Happy Chicken and Mini Cabbage

I have not made chicken in  a long time.  The last time I ate it we bought two bone-in chicken breasts at the Metro in town and grilled them under the broiler. They were TERRIBLE!  WHY?  Because they were not HAPPY chicken.  By that I mean some kind of farm raised, antibiotic free, free range and/or organic chicken.  For a long time our grocery store did not offer any of these options for chicken. Yesterday I saw it for the first time so I picked up a package of bone-in chicken breasts.  I prefer buying chicken that is still on the bone because it's cheaper and I find the bone helps the chicken stay moist and flavourful. 

Tonight I rubbed the chicken with a little olive oil and sprinkled them with salt and pepper.  I popped them under the broiler for 5 minutes on each side. Then turned the oven down to 400 and cooked for 20-25 minutes more, until they reached an internal temperature of 160 to 165. 

While the chicken was cooking I put together a side dish, Brussels Sprouts.  I love brussels sprouts, they have a ton of flavour and can be prepared in so many different ways.  They are good pan fried with some bacon, steamed and drizzled with lemon, or baked and tossed in a white wine, mustard and mushroom sauce.

When the chicken was done cooking I let it rest for about 7 minutes, this is really important, it helps to keep the juices in the chicken.  I put a generous portion of the brussels sprouts on the plate and topped it with the chicken.   I really like the chicken, it was much happier then the last chicken breast we had.  I will definitely make the brussels sprouts again, I love the combination of white wine and Dijon mustard.  Although, I'll be honest, the brussels sprouts were slightly over cooked.  The recipe below has a reduced cooking time so if you decide to give the recipe a try 20 minutes in the oven should do the trick.

Here's what I did for the sprouts,

Mychelle’s Brussels Sprouts

Ingredients

• 1lb Brussels Sprouts trimmed and halfed
• 2 tsp olive oil
• Pinch of salt and pepper
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1/3 cup white wine
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp sour cream
• 8 oz sliced mushrooms
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400ᵒ
2. Place Brussels sprouts on a baking sheet in a single layer and drizzle with 2 tsp of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Put the Brussels sprouts into preheated oven for 20-25 minutes until they are tender.
3. Meanwhile in a pan melt butter over medium heat until hot and add diced onions and garlic.  Sauté onions until soft and just starting to turn brown. 
4. Add white wine and simmer until alcohol burns of and wine reduced. 
5. Add Dijon and sour cream stirring to incorporate. 
6. Stir mushrooms into mixture and cook for 2-3 minutes until the mushrooms are tender. 
7. Remove Brussels sprouts from the oven and add to the pan with creamy mushroom mixture.
8. Serve immediately.

ENJOY!