More Chicken

I've just returned from a beach vacation, sunburned as always and relaxed. Not having much in the apartment, I quickly ran to the grocery store to stock up before it closed Sunday night. In my haste I returned with a couple of things to make a salad with, chicken breasts, broccoli rabe, mangoes and blueberries. I had no real meal plan in mind; I just grabbed as I breezed through. By the time Monday night rolls around, I'm stuck with only chicken and broccoli rabe for dinner options. Not too bad, but not really that exciting either as I had nothing to make the chicken infused with some interesting flavor.

Finally contented with the idea that I was going to have a boring dinner, I rubbed the chicken breast (bones in!) with some spice mixture I found in the cupboard (who knows how long that has been there...don't judge me) and some olive oil. I threw it onto our one and only baking pan and into the oven at 375 for 30 minutes. I said a little prayer for the chicken to be cooked all the way through and then moved onto the broccoli rabe.

Now if I must brag for a second or two, I must say that I do know how to work the broccoli rabe. Or maybe it's really that I just love, love, love broccoli rabe and could eat it at every meal if I could get my hands on enough of it. For some reason I have the hardest time finding it down in Texas, but here in Little Italy I am never more than a stone's throw away from getting my hands on some leafy green goodness.

Anyway, I wash, chop, and boil until the stalks are tender. Drain. Transfer to a skillet with olive oil and garlic. Reheat. Sprinkle on crushed red pepper. Mangia! It's so simple and really hard to mess up, in my opinion.

The chicken turned out great - and cooked all the way through. It had this really nice crunchy top layer that I love. It was really juicy and surprisingly flavorful thanks to the spices and the copious amount of salt I poured onto it. Maybe it wasn't the most creative, exciting dinner I've made, but it definitely hit the spot.