Baked Chicken Breast With Red Wine and Cranberry Reduction

Recipe by Chef Amanda DeLaura

A beautiful melody of sweet squash, sour cranberries and aromatic, crispy sage. This dish marries all of Thanksgiving dinner onto one plate and substitutes the turkey with chicken, which after all for some of us is the right way to do Thanksgiving dinner. Happy cooking and bon appétit!

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

4 boneless chicken breasts (with skin on)

2 Tbsp olive oil (divided)

1 large acorn squash

1/2 tsp real salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

5 oz fresh cranberries

2 Tbsp maple syrup

3 sprigs fresh thyme

2 sprigs fresh rosemary

2 Tbsp butter

1/2 box sage

1 Tbsp cassava flour

1/2 cup red wine

1 cup chicken stock

1 pinch black pepper

Directions: 

1. Preheat the oven to 325ºF. Drizzle 1 Tbsp olive oil over the 4 chicken breasts, season lightly with salt and pepper, and slightly massage the chicken with your hands, working the salt and pepper into the skin. Warm a large cast iron skillet over medium heat. Once the skillet is heated (sizzling when exposed to water) place the prepared chicken breasts skin-side down into the skillet. Let the chicken cook without touching it for five minutes, until the skin becomes brown and crispy. Flip the chicken breasts and continue to cook each one untouched for three minutes. If at any time the cast iron skillet begins to smokes and becomes too hot, immediately lower the heat to medium-low.

2. As your chicken is cooking skin-side down, cut, deseed and chop the acorn squash into 2 inch pieces, leaving the skin on. Toss the squash in a large bowl with the remaining 1 Tbsp olive oil, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper. Once the chicken is finished cooking, arrange the squash evenly across the skillet and evenly disperse the 5 oz cranberries, 3 sprigs thyme, 2 sprigs rosemary and 2 Tbsp maple syrup across the pan. Place the skillet in the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165ºF.

3. While the chicken is baking, gently melt the butter and sage in small sauce pan over medium-low heat until the sage becomes crispy. Remove the sage from the pan and let it cool on a paper towel, to keep it crispy. Add 1 Tbsp cassava flour to the sauce pan and mix with a wooden spoon, creating a rue and mixing constantly until the flour-butter mixture is golden brown, about 2 minutes. Slowly pour in 1/2 cup red wine and 1 cup chicken stock, constantly whisking as you pour. Continue to whisk and cook until the sauce slightly thickens, clinging to a spoon when inserted into the sauce, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside until the chicken is finished baking.

4. Once the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165ºF, remove the skillet from the oven and discard the sprigs of rosemary and thyme. Spread the sauce across a large platter and then slice the chicken breasts. Disperse the chicken to the platter and then transfer the roasted squash and cranberries from the skillet to the platter, scraping every inch of the skillet. Crumble the crispy sage and sprinkle it over the chicken and squash. Enjoy.