Lemon Rosemary Chicken with Sautéed Cherry Tomatoes

Oh, hello. I made you dinner.

Half of you out there are just like “Yessssssss”. The other half are like “What the heck, Jamie? Where’s my dessert?”. To the latter half,  don’t worry, dessert is coming. To the former, you’re welcome :).

Honestly, I find making dinner really hard sometimes. I find photographing dinner even harder (see above and below, my apologies). Everyone I know works super late and/or crazy hours so the light is never right when we sit down. And I have a really hard time making guests or family wait to eat while I weirdly take pictures of their food. And I can’t make these dinners for myself. I just can’t. Nevertheless, I made you dinner and I’m so glad I did because making dinner, despite all of my complaints, is just so awesome. There’s nothing better than a home cooked, healthy meal with fun people. Not one thing.

This Lemon Rosemary Chicken is really a classic to me. Baked chicken with bright, summer flavors over fresh arugula, served with lovely, sweet tomatoes is a hearty meal that satisfies your guests and reminds them of sitting down to dinner with their family growing up. Better yet, you basically throw the chicken in the oven and forget about it, so you can enjoy the group and not hover over the stove. Even the tomatoes take like, two seconds and require very little attention. So little attention is paid to the actual making of the dinner that I found time to take pictures before eating. Perfect.

This is a great dinner to make if you’re throwing a small get together. You get a flavorful, beautiful dish and still get to enjoy the party. And take pictures, if you’re weird like me ;).

Recipes

Prep Time: 5 minutes | Bake time: 25 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes

Chicken

• 2 ½ lbs boneless chicken breasts
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 3 tablespoons fresh rosemary, diced
• 5 cloves garlic
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tablespoon grill seasoning
• ½ dry white wine or chicken broth
• 1 large bag arugula, for serving

Tomatoes

• 2 lbs cherry tomatoes
• 3 cloves minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, diced
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

For the chicken

Preheat the oven 450 º F. Arrange the chicken in a 9 x13 baking dish. In a small bowl, mix together olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, rosemary, grill seasoning and salt. Pour over the chicken and evenly coat. You can even let the chicken marinate in the fridge for a few hours for a little added flavor if you have time! Place the pan in the oven and roast for 20 minutes uncovered. Remove from the oven and add the white wine or chicken broth. Place the chicken back in the over and let roast for 5 more minutes. Serve warm, room temp or chilled over a bed of arugula.

For the tomatoes, heat olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add all ingredients and stir until combined. Sauté about 10 – 15 minutes until tomatoes are slightly browned and the skins are bursting. Best served immediately, but also delicious as leftovers (this is a fact).