Sunday Supper – Spring Chicken

Even though we all know I’m no spring chicken, I feel young and energized by this new, regular feature on the blog.

Bill and I invited 4 friends over for the first KilKenney Kitchen Sunday Supper last week. (Thank you to Fred, Danny, Laura and Carol for being willing kitchen testers.) The idea was to assemble a group of food loving friends from different parts of our life and enjoy getting to know each other through an evening of cooking, laughing and eating. All my favorite things!  It was a rousing success.  We split into teams to make this new Chicken with Fresh Herb Sauce along with some old favorites: Roasted Asparagus with Parmesan and KilKenney Kale Salad.  We topped the evening off with the wonderful Rhubarb Almond Torte and an easy variety of white wine and sparkling waters.

I plan to host a Sunday Supper in KilKenney Kitchen once a month.  I’d love to have you join us and/or replicate the idea in your kitchen.  Nothing brings people together like good food, lively conversation and the occasional cooking mishap.

Chicken with Fresh Herb Sauce

This easy, delicious chicken is a new favorite at our house. The "everything but the kitchen sink" green sauce is fun to make and takes ordinary baked chicken to a new level. (This recipe was inspired by a recipe from The Kitchn)

Servings 4 people

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 45 minutes mins

Ingredients

The Chicken

• 1 4 to 5 pound chicken cut into pieces
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

The Fresh Herb Sauce

• 1 bunch cilantro about 1 cup
• 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves or herbs of choice
• 2 large cloves garlic
• 1 large lemon
• 1/2 cup white wine optional
• 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

Instructions

The Chicken

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees
• Place the chicken pieces on a sheet pan.
  
• Pat the chicken dry with a paper towel. Drying it will result in a lovely, crisp chicken
  
• brush the chicken with olive oil
  
• Sprinkle the chicken with the 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and 1/2 teaspoon of ground black pepper. Bake the chicken for until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees (about 30 minutes)
  

The Fresh Herb Sauce

• Zest the lemon
  
• Place the cilantro, basil, garlic, red pepper flakes, lemon zest, the juice of the lemon, olive oil, white wine (if using) along with a pinch of salt & pepper in a blender.
  
• Blend the sauce until all the ingredients are incorporated. Taste and adjust the seasonings.
  
• Have fun with this one. Feel free to use your favorite herbs, add more heat, wine, garlic etc.. to make this sauce your own. Here's a great shot of my friend Fred and neighbor Laura creating their version
  
• Once the chicken has finished baking remove it to a platter. Spread the Fresh Herb Sauce on the hot sheet pan and place the chicken on top. The Herb Sauce will mix with the pan juices to create a rich, flavorful sauce. Let the chicken rest for 10=15 minutes.
  
• Place the chicken on a platter and spoon the sauce all over
  
• Serve with your favorite salad, vegetables and bread or rolls and a crisp white wine and/or your favorite sparkling water and enjoy!