Sometimes I think that Alex and I make entirely too much roast chicken. I would say that we roast up some chicken breasts at least once a month. Roast chicken breasts really have become one of our easy go to weeknight meals. So it's no surprise that I have a hard time resisting new roast chicken recipes. I found this recipe when I was trying to figure out how to use the gorgeous yellow heirloom cherry tomatoes that I got from Holton Farms this week. Have you ever picked a tomato from a farmer's market (or a garden if you are lucky enough to have one) and smelled that lovely tomato scent of a really nice, ripe, fresh tomato? So heavenly. It makes me sad that you so seldom find a nice tomato here in NYC unless you're lucky enough to take part in a CSA or have time to hit the farmer's market. Actually, I heard a customer in a long conversation with the manager at my local grocery store complaining about just that - the dearth of good tomatoes at NYC grocery stores. Anyway, I found this recipe and once I started reading through the ingredients I became really intrigued. I love chickpeas and roast chicken. And a spiced oil of garlic, cumin, smoked paprika and crushed red pepper flakes to flavor it all? Genius!
My only complaint about this recipe was that the chicken skin didn't crisp up like I wanted it to. But I make that same complaint 90% of the time when we make roast chicken breasts. Getting the skin crispy while keeping the meat moist is really freaking hard! This meat was crazy moist. And it was really flavorful. And those tomatoes and chickpeas were to die for. The chickpeas were slightly crispy and the flavor of the tomatoes had concentrated during the roasting process until they were super sweet and juicy. I wasn't sure how I would feel about the yogurt sauce, but it was really nice. Mixing just a teaspoon of the oil in gave the yogurt really amazing flavor. The recipe suggests saving some leftover chicken and making pita sandwiches with the chicken (once you rip the meat off the bone) and the tomato-chickpea mixture. Drizzled with some of that yogurt sauce I bet it would be pretty delicious. This recipe goes on the list of ones that we will definitely make again. I might tweak it a little bit to get the skin a little crispier, but that's the only change I would make. I love it when you start with a great base recipe like this one.
Recipe after the jump!
Roast Chicken Breasts with Garbonzo Beans, Tomatoes and Paprika
Bon Appetit
May 2008
INGREDIENTS:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 garlic cloves, pressed
1 tablespoon smoked paprika*
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
1/2 cup plain yogurt or Greek yogurt
4 chicken breast halves with bones
1 15-ounce can garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained
1 12-ounce container cherry tomatoes
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro, divided
Preheat oven to 450°.
Mix first 5 ingredients in medium bowl. Pour 1 teaspoon spiced oil mixture into small bowl; whisk in yogurt and set aside for sauce. Place chicken on large rimmed baking sheet. Rub 2 tablespoons spiced oil mixture over chicken. Add beans, tomatoes, and 1/2 cup cilantro to remaining spiced oil mixture; toss to coat. Pour bean mixture around chicken. Sprinkle everything generously with salt and pepper.
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