Thursday, April 2, 2009

Raspberry-Balsamic Chicken with Shallots

I hope everyone has had a great week. There's lots of goodness going on over here which has kept me from blogging this week but I plan to share with you tomorrow with my Not So Fat Friday yumminess. 

This dish could have easily been a part of NSFF but I really wanted to share it today. From Eating Well.com , I made it this week & really enjoyed it. It was perfectly paired with some whole grain couscous that I kicked up a bit by cooking in broth & then adding some lemon juice, garlic powder & a little thyme to go with the thyme in the main dish. This was super easy to make, delicious & healthy. That's a triple threat right there!!!!!!!!


{There is more sauce than what appears in the dish}

¾ cup seedless all-fruit raspberry jam
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
4 4- to 5-ounce boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 ½ teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup chopped shallots (2-3 large)
1 ½ teaspoons minced fresh thyme

Combine jam & vinegar in a small pan over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring often, until the jam is dissolved, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in salt & pepper & let cool slightly. Reserve 1/2 cup of the sauce. Place chicken breasts & the rest of the sauce in a large sealable plastic bag. Seal & shake gently to coat. Marinate in the refrigerator for 1 to 1 1/2 hours. 

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallots & thyme. Cook, stirring often, until the shallots begin to soften, about 1 minute. Remove the chicken from the marinade (discard marinade). Add the chicken to the pan & cook until just beginning to brown, 2 minutes on each side. Add the reserved raspberry sauce; stir to melt the jam & coat the chicken. Reduce heat to low, cover & cook until the chicken is cooked through & no longer pink in the center, 6 to 10 minutes. Serve immediately.


{My Thoughts}


The 3 boneless chicken breasts I had were very thick so I sliced them thinner & used about 4 of the thin cutlets which ended up in line with the recipe. If I had pounded them thin they still would have been too big. 

If you halve this recipe for some reason I highly recommend you keeping the jam & vinegar quantity the same. I also recommend doubling the shallots regardless. I felt there were not enough. Sweet Vidalia onions would work very well if you have those on hand instead. 

As for the jam, I went with the brand Polaner All Fruit Fruit Spread which had the least sugar of most of the jams out there. I also used the dried thyme from my pantry & would again.

21 comments:

Rachael Schirano \\ Rachael Schirano Photography said...

i always love a new recipe that is both healthy + full of flavor!

brionyskerjance said...

this looks delicious (minus the shallots for me) haha....i am lovin the new header!

Anonymous said...

Yummy, I have shallots planted in the garden now, and some chicken breast in the freezer. I wonder if this would be good with jalapeno jelly?

Danyele Easterhaus said...

i love the beauty of the finished dish...and can i say, delish! i love using jams in recipes. yummy!

Liz {Learning To Juggle} said...

This sounds wonderful!! I am going to try it this weekend (I LOVE cooking with shallots and hardly ever do it anymore!!)

Maria said...

I love cooking with shallots, so much flavor!!

Kristina P. said...

I LOVE balsamic chicken! This looks awesome.

Kacey said...

Oh yum! I am putting this on the menu FO Sho'!

Jen said...

What a new and cool thing to make with chicken. Love it.

Cheffie-Mom said...

I've made recipes with jam before! They are delicious. Yum! Thank you for this one!

FROGGITY! said...

That's so delicious sounding. I love your recipes! How are things in your world?

P.s. I watched Twilight! I can't wait to read the books!

Ronda said...

That looks really, really good. Now you can use the left over jam with bread and bree! I think I'll do that dish this weekend.
XO

Pam said...

The sauce sounds divine. Tasty meal!

The Blonde Duck said...

That sounds delish!

Tami (Pixeltrash) said...

Mmmmmmm... This sounds like something I would make for sure. I'm all over this one! Thanks for sharing!

Scary Mommy said...

I actually think my entire family might eat that. It looks awesome!!! And I'm loving the new banner!

Brenda said...

I have the jam and the onions, maybe I will try that, it looks great!

GINNA said...

You are making me hungry! Love the recipes and your blog!!!

tiarastantrums said...

oh this is so close to a recipe that I have been making for years! yumm yum

Angela said...

Yum, Steph - sounds great! I love fruit sauces for chicken and pork. I make a pork with plum sauce in the summer that I just love. Will definitely try this!

I love the new banner at the top too!

PS any news from this week!?

Chef Chuck said...

Now that sounds very good!! Raspberry:)