Spicy Chicken with Apricots and Olives

When Cathy at Noble Pig posted this recipe I thought "how inspired". It is not unlike the Silver Palate's Chicken Marbella that I had planned to make for last night's dinner party, but instead of apricots the Marbella has prunes and capers. However, when I showed the picture of Cathy's creation to the big guy his comment was "that's what we're having" and so we did.

This is without question, the absolute best chicken dish I have ever cooked. Full of exotic flavors, it is perfect for entertaining because you put it together the night before so the chicken can marinate in lemon juice, honey, cinnamon, spicy red pepper flakes, cumin, smoked paprika, cilantro as well as apricots and green olives. The result, moist, succulent, incredibly flavorful and one of those "I'll never get enough of this" dishes. You'll have to head to Noble Pig to get the recipe because for courtesy's sake I can't do a reprint. I changed absolutely not one thing, other than the fact that I used chicken quarters rather than thighs and cooked it slightly longer. It was INCREDIBLE! Thanks Cathy!

We had Couscous with Herbs and Lemon along side, and Moroccan Spiced Roasted Vegetables - recipes courtesy of epicurious.com. Dinner was exotic, delicious and incredibly successful.

Dessert - well I made two, but forgot to take a picture of the little Chocolate Mousse cups so I'll just have to make it again. Oh darn. The main dessert was a lemon cheesecake, topped with candied Meyer lemons (I know you're thinking "will she ever be done with those things"). It was rich, creamy, luscious and lemony and I can hardly hold myself back from having a piece of it for breakfast. Download Lemon Cheesecake with Candied Lemons

Thank you all for your good wishes and vibes - it worked. Dinner went off without a hitch and it was wonderful to see our "girls" again. Allie looks as beautiful as ever and Whitney and David shared some fabulous news with us. We're looking forward to celebrating a new addition to our adopted family in September. I mean honestly, how exciting is THAT! I've never been a ...oh darn. I don't know what to call myself!

As for Max - he's doing much better, in fact we almost made it through an uninterrupted night. The Benadryl has finally kicked in and he's sleeping again at the moment, so hopefully we've turned the corner and are heading in the right direction when it comes to this crisis. Life is good!

Comments

[Sarah G]

This looks fantastic. I love Meyer lemons. You should try candying some to save for when they are out of season.

[June]

Thanks Sarah. I've made a lot of marmalade as well as preserved several with salt in addition to putting up a bunch for Shaker Lemon Pie. We're down to about a dozen left in the fridge, although the trees will soon be blossoming getting ready for next year's crop.

[Nanan (Lea)]

The food just gets better and better Junebug!!! That Lemon cake is gorgeous - and not only because yellow is my favorite color!!!!! Cheers to wonderful news - and hopefully more to come!

[June]

Thanks Lea. I think you might just be my new good luck charm.

[noble pig]

Oh yours turned out beautiful as well. That chicken is just too darned good and what a beautiful dessert!! Congrats on the news!

[June]

Cathy, the chicken is fabulous and we've you to thank for the recipe. It is incredible and we'll be having it again SOON. Thank you so much for passing the recipe along. We love it!