Mediterranean Chicken

Prepare the chicken:
Cut into quarters or eighths. (Or buy already cut up.) Remove skin and any excess fat. Lay in a greased roasting pan. Sprinkle lightly with: onion powder, garlic powder, dried sweet basil, dried parsley, poultry seasoning.

Prepare the sauce:
In a large skillet, sautee one large onion, chopped finely, until beginning to turn brown. Deglaze pan with balsamic vinegar and red wine, and turn down heat to a simmer.
Add to the pan a handful or two of finely chopped green olives, and the same amount of finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes. (Important note: do not pour out the brine from the olive jar/can. You will need it later.) If desired, add a handful of finely chopped fresh mushrooms as well.
Add to taste: black pepper, chopped garlic, fresh or jarred sweet basil, honey, and cinnamon. (The cinnamon's important. Don't leave out the cinnamon.) Stir.

This is the trickiest part: finding the balance of the sauce. You've got sweet (red wine and honey), sour (balsamic vinegar) and salty (green olive brine), and you don't want any one to overpower the other. Add more of these ingredients carefully, a little at a time, and taste frequently, until you have a balance you're happy with.
Last of all, add half a handful of green olives either sliced in rings or just halved, and the same amount of sun-dried tomatoes either sliced in strips or halved. This is more for appearance than anything else, so don't be too lavish.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake chicken for about fifteen minutes, then spoon the sauce over and around the chicken. Return to oven for another forty-five or fifty minutes, or until chicken is done.

Serve hot and enjoy.


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