Ingredients: |
Ingredients: 1/4 cup dark raisins
1/4 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup Madeira or port wine
1/2 cup water
6 split chicken breasts (with skin)
1 Tbsp five-spice powder (divided)
2 tsp coarse sea salt, plus more to taste
Ground black pepper
7 Tbsp unsalted butter (divided)
3 Granny Smith apples, peeled (with peels reserved), cored and cut lengthwise into eighths
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
3/4 cup apple cider
2 cups chicken stock
1/4 cup honey
Juice of 1/2 lemon
2 Tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf Italian parsley
1 Tbsp candied orange peel
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Directions: |
Directions:In a small saucepan, combine the dark and golden raisins, wine and water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; remove from heat and let stand for 20 minutes, or until the raisins are fully plumped.
Meanwhile, heat the oven to 450ºF.
Season the chicken breasts with 1 1/2 tsp of the five-spice powder, 2 tsp of salt and black pepper, to taste.
In a large, ovenproof saute pan, melt 3 Tbsp of the butter over medium-high heat. Place the chicken breasts, skin side down, in the pan and cook until well browned and most of the fat has cooked out of the skin, about 5 minutes. Turn the breasts over and pour off any excess fat.
Add the apple peels to the pan, slipping them under the chicken breasts. Place the pan in the oven and bake until the chicken breasts are opaque throughout, about 18 minutes, or until a thermometer inserted at the thickest part reads 165ºF. Transfer the breasts to a warmed serving platter and cover to keep warm. Leave the apple peels in the pan.
Dust the apple peels with flour. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, for 5 minutes. Pour in the cider and deglaze the pan, stirring to dislodge any bits stuck to the pan bottom. Cook until the liquid is reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Add the stock, bring to a boil, and decrease the heat to medium so the liquid simmers gently.
In a second saute pan over medium-high heat, melt 3 more Tbsp of the butter over medium-high until the butter is brown and smells toasty, 2 to 3 minutes (do not allow it to burn). Add the apples, honey, lemon juice and remaining 1 1/2 tsp five-spice powder. Saute the apples, turning them as needed, until they are a rich, even brown color and are tender, 5 to 8 minutes. Season with pepper.
Pour any juice released from the chicken into the pan with the apples. Arrange the chicken on the platter and top with the caramelized apples. Drain off any liquid from the raisins and sprinkle the raisins on top of the chicken.
Add the remaining 1 Tbsp butter to the pan with the simmering liquid and stir until melted. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Pour the sauce through a fine-mesh sieve over the chicken and apples. Garnish with the parsley and candied orange peel. |
This recipe for Chicken Breasts with Cider, Spices and Carmelized Apples is from