Tomato Basil Chicken Bake

Sometimes we need a meal that almost cooks itself.  Jamie Oliver comes to the rescue with a Chicken Bake full of flavour and little fuss. This is my take on his recipe – and easy to adapt to your preferences.  Served with some pasta or crusty bread and a salad it will satisfy 4 hungry diners!

Serves 4

Preparation: 10 minutes

Cooking:   1 hour

Ingredients

8 - 10 chicken drumsticks (depends on size) – remove some of the visible fat

2 onions – peeled and sliced

2 cloves garlic – crushed

2 potatoes – cubed

2 anchovy fillets – if you don’t like anchovy replace with a little shake of salt

½ red chilli – finely sliced.  Depending on your preference increase to 1 or leave out.

1 tin cannellini beans – drained and rinsed

Few slices of semi dried tomatoes – finely sliced (optional)

1 tin Cherry Tomatoes in tomato juice – use the juice and tomatoes

½ tin crushed tomatoes 

1 punnet Cherry tomatoes – leave whole

Leaves from 2 small stalks of fresh thyme

Bunch fresh Basil – pick the leaves and finely chop some of the stems.  Most of the basil goes in at the start, then about ¼ after cooking.  Reserve a few small leaves for garnish.

Splash of Olive Oil

Splash of Dry Sherry – maybe 20 ml

Few black olives – optional

Freshly ground black pepper

A Little grated parmesan cheese – optional to scatter over when served

Reserve some of the small basil leaves to scatter over when finished

Method

Preheat oven to 200 oC

Place chicken, onion, garlic, potato, anchovy, chilli, beans, tomatoes – dried, tinned (including the juice) and fresh cherry tomatoes in an oven roasting pan along with the thyme leaves, basil stems and most (3/4) of the basil leaves.

Toss to mix.  Add a little olive oil, the sherry and pepper to taste.  Combine and stir well.

Cook for 1 hour, stirring after half an hour.  If using, add the olives in the last 15 minutes.

Remove from oven, toss in the final ¼ of the basil leaves.

Serve scattered with optional parmesan and small basil leaves.

Can be served with pasta or  crusty bread  and salad.

                              Enjoy! Colleen