Roast Chicken Breast with Herbes de Provence

When it comes to chicken, I'm always buying boneless, skinless chicken breasts. They're healthy, tasty, and quick-cooking. But sometimes they get a little bit...boring.

So when bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts went on sale at the grocery store, I was all over that. I schmeared those babies with butter and some aromatic herbes de Provence, then roasted them in a hot oven. When I served the roast chicken to the husband for dinner in all its buttery, skin-on glory, his response sealed the deal, "This is my kind of chicken."

Well, then. I think this could be your kind of chicken, too.

Roast Chicken Breast with Herbes de Provence
Serves: 2-4

2 tablespoons softened butter, divided
1/2 teaspoon herbes de Provence
2 bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place 1 tablespoon butter into a small bowl and stir in herbes de Provence. Using your fingers, gently separate the skin from the chicken. Rub herb butter under the skin of each chicken breast. Rub plain butter on top of the chicken skin. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.

Place chicken on a rimmed baking sheet and roast until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. If you have smaller chicken breasts, this will take about 35 minutes. For larger chicken breasts (mine, for example were 1 pound each—huge!), it will take about 50 minutes. Tent chicken with foil and allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Apricot Glazed Carrots

I had a jar of apricot preserves languishing in my fridge after making Apricot Mustard Glazed Ham, Although as you know, I'm a huge fan of PB&J sandwiches, I'm strictly a strawberry jam kind of gal. So I had to come up with a plan to use up my leftover condiment more creatively.

Enter Apricot Glazed Carrots.

Sweet and subtly spiced, these babies are just the ticket to round out any meal. You can stir them together on the stovetop in about 10 minutes, so it's a speedy side dish, too.

Apricot Glazed Carrots
Serves: 4

1 tablespoon butter
1 small clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1/4 cup chicken or vegetable broth
2 tablespoons apricot preserves
1 pound carrots, peeled and sliced 1/4" thick
Salt and pepper

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in garlic and curry and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in chicken broth, apricot preserves, and carrots and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook for 5 minutes. Remove lid and continue to cook until carrots are tender and sauce has thickened, about 5 minutes longer. Season to taste with salt and pepper.