Herb Roasted Chicken with Tomato-Olive Sauce

I have always said you will never have your last cookbook.  And as much as I love my cookbooks, and believe me, I have a ton, sometimes my favorite dishes to prepare and cook are those that I make up by using what I have on hand at the time.  Those dishes are the ones that really get my creative juices flowing.  It is almost like creating a piece of edible art.  You just never know how it will turn out until you taste the finished product.  Of course I make “mistakes” that won’t be repeated, but more so than not, the dishes come out really good and everyone is asking for more.   The difficulty in this, however, is that when we really like something that I just made up on the fly, is remembering what ingredients I used or how I made it.  But this is how I learned to cook many, many moons ago.   And if things come out slightly different than they were before, so be it.  It just adds another layer and a new variation is created.

I had some bone-in chicken that I knew I wanted to roast, but I wasn’t sure of the sauce I was going to make.   It did not take long to decide on a light tomato sauce, and I had some olives I wanted to use as well, voila!  Herb roasted chicken with a tomato-olive sauce was created.  It is very similar to a Spanish style roasted chicken.  I served it over farfelle pasta with some zucchini au gratin, along side some warm bread with an olive oil and balsamic dipping sauce.  And of course there was wine.  I served it alongside a cool crisp chardonnay.

Herb Roasted Chicken with Tomato-Olive Sauce

2-3 lbs bone-in chicken, breast and rib is probably best

1-2 TBSP of mixed dried herbs – I used basil, oregano, and thyme

2 tsp paprika

1 TBSP garlic

salt & pepper to taste

olive oil

 

Pat the chicken dry with a paper towel, then generously rub the seasonings all over the chicken.  Pour olive oil over the meat and rub everything into the chicken.  Let set in the refrigerator for at least 3-4 hours before cooking.

Once the chicken is ready, preheat the oven to 375* F and add the chicken to the center rack of the oven.  Roast for about 45 minutes, or until a bit of a crust forms on the chicken and the juices are clear.  Baste the chicken with the juices periodically to keep it moist.  You can eat the chicken as is if you prefer not to make a sauce to go with it.  I am a “saucy” kind of girl though, and I love sauces on my foods.

While the chicken is cooking, make the tomato-olive sauce.

Tomato-Olive Sauce

5 tomatoes, diced medium

1 TBSP garlic

1 shallot, sliced thin

1/2-3/4 cup pitted olives cut in half – I used a variety of olives

1 TBSP basil

1 TBSP oregano

2 tsp thyme

salt & pepper to taste

1/2 cup olive oil

 

Saute everything together in a hot skillet for about 10 minutes, at a medium-high heat.  Then reduce the heat and simmer for another 7-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  The tomatoes will break down and this creates the sauce.  It’s fine if there are still tomato chunks in the sauce.  That will just add more depth and character to the sauce.

When the chicken is cooked, remove it from the oven.  On a bed of cooked farfelle pasta (or pasta of your choice) add a bit of the sauce, then place the chicken on the pasta.  Top the chicken with more sauce and dinner is served.