During a cold snap last spring when May wore the mitt of March, I thumbed through some cold-weather recipes tucked into a thick Cook Now folder. This caught my attention, perfect, I thought, for a chilly night – and so it was.
It’s a one-pot meal, meat and vegetables all in the same dish. The honey provides the sweet, the spice rub the hot. After simmering for 30 minutes, there’s still plenty of sauce left to soak into rice or potatoes or for dipping bread.
The underlying flavor reminds me of my mother’s midnight remedy for childhood coughs, hot water with lemon juice and honey. It soothed the throat, letting everyone get back to sleep.
Years later at university, I slept with sixty girls in a cold-air dorm with the windows cracked, even in winter, to meet fire regulations. When one girl coughed hard in the night, 59 girls struggled to sleep.
Remembering Mom’s ministration, I’d tear myself out from under the electric blanket to scamper across the bone-chilling floor for a mug of hot-hot water. Drink this, I’d whisper to the often still-sleeping girl, it’ll help your throat. Soon the dorm would turn silent, sixty girls again deep in sleep.
Some chilly evening this winter, soothe your family with this delicious and healthful chicken dish.
For easier measuring, warm the honey in the microwave in 15 second bursts.
SWEET ’n’ HOT CHICKEN
Time to table: 60 minutes
Serves 8
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon sweet paprika
- 1-1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1-1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 2 pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs (see ALANNA’s TIPS)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (if needed)
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 pound carrots, peeled, cut in diagonal slices
- 1 red pepper, chopped
- 8 ounces mushrooms, quartered
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup lemon juice (2 - 3 lemons)
- 1/4 cup honey (see TIPS)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Chopped cilantro
Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in Dutch oven over medium high until it shimmers. Meanwhile, combine spices and coat thighs. Brown meat, in batches if needed not to crowd, transfer to plate.
If fat remains in pan, remove all but 1 tablespoon, otherwise add 1 tablespoon olive oil. As they’re cut, add onions, carrots, red pepper and mushrooms and cook until onions are golden. Nestle thighs into mixture.
Mix water, lemon juice, honey and salt and pour over. Reduce heat to medium, cover and cook 30 minutes. Garnish with cilantro.
This recipe has been ‘Alanna-sized’ with reductions in portion size and increases in no-calorie spices and fiber-rich vegetables.More Recipes Sensuous with Cinnamon
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