The second day back is always better than the first day.  Everyone tends to be more tired on the second day back to school and work than the first but at least we are starting to feel the routine is moving forward again.  My daughter had dance class last night and things seemed “normal.”

The above picture is a horrible picture taken about 1/2 way through the cooking of our dinner the other night.  I never took a picture of the final dish.  I don’t know why.  It just slipped my mind.  Even when it does usually one of the kids asks me if I would like to take a picture of their plate before we begin eating.  Nothing.  I think we were half asleep at dinner. You can see the top piece of chicken is starting to roast and the others eventually catch up after I turn the pan.  I definitely have a “hot spot” in my oven.

Verdict:

This was a fairly simple and tasty meal.  I served the chicken and sauce over rice and even my self-proclaimed rice hating daughter ate a whole serving. Adding a bit of orange zest really upped the flavors to us. I cooked my rice with chicken stock instead of water to add even more flavor to the dish.

I served this dish with green beans and a side salad.

Ingredients:

• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 4 cloves, minced garlic
• 2 Tablespoons sugar
• 2 whole lemons, one juiced and one sliced
• 4 whole oranges, two juiced and two sliced, plus 1/2 teaspoon zest
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 3-4 lbs. chicken thighs and drumsticks
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 1 Tablespoon dried rosemary

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Place chicken in a 13×9 casserole dish with the skin side up.
3. Mix together olive oil, garlic, sugar, lemon juice, orange juice, orange zest, garlic powder, basil, oregano, paprika, salt and pepper in a bowl.
4. Pour mixture over chicken.  Turn the chicken to evenly coat all sides with the olive oil mixture.
5. Place the slices of oranges, lemons and onion in between the slices of chicken.
6. Sprinkle the top of the chicken with rosemary, salt and pepper.
7. Bake 1 hour, or until the chicken has cooked completely though.
8. Serve chicken over rice if desired with juices from chicken spooned over the rice.