It has been cold, a little rainy (which is good) and really windy in Southern California this week. It’s definitely winter weather for us spoiled Californians, and this yummy dinner is the perfect remedy for the winter blues. I remember living in Minnesota and getting really sick of winter by early February. This isn’t the kind of meal that conjures up images of beaches and fruity drinks, but it is a hearty meal that warms you up on a cold winter’s day.
It seems like I really crave comfort food during the winter. To be fair, one could argue that I crave comfort food year-round because it is true. But in the winter, I want heartier fare that is delicious and easy to make. And oh yeah — good for you too. After all, I’m trying get healthy, folks!
If you haven’t made my hard cider pulled pork, I strong encourage you to do so, whether it’s for Superbowl Sunday or a regular ‘ol Tuesday night. It’s delicious and takes minutes to prepare, so it truly is a great meal for those super busy days. Because I prefer to lightly sauce my pulled pork, I had plenty of hard cider barbecue sauce leftover, so I created this yummy chicken dinner to use it up.
Chicken was an easy choice, not only because it was a natural fit for BBQ sauce, but chicken thighs were on sale for 89 cents a pound! Major score! So I grabbed a few and decided to make a healthy vegetable medley to accompany it. This veggie mix is one of my favorite combinations with sweet potatoes, brussel sprouts, onion and apples. It’s colorful, flavorful and good for you.
Did I mention this is also a one-pan meal? Yup, it’s easy to make and easy to clean up afterwards. Woot! Woot! Those with larger families may need to use cookie sheets to fit all the veggies and chicken, but clean-up will still be a snap if you put aluminum foil under the chicken and veggies.
BBQ Chicken with Sweet Potato Medley
Ingredients
- 6-8 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs
- 1 1/2 cups hard cider barbecue sauce or your favorite BBQ sauce divided
- 3 large sweet potatoes peeled and diced into 1/2-inch pieces
- 10 ounces brussel sprouts cut in half, if large
- 1 large onion diced into large chunks
- 2-3 granny smith apples peeled and diced into 1/2-inch pieces
- 2 to 3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F. Line two rimmed baking sheets with aluminum foil.
- Add potatoes, brussel sprouts and onion to one prepared baking sheet. Drizzle olive oil over veggie mix and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss together, then spread veggies in an even layer.
- Add chicken thighs (skin-side up) to the second prepared baking sheet (If your veggies don't all fit into one sheet, move some to the second sheet with the chicken). Baste BBQ sauce over chicken in a thick layer (before doing this, remove about 3/4 cup of BBQ sauce and set aside for serving).
- Bake for 20 minutes. Stir veggies and add apples to mix. Bake for another 15-20 minutes or until chicken registers an internal temp of 165F. Cooking times will vary based on size of chicken thighs and vegetables. Serve immediately.
Notes
Enjoy!
Tanya