It’s That Citrus Time of Year
My boyfriend and I are big fans of chicken, but it can get boring after a while. Needing to mix it up I hit the fruit section at the grocery store. The citrus selection is in full bloom right now and I wondered what could be done with blood oranges, a seasonal favorite of mine not only for their beautiful, rich coloring but because of their mild flavor. A bit of spice always goes nicely with an element of citrus so I decided to pull together some chicken legs instead of breasts for their flavor, blood oranges, lemons, shallots, and some herbs for a richly flavored chicken dish that’s quite easy to make.
It’s a one pan dinner – I love those! Throw everything into your baking dish, pop it into the oven, and 45 minutes later out comes dinner. I served this delicious dish with some arugula. No need to get fancier than that. As an added benefit this dish is gluten, grain, and dairy-free. Great for you Paleo eaters out there or anyone looking to eat clean. Let’s get to the recipe! This is enough for 2-3 people.
Ingredients
- 4 chicken legs
- 1/3 cup melted coconut oil or ghee
- 2 tablespoons raw honey
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder or flakes
- 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
- 2 teaspoons black pepper
- 2 teaspoons lite salt
- 3 sprigs of rosemary leaves, chopped, plus more whole leaves for later
- 3 sprigs of fresh oregano leaves, chopped, plus more whole leaves for later
- 3 sprigs of thyme leaves, chopped, plus more whole leaves for later
- 1 1/2 lemons, cut into 8ths
- 2 blood oranges, cut into 8ths
- 3 shallots, cut into small pieces (but don’t chop – you want to eat delicious pieces of roasted shallots together)
Procedure
- Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.
- In a bowl, melt coconut oil or ghee in the microwave. Stir in raw honey, paprika, garlic powder, onion flakes, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and the herb trio.
- Wash and dry your chicken legs, placing them into your baking dish. Season them with salt and pepper on both sides.
- Drizzle the marinade over the chicken legs on both sides. Add the lemon and blood orange pieces to the pan, squeezing out a bit of juice over the chicken and pan. Add the shallot pieces as well. Finally, cover the entire dish with extra leaves of oregano, rosemary, and thyme.
- Bake for about 45 minutes or until the juices run clear.
- Serve with an undressed salad of arugula. The dish will produce enough juice to drizzle over everything. Enjoy!
1 comment
I make this recipe every time I see blood oranges at the store! It’s so easy and SO dang good 🙂 Thanks for sharing!