Cranberry Balsamic Chicken Thighs
I am trying to cook from a contemporary food magazine at least once a week, and this was a recipe that my wife thought looked very good from a magazine we subscribe to and enjoy called “Eating Well.” It was in the January/February 2018 issue and was written by Carolyn Nalcoun (Eating Well Senior Editor). It was not difficult to make and made a wonderful meal! If I can do it, you can do it. Compliments to Eating Well magazine!
Ingredients
• 4 Bone-in chicken thighs (about 1 1/2 pounds)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 balsamic vinegar
• 1 1/2 cups cranberries
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme, plus more for garnish
We had a snow thaw before I made this and believe it or not my fresh thyme was still green outside in my herb pots so I was able to use last summer’s thyme for this recipe. Checked one ingredient off my shopping list! Make sure to use a bag of fresh cranberries rather than canned cranberries.
Cooking Directions:
Over the years I have collected a lot of cast iron cooking skillets, and for this recipe I used a 12 in. Griswold. It is a classic old skillet but works like a charm. It is perfectly seasoned and a pleasure to cook with.
1. On a large plate salt and pepper the chicken thighs (I used fresh ground pepper and ground sea salt) while heating the olive oil over medium to medium-high heat. Next, place the chicken (all four thighs) skin side down in the skillet and reduce the heat to medium. (At this point I placed a screened cover over my skillet to reduce the amount of splattering oil. This helps in keeping your stove top clean). Set a timer for eight minutes and cook until the chicken is golden brown. Remove all but a Tablespoon of fat from the skillet. (My skillet has a pour feature on the side which really helps for this).
2. Flip the chicken over and add fresh cranberries to the skillet. Add vinegar, honey, balsamic vinegar and fresh thyme. (I stripped all the leaves off the thyme sprig then chopped a few times). Turn the heat up to high and bring to a simmer. Then, turn the heat down but maintain a simmer. Partially cover the pan (I used a stainless steel twelve inch cover for my cast iron skillet). Stir occasionally and cook ten to twelve minutes.
3. Remove chicken from skillet and put on serving plates. Increase the heat to high and add the remaining 1/4 tsp. salt and cook without the lid. Stir for one minute until the sauce becomes thick. Serve the sauce with the chicken and garnish with a few fresh sprigs of thyme. Enjoy!
