Baked Chicken With Bacon Tomato Relish Food

CAPRESE CHICKEN WITH BACON

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°. Place bacon in an ungreased 15x10x1-in. baking pan. Bake until partially cooked but not crisp, 8-10 minutes. Remove to paper towels to drain., Place chicken in an ungreased 13x9-in. baking pan; brush with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Top with tomatoes and basil. Wrap each in 2 bacon strips, arranging bacon in a crisscross., Bake, uncovered, until a thermometer reads 165°, 15-20 minutes. Top with cheese; bake until melted, 1 minute longer.

BROILED CHICKEN WITH TOMATO RELISH AND SPAGHETTI

Steps:

• Position a shelf at the lowest position in the oven and preheat to 450 degrees F.
• Cut the backbone out the chickens with kitchen scissors and reserve for another use or discard. In a shallow dish combine the thyme, 9 cloves crushed garlic, lemon juice and 1/3 cup of extra-virgin olive oil. Add the chickens and coat thoroughly in the mixture, cover and marinate in the refrigerator for up to 1 hour.
• Remove the chicken from the marinade, discard marinade. Turn the birds breast-side up and fold the wing tips back and under. Season both sides with some salt and pepper and the paprika. Place the chickens bone-side up on a broiler pan and position the legs in the center. Roast in the oven until the chickens are 3/4 cooked (about 140 to 150), about 25 to 30 minutes.
• Put the whole grape tomatoes, scallions, garlic cloves, and basil leaves in a large bowl, drizzle with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Turn the vegetables until they are lightly coated. After the chickens have cooked for about 25 minutes, arrange the vegetables around them. Turn the oven to broil and broil until the vegetables are charred, about 10 to 15 minutes. An instant-read thermometer should reach 170 degrees F. Transfer the chicken and vegetables to a cutting board. Pour off all except about 2 tablespoons of chicken fat from the pan and set aside.
• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of cold water to a boil and salt it generously. Add the spaghetti, and cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Drain, reserving 1/2 to 3/4 cup of the pasta water and transfer the both to a serving bowl.
• Squeeze the garlic cloves from their skins, and chop them up with the scallions, once chopped transfer to a bowl and add the charred grape tomatoes, stir to make a chunky relish.
• Once the chicken is cooked and resting, place the pan you broiled the chicken in on the cook top over medium heat. Add the red wine vinegar, Worcestershire sauce and the reserved pasta cooking water, bring up to a simmer scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Add the cooked spaghetti and chopped parsley, stir to coat and continue to cook for 1 minute. Transfer the spaghetti to a serving bowl.
• Carve the chicken, top with some of the chunky relish and serve with some of the spaghetti on the side. Garnish with grated Parmesan, if using.
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• For cooking the chicken: .

CHICKEN WITH BACON, TOMATO AND THYME

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• To par-cook bacon, lay slices on a sheet pan and bake in a preheated 400 degree F oven for about 10 minutes until half-cooked. Remove and reserve.
• Working on a sheet pan, coat the chicken breast with olive oil and minced garlic. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Next, wrap 2 pieces of par-cooked bacon strips criss-cross around each piece of chicken, forming an "x" pattern in the center. Sprinkle with the diced onion and place a thick slice of Roma tomato and a couple sprigs of fresh thyme in the center of each breast, tucked in behind the bacon.
• Arrange chicken a little apart from each other on the sheet pan and bake until the chicken is completely cooked and reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F, about 30 minutes.

BACON-ONION RELISH

Steps:

• Cook 3 slices diced bacon until crisp; remove and reserve. Add 2 sliced onions to the pan. Season with salt and pepper and cook over low heat, covered, 10 minutes. Uncover and cook until golden, 30 more minutes. Stir in 2 tablespoons chopped parsley and the bacon.