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

1. 4 chicken legs
2. 1/3 cup melted coconut oil or ghee
3. 2 tablespoons raw honey
4. 2 teaspoons paprika
5. 1 teaspoon garlic powder
6. 2 teaspoons onion powder or flakes
7. 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
8. 2 teaspoons black pepper
9. 2 teaspoons lite salt
10. 3 sprigs of rosemary leaves, chopped, plus more whole leaves for later
11. 3 sprigs of fresh oregano leaves, chopped, plus more whole leaves for later
12. 3 sprigs of thyme leaves, chopped, plus more whole leaves for later
13. 1 1/2 lemons, cut into 8ths
14. 2 blood oranges, cut into 8ths
15. 3 shallots, cut into small pieces (but don’t chop – you want to eat delicious pieces of roasted shallots together)

Procedure

1. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.
2. 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.
3. Wash and dry your chicken legs, placing them into your baking dish.  Season them with salt and pepper on both sides.
4. 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.
5. Bake for about 45 minutes or until the juices run clear.
6. Serve with an undressed salad of arugula.  The dish will produce enough juice to drizzle over everything.  Enjoy!