Broiled Chicken Breasts Topped with Artichoke Hearts and Sun-dried Tomatoes

While pondering what to make for dinner with some chicken breasts that I had thawed from the freezer, I remembered Artichoke and Sun-Dried Tomato Stuffed Chicken Breast that I wrote about on May 18, 2010.  I said that I might make it just as an accompaniment to the chicken.  That is what I decided to do for this dinner.

Topping Ingredients:
   2 Tablespoons butter
   1 white onion, chopped
   2 cloves garlic, minced
   1 1/2-cups marinated artichoke hearts, chopped
   1/2-cup marinated sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
   1 teaspoon dried parsley
   1/2-cup white wine

I started by melting the butter in a large frying pan and adding the onion.  I was going to use the rest of the red onion like the original recipe, but when I got it out of the refrigerator, it was moldy, so I just used a white onion instead.  I sautéed the onions for several minutes until they were translucent.

While the onions cooked, I turned on the oven to broil at 550 degrees.  I got out our roaster pan and lightly oiled the bottom, then placed the four chicken breasts on the pan.  I gave each chicken breast a light brushing with oil then put them in the oven on the top rack for five minutes.

I added the garlic, artichoke hearts, and sundried tomatoes to the onions and continued to cook the mixture on medium heat.  I opened the oven door to check on the chicken and stood back as the clouds of smoke rolled out the door.  Oops, the smoke point of the grape seed oils is around 485 degrees.  I opened the doors and windows and turned the oven down to 450, turned the chicken over and set it to bake for another five minutes.

After five minutes, I removed the chicken from the oven and set it on top of the stove.  I added the white wine and the dried parsley to the pan of onion, artichoke hearts, and sun-dried tomatoes and let it heat and mix with the oils from the marinated vegetables to make a sauce.

I served the chicken accompanied by some hot rice and the onion/artichoke hearts/sun-dried tomato topping.  This easy to make topping really enhanced the visual and flavor when eating a plain chicken breast.

This was an easy dinner to make taking about fifteen minutes.  Next time I will start the broiler at 450 degrees and save having to air out the house.  It’s a good thing we don’t have a smoke detector in our kitchen/family room.

Adventures In Food: Author: Kerry Howell