So Many Dishes

Before I get to the delicious recipe I cooked this evening, I want to talk about chickens.

My grandmother raised chickens. She usually had a dozen or so hens and a rooster or two. When my grandparents traveled, I would often go with my dad to feed the chickens and help collect the eggs. So, even though a lot of time has passed since then, I’ve been around chickens, and I know how big a typical chicken is—or was.

We eat a lot of chicken, and many of my recipes call for boneless chicken breasts. Tonight’s recipe called for four 5-ounce chicken breasts. Have you seen a 5-ounce breast in any market recently? The one I ended up cooking weighed 1 pound, 5.9 ounces. That’s one chicken breast! What happened? I know, it’s industrial farming, with scientifically formulated feed to produce maximum meat per bird. And these chickens don’t have the opportunity to roam their large coop, like my grandmother’s did. It’s just disconcerting.

Okay, now that my rant is over, I really want to tell you about the yummy dish I made, chicken with prosciutto, potatoes, and tomatoes. I adapted it from a Weight Watchers recipe, so it’s pretty healthy, relatively easy to prepare, and looks as good as it tastes.

I love sheet pan dinners, because the cooking steps are usually limited, and cleanup is always easy. And it was the perfect day to have the oven on, because our weather has been so cold and damp, and the house has stayed cool. (Yes, I know, those of you who live in colder climes are laughing at me, but that’s fine. I’m sitting here, writing this, with a sweater on, as well as my fluffy, warm socks, and wrapped in a blanket. My 20- year old self is laughing hysterically).

My solution to the oversized chicken breast was to cut it into four roughly equal pieces. For some recipes I might have cut it into thin slices, but, because of baking, I cut thicker pieces. It worked out well, because the chicken was perfectly cooked.

My other big change was to replace thinly sliced potatoes with halved baby potatoes. I love yellow potatoes, as I think they have more flavor than white or red potatoes. I adjusted the cooking time of the initial step to make sure the potatoes were cooked, and that worked, too.

My sheet pans are nonstick, so I do not use cooking spray on them. Cooking spray damages nonstick surfaces, in large part because they burn at lower temperatures. The pans develop an invisible buildup that causes food to stick. I always line the sheet pan with foil, then spray the foil. The foil also makes cleanup a breeze.

Chicken with Prosciutto, Potatoes, and Rosemary

• 4 5-ounce skinless, boneless chicken breast pieces topped
• 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1 pound baby potatoes, halved
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
• 4 small sprigs of fresh rosemary and 3 large sprigs
• 4 thin slices prosciutto
• Salt and pepper
• 8 ounces grape tomatoes

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Line a sheet pan with foil and spray with cooking spray.

In a small bowl, mix halved potatoes, sliced garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and the 3 large rosemary sprigs with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Spread on sheet pan, then bake for 20 minutes.

While the potatoes are baking, sprinkle chicken pieces with salt and pepper. Place a small rosemary sprig on each. Fold the prosciutto slices in thirds, and place one folded slice on each chicken piece, atop the rosemary.

After 20 minutes, add the chicken pieces to the sheet pan and return it to the oven. Bake an additional 15 minutes. Remove from oven.

While the chicken is in the oven, put the tomatoes and the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil in the bowl in which you mixed the potatoes. Mix to coat. Add to the sheet pan, atop the chicken and potatoes, and return to the oven for an additional 10 minutes. Serve immediately; makes 4 servings.

Happy eating!