Normally a quiet month, a little flat after the excesses of Christmas. Not so here, it seems to have been busy and bright….and I’m not complaining.
We have been pretty good about eating lighter, and eating less meat, but I have turned to an old standby favourite this month. Tray baked chicken (although I used an oven dish!).
It’s a quick dish to throw together using whatever is nestled in the fridge and although I mostly use skinned, bone-in chicken joints, it’s great with fish fillets or just veggies.
Peel and chop potatoes into large pieces, add vegetables like peppers, courgettes, tomatoes, carrots and a full head of garlic. I haven’t given quantities as this dish is great for one, two or a dozen people. Just judge how much your crowd will eat, add a little extra as they will always want to go back for more, and find an oven dish or tray to fit the quantity. Put all the ingredients into the dish, preheat the oven to about 180 degrees. Pour over some olive oil, season with coarse sea salt and freshly ground pepper then customise any other seasoning to whatever takes your fancy. This time I used some dried oregano from our garden in Spain, a little smoked pimentón and half a finely chopped lemon.
Mix together well, hands work best for this to ensure everything is well coated, and add a good slug of white wine, stock or water. Cover tightly with foil bake for about an hour then remove the foil and bake for about 20 minutes more until everything is starting to brown nicely. If you want to add some tender vegetables (I used some chopped kale) stir into the dish about 10 minutes before you’re finished. Then it’s straight to the table, perfect one pot cooking!
We’ve been enjoying the winter sunshine and taking walks along Bexhill beach. Then a quick trip across the channel to stock up on wine (stocks were dangerously low) and a lovely night in Le Touqet were enjoyed last weekend.
And little Alfi, one of our pups, has started on a course of hydrotherapy to build up his leg muscles after an operation on his hind leg in November to repair a damaged cruciate ligament.
He’s not a water loving dog so is highly unimpressed with being put into a warm pool then shampooed and blow dried afterwards. I’d be delighted at the opportunity of such pampering but there’s just no pleasing some pups….!
I’ve been cooking and have some recipes to share with you soon, but in the meantime, enjoy the last few days of the month.
Chica Andaluza 
That’s a beautiful blue sky and delicious chicken. Poor Alfie – I hope he begins to enjoy it with practice 🙂
It was a beautiful French sky (but oh so cold!). Alas, I fear my dog is never going to win any medals in the canine swimming gala!
Tanya Russo
It’s the taking part that counts 😉
Earl sends commiserations for Alfie. He says that “The wors thin umans du tu uz dorgz iz wush uz!”
Alfi agrees!
What a meal!
😀😀
Simple hearty winter food, Tanya. Perfect
Old favourites! Hope things are going OK, big hug xx
I love a one pot dish, I love chicken, I love this!!
I’m a huge fan of one pot dishes. We ate something similar last night with cod fillets or top!
That looks really good. Good luck to Alfi!
Thanks Mimic!
Poor Alfi! Hope he’s mended soon so he can stay dry! 🙂 Your chicken looks delicious, as does that antipasti assortment! I’ve never seen sushi added to the mix before! 🙂
Alfi is still most disgruntled! Wondered if someone would spot the sushi 😀 That was dinner the night we came back from France with all our goodies and we’d also bought food to eat on the long (35 minutes!) train journey under the channel from France to England to keep our energy up. Big Man had chosen sweet pastries and I’d picked out sushi from a stall with a Japanese chef who made them fresh plus some nuts and olives. We didn’t eat the sushi on our loooong journey so I popped it onto the antipasti plate!
I love the food using the chicken as the material of manufacture, it looks like dishes that you post on this article looks delicious.
Thank you!
All I know if I would be the size of a house eating in your home/s. 😀 All that scrumptiousness all the time would be a major problem to my already increasing waistline.
Oh, Alfi, you poor dear. Aunty Mandy would skip the blow dry and towel dry you just for your comfort. 🙂
Have a gloriuos week friend.
🙂 Mandy xoxo
You’d be a very petite and sleek house…I’m more of a sprawling bungalow 😏
Tanya Russo
I agree January 2017 has flown by! You can’t beat a traybake, never fails to deliver and never tastes the same twice!! Love the photo of Alfi in his Baywatch outfit xxxx
That’s true…never the same twice!
Tanya Russo
Poor Alfi – I hope he had some of the chicken meat as a reward (and to build him up after all the effort). That one pot/tray meal looks fabulous and will certainly be tried Chez Hood. Very healthy, and pretty low in fat too.
Hi Kim, yes Alfi had chicken too! We often eat these one pot meals, as you say low in fat and easy to put together. Hope all is good with you and The Management!
Tanya Russo
All well here but looking forward to some UK sunshine and warmth – and sooner rather than later if possible!
Oh us too!
Oh Le Touquet! One of my favourite places! I have a Piet Van Oost painting of the beach hanging by my bedroom door. Le Sigh! Hope your wee fur baby is on the mend.
We loved it and can easily imagine how lively it would be outside of the depths of January! Alfi is on the mend thank you 😀
OMG, your puppy. I love it! And what a great way to help him heal. The platter of lovely nibbles looks fabulous.
Ah thank you, the water therapy is working wonders!
Oh good!
I love the expression on his little face! Talk about it’s a dog’s life, Tanya! 🙂 🙂 Thanks for the foodie tips and I’m glad life is whizzing along. Mam always used to say ‘the devil makes work for idle hands’. I guess there must be one or 2 idle folk out there these days but I’m trying not to notice.
It’s definitely a dog’s life in our house for the pups! And your mam was right 😀
Truly, where DID January go? Glad to see all is well with you. This is my kind of dish…a one pan meal! Sounds delicious.
Thanks Betty, hope all is well with you!
yes good
Wow in january your holliday very nice and make all people happy. In January too I’m going to beach in Bali. I hope in next january 2019 I’m going out to there place too
Enjoy Bali!
Thank you so much for your article and make a good and tasty food.
Wow very nice and make a good it. Thanks