As a family meal planning is key to a successful dinnertime. With five mouths to feed we often get the “I’m not a fan of this” and we bat it off with a little negotiating, which is the removal of pudding if we don’t at least try to eat the majority of our dinner.
Admittedly my wife and I are very lucky as our kids generally try everything that we serve up at meal times and this was no exception.
We have a meal planner for the week of which the night before shopping we sit down and decide what we are going to have for the week. As mentioned in other posts I am a big fan of delicious magazine and we regularly try the recipes bound in this monthly magazine.
On this occasion the wife seen this recipe and said she would like to try as it sounded really nice. Looking at the ingredients the only two that we needed to purchase out of the ordinary was the chickpeas and harissa paste and we were not disappointed.
Upon cooking this meal having all of the ingredients ready I remember opening the paste jar and having the zesty yet spiced smell hit my nose and I then concluded by taking a moment of nearing the jar closer to my nose, eyes closed and taking in these wondrous aromas. I knew straight away this dish was going to please. Following this along with the satisfying sizzle as the chicken skin crisps up was when the garlic and cumin seeds followed the sweet smells of the softened onions, one that never grows old in all dishes that required the slow cook of onions. The cumin brings in this kick of spice popping in the pan and then the garlic, like the onion a sweet aroma that never grows old.
Building the dish was a delight, satisfying with the knowledge that the competed dish was going to please all of the family.
Filling the house with sumptuous smells even the kids giggled with excitement when dinner was called. The chicken was tender; invigorated with gentle fruity spice of the harissa paste and the chickpeas retained the aldente nature also lightly spiced with the cumin seeds. Toping this off the mashed potatoes for me complimented and made the dish complete.
- 1 lemon juice and zest of
- 1½ tbsp. Harissa paste
- 2 tsp. Clear honey
- 60 ml olive oil
- 1 Onion sliced
- 2 Garlic cloves crushed
- 2 Tomatoes deseeded and roughly chopped
- 1 in Whole chicken cut in to 4 – 2 each of Legs and Breast with bone in
- 1 tsp. cumin seeds
- 2 400 g Tin chickpeas drained
- Salt and Pepper
- 100 g Feta cheese
- Sprigs Fresh mint
- Whisk the lemon zest, half the lemon juice, honey and a tbsp. of the oil in a bowl and set to the side.
- Heat the remaining oil in a flameproof casserole dish over a medium to high heat and then cook the chicken pieces skin side down until golden brown and crispy (about 4-5 minutes), turn and cook for a further 2 minutes. Remove from the pan and place to one side.
- In the same pan lower the heat slightly and cook the onion for about 5 minutes until soft then add the garlic and cumin seeds for about a minute until fragrant.
- Stir the chickpeas and tomatoes into the onions and season lightly with salt and pepper. Place the browned chicken on top of the chickpeas and brush with the harissa spice marinade. Don’t be shy here, as the chicken will absorb all of the flavours.
- Place the casserole dish in to the pre-heated oven and cook for 35-40 minutes until the chicken is cooked. See note*.
- Once cooked, serve the chickpeas as a base with the chicken on top and sprinkled with crumbled feta and mint sprigs. I also served this dish with some creamy mashed potato.
*The chicken is cooked when a skewer tips is pressed in to the thickest part and the juices run clear.
This recipe is direct from July’s edition of delicious magazine.
I am Alan Brewer and welcome to my food blog.
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