While I love trying out new things, I try not to let my dinners get too “fussy” or complicated – there’s nothing worse than slaving all evening to make an improvised recipe, only to see it fall apart before your very eyes. However, I love meals where the outcome *looks* way more fussy and complicated than it actually was to make! Easy roast chicken breast is one of my fallbacks – the only thing to think about in advance with this recipe is defrosting it well in time. Sauteed greens are pretty healthy and make a perfect compliment to the meat. The great thing about roast chicken and veggies is that you can basically improvise with anything you have on hand; this version came out of having a bunch of nice ingredients in the fridge waiting to be used, but you can cut out or replace almost anything in here.
A note about the quail eggs – I happened to come across them at a gourmet food store, apparently there’s a quail farm close by that is addressing the dire need for tiny, speckled, cute little eggs to add an element of fussiness to dinners everywhere. If you don’t have quail eggs, a regular egg will do; they taste virtually the same, perhaps slightly more egg-like. However, you will miss out on the miniscule glee!
Ingredients (serves 1 hungry eater)
1 boneless chicken breast | keep the skin on!
a handful of baby potatoes | don’t peel these either
3-4 cloves of garlic | peel 1 clove and slice it finely, leave the rest intact
1 tsp cold butter
3 slices of bacon
2 tbsp of tarragon (can substitute with any fresh herb with character, like rosemary or parsley) | chopped finely
3 tbsp of ricotta cheese (can be substituted with soft, fresh paneer)
a sprinkling of lemon zest
1 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper for seasoning
toothpicks!
For the Greens:
1 cup of frozen peas (fresh would be nice too, just boil them a bit in advance)
small bunch of spinach | chopped roughly
2 tbsp olive oil
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 tsp butter
pinch of white or brown sugar
sprinkling of parmesan to garnish*
quail egg*
* = optional, but fun if you have it.
In a saucepan, boil the baby potatoes for about 15min till they’re almost cooked through.
Flatten the chicken breast out on the counter so that the “inside” of the breast is facing you. Massage it well with olive oil, salt and pepper. Lay the strips of bacon across the breast so that it wallpapers the inside as much as possible. In a small bowl, mix the tarragon, ricotta, a bit of salt, and lemon zest. Smear it thickly over the bacon.
Next, tightly roll the right part of the breast towards the center, then do the same with the left part. Horizontally “pin” the two parts together down the middle with toothpicks… you will see the two ends of each toothpick sticking out from either side, with the middle going through the meat.
Turn the rolled breast around so that the stitched side is on the bottom. Make tiny cuts in the chicken skin with a sharp knife, and push small chips of cold butter along with slices of garlic inside the skin, over the meat. When the skin starts to roast, the butter and garlic will crisp it up and melt over the meat, making it extra delicious.
Lightly grease a baking dish with olive oil, and place the chicken breast stitched side down on it. Throw the baby potatoes and the unshelled cloves of garlic into the pan, and move them around so that they are coated with a bit of grease. Sprinkle a bit of salt and pepper over them, and put into a preheated oven at about 200 degrees C, for anywhere between 40min to an hour depending on the size of your oven (I use a dinky little toaster oven so it only takes about 45min – eyeball it, the skin should be crispy and things should be sizzling – if truly in doubt, lever a sharp knife through the deepest part and check; the meat shouldn’t have any pinkness left inside)
For the greens, heat up a large nonstick frying pan and pour the olive oil in, then the butter (this prevents the butter from burning). If you’re using frozen peas, fling them in now, and cook for 3-4 minutes until the ice melts off. (If the peas are fresh, remove the shell, pre-cook the peas a little bit in some boiling water, then add it to the pan along with 2tsp of the water). Toss in the spinach leaves and sugar and keep the pan moving over the heat. The moment the spinach leaves start to wilt, squeeze in the lemon juice and mix well, then take off the heat. Transfer to a dish, grate some parmesan or other nice distinctive cheese over it, and top with a fried egg. Epicurean bliss!
Big City, Small Plate 
This is beautifully written up and looks delicious!