I’m writing this post today (my 100th one) especially for my friend Rick who says I never feature anything with meat in it! Guilty as charged. I’m not a full-on vegetarian anymore, mainly because I love fish and sometimes I crave a little chicken. I am however a full-on mover and shaker so I like to consume lots of protein in the form of eggs, nuts, fruits and veggies. Cooking dinner with chicken in it is new to me, but my husband was excited when he came home last night to the aromas in the kitchen.

This dish is real simple and it took me less than 15 minutes to prepare. I chose chicken thighs over breasts or legs so that I didn’t have to mess with bones and such. You can prepare this ahead of time and bake when you are ready if you’re like Rick and you work all day and want to come home to something you can just pop in the oven!

Roasted Chicken Bake with Veggie Medley- serves 2 or more 

Ingredients:

-1 package chicken thighs, 6 count

-1 butternut squash, peeled and de-seeded

-3 apples (I used a Granny Smith, a Gala and a Fuji)

-1 red onion, chopped

-6 large carrots, chopped

-1 handful cilantro, parsley and basil

-1/4 cup olive oil

-1 orange, zest and juice of

-1/2 cup dried cranberries

-salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400.

2. Peel the butternut squash (I used my apple peeler) and chop it into small chunks. Do the same for the apples.

3. Cut up the other veggies and herbs and place them all in a baking dish.

4. Take the olive oil, orange juice and zest, salt and pepper and mix it in with the veggies.

5. Rinse the chicken and lightly season it with salt and pepper and lay them on top.

6. Bake for 60-70 minutes or until chicken is golden, juicy and almost falling apart.

7. Add the cranberries last and enjoy!

I paired this with some Hutash from Kynsi Winery.

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So, before I go here’s a neat little craft project I put together this week. My student/friend Lisa dropped me off a bag full of succulent trimmings and I thought I’d make a window box for inside the house! I had an old wine box laying around so I slid off the lid, added some soil, stuck in the succulents and watered the box well. Easy peesy!

Finished project! Just call me Martha!