Apricot Chicken Thighs

Hey all. What a beautiful day, huh? This is what I'd call perfect fall weather! Chilly, a little breeze, sunshine... love it! Especially after all those cold, rainy, dreary days. I like an occasional rainy day, but after days of it I've had enough!

Meanwhile, I have been trying out new recipes while being cooped inside for the last few days. I personally am a fan of boneless chicken thighs. They are not only less expensive, but are more flavorful because they are a darker meat. We rarely buy chicken breasts in our house. The thighs and tenders are cheaper and come out far more tender. Anyway, I haven't been able to get to the grocery store this week, but had chicken thighs in my refrigerator that I really needed to use up. I then went to look for an onion so I could start chopping it up along with an apple to make my apple balsamic chicken and...

No onion. I contemplated making it without the onion, but that would just be wrong. Lol! So, I decided to try something new. I checked the fridge (which is running very low on items) and a thought suddenly hit me. I saw a jar of Apricot Jam and a new recipe started to form. Very simple, very quick.

Apricot Chicken Thighs

1 pkg. boneless chicken thighs

1 tsp. minced garlic

3 T apricot jam

olive oil

salt and pepper

Heat 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil on medium heat and add chicken thighs so they are flat against the pan. Sprinkle minced garlic and salt and pepper (to taste) on top. Cook the chicken for 2 minutes and flip. Add apricot jam and smear over each piece. Add a little extra to the pan so it can simmer into a nice glaze. If the pan seems dry you can add a little chicken broth or water. Continue cooking the chicken over medium heat until it is cooked through and slightly browned, flipping a couple more times if needed. 

And there you have it! Very easy. I don't like to let the brown bits in the pan go to waste, so you can either scrape them out and sprinkle on top of the chicken or de-glaze the pan and add a vegetable to saute with the yummy bits. We had our chicken with parmesan couscous and green beans. I had my husband guess what I used to make the chicken and he couldn't guess. The apricot is very subtle, but very delicious with the chicken. If it passes the husband test, it's certainly a keeper!

I have a couple more "husband approved" recipes in the making, and hope to share them soon!

Enjoy. :)