Roast Chicken with Grape Tomatoes

Beautiful colors and wonderful flavors always excite the palate.

I was at Safeway the other day and noticed Grill Pack chicken for 99 cents per pound.  This consisted of a mixed package of half breasts and hind quarters (legs with thighs attached).  Back home was a half package of grape tomatoes that needed to be used up and that was the inspiration for this chicken dish.  Not only was this dish inexpensive, it used local and seasonal produce.

We included a side of fresh sauteed zucchini and a tossed green salad with avocado, a light balsamic vinaigrette and croutons. 

Nutritionally, this meal offers over 30% of your daily requirement for vitamins B6, C, and E, niacin, and iron.  In addition, you take in over 20% of your RDA for copper, manganese, pantothenic acid, phosphorus, riboflavin, selenium and zinc.  Believe it or not, you only ingest 450 calories with this entire dinner!

Red and yellow grape tomatoes inspired this easy dish. 

How to make the chicken:  For four people, place two pieces of chicken (I used one whole breast and one thigh/leg) in a baking dish.  Place half a pint of colorful grape or cherry tomatoes on the chicken.  Sprinkle over a clove of chopped garlic.  Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and season with 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt and black pepper.  Cover with foil and bake at 325 degrees for one hour.  Chop up some fresh basil and reserve to sprinkle over the chicken just before serving.

While that is cooking, make a light balsamic vinaigrette using 2 parts olive oil to 1 part balsamic vinegar.  Season with salt and pepper and blend thoroughly.  Set aside and toss the salad only just before serving.   I love to recycle jars for making salad dressings - just add ingredients, top with lid, and shake. 

For the salad, allow at least one cup of lettuce per person, 1/4 avocado sliced, other vegetables if you like, and croutons (note the serving size for the croutons).  Good lettuces for this salad might include romaine, spring mix, green and red leaf varieties.

Slice three or four zucchini into 1/4 inch rounds and discard the ends.  In a pan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over low heat and saute one clove of chopped garlic for about 30 seconds.  Add the zucchini and cook until it is almost tender.  You may add broth or water to the pan if it gets dry.  Don't cook the zucchini all the way because it will be reheated later.

You may find that you have an extra half hour or so at this point.  Take a walk around the block or do some other exercise during this time, or do chores!  These activities all burn calories which is good.

About five minutes before the chicken comes out of the oven, reheat the zucchini over low heat and toss the salad with the dressing in a bowl.  Allow about 1 tablespoon of dressing per person.  Cut the breast half into two pieces and separate the thigh from the leg and place on plates. Sprinkle chopped fresh basil over, as shown above and serve with the zucchini.  The salad is on a separate plate.  The chicken skin must be removed before eating.  The chicken in this dish was remarkably juicy!

- Kim Fielding