Tastiest Baked Chicken I've Ever Made

This baked chicken with onion and leeks recipe is BY FAR the tastiest baked chicken that I've ever made. I know it was good based on the several "Oh my gosh" and "this is great" comments from Pete. The flavor was good, the chicken wasn't dried out, and it was something different. It was very easy to make. I would imagine that people who are scared of overcooking or under cooking chicken might fear this recipe. If you aren't comfortable using a thermometer to determine if your chicken is done, just take the chicken out of the oven and cut into it. I know chefs frown upon this, but I am under no assumptions that there are any chefs reading my blog. I found the Baked Chicken recipe on delish.com.




Tasty Baked Chicken on a bed of onions and leeks and topped with a mustard mixture


My only issue with this recipe was that I just couldn't wait to for cooler weather to try this recipe; therefore, having the oven on for an hour made for a steamy apartment in the middle of summer!

I was apparently in a cooking mood last night because I cooked two new dishes! Along with the chicken, I  made an Asparagus & Mushroom Succotash from The Washington Post Food Section and the succotash was also incredibly tasty! I did cut out the red pepper flakes and hot sauce because I don't like my dishes spicy and it still had a great amount of flavor.

A few ingredients for the Asparagus & Mushroom Succotash

Baked Chicken with Onion & Leeks
Courtesy Eatingwell.com and delish.com

- 2 cups thinly sliced onions
- 1 cup thinly sliced leeks (washed, use white and light green part only)
- 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 3 TBS olive oil, divided
- 2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2.5 lbs. bone-in chicken pieces (thighs, drumsticks, and/or breasts), skin removed, trimmed
- 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
- 2 tsp minced shallot
- 1.5 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
- 1 tsp soy sauce
- 3/4 tsp freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 400ºF. Toss onions, leek, garlic, 2 tablespoons oil, thyme, and salt in a large bowl until the vegetables are well coated. Spread the mixture in a 9x13-inch baking dish. Place the chicken pieces on the vegetables. Bake for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk mustard, shallot, rosemary, soy sauce, and pepper in a small bowl; gradually whisk in the remaining 1 tablespoon oil.
After 10 minutes, brush the chicken with the mustard glaze. Continue baking until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a leg or breast (without touching bone) registers 165°F, 30 to 45 minutes more. Serve the chicken with the vegetables.