, roasted lemon slices, and 2 tablespoons parsley; simmer until butter melts and chicken is cooked through, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to platter. Sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon parsley.

Tags: brining, chicken, tomatoes

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