Poulet Provencal

Classed it up last week with a dish that supposedly originated from the south of France, for a dinner partay. Modified the recipe below so that it'd cook faster. Drumsticks, quartered tomatoes, a handful of olives, an onion, and herbs de provence (something my father has always been bananas about). Leftovers above.



Took bits and pieces of this recipe and ran with it! Minus the fennel seeds, because really, who has those. Greek olive mix instead of briny black ones (not a big fan of black olives). Drumsticks instead of a whole chicken... and wham. Awesomeness. Here are the exact proportions:

12 chicken drumsticks
5-6 small tomatoes-on-the-vine, each cut into 6 pieces (half, then third them)
1.5 white onions, julienned
1 cup olives, saving 1/4 c brine
pepper
4 cloves garlic, grated
herbs de provence (or the "italian seasoning mix" that is commonly found in the spice mix section.. the only thing I can tell that's missing is lavender)
1/4 c white wine (optional - I left it out because there was a kiddie with us, and even though the alcohol burns off, I get paranoid about stuff like that)
1 c bella mushrooms chopped (also optional - I added those above but the recipe doesn't call for them)
2 tsp balsamic vinegar

Directions (preheat oven to 400 degrees)

1. Let drumsticks sit at RT in a baking dish, marinating in herbs de provence & pepper & grated garlic & vinegar, for 5-10 minutes.
2. In the meantime, prep your other two main ingredients - onions & tomatoes.
3. Throw all vegetables together.
4. Add 1 cup olives plus brine to the mix. Cover with aluminum foil (or some sort of cover... if you have a dutch oven I suppose you could slow cook the whole thing at a lower temp?)
5. Bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour (check at 45 min)

*optional - marinate mushrooms in 2-3 tsp balsamic vinegar and 2 tsp dry red wine for 10 minutes while the chicken is also marinating.

Serves 8.