Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Orange and Feta - end of winter Sunday night dinner, part 2

Although I write this with the windows open and after spending most of the weekend outside in the summer-like weather, I'm returning to my "end of winter" Sunday dinner theme, so that I can finally get to part II of the last post. This dish would actually work for almost any season, since it's so fresh tasting, so don't let the "winter" in the title scare you off.

To accompany the apple chicken curry, I roasted Brussels sprouts with balsamic vinegar, orange juice and zest, and melted in feta cheese at the end. Delicious. This is an incredibly simple dish, and I really like the roasting method, because it creates crispy leaves on the Brussels sprouts.

I think I used the adjective "earthy" at least once in the last post, but really, it's the best word for the combination of this dish with the apple chicken curry (and yogurt sauce if you make it). The citrus flavors in this dish work really well with the savoriness of the curry, and the whole thing is faintly fruity.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Orange and Feta

2 lbs Brussels sprouts
4 T olive oil
1 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1 T fresh orange zest
1 T plus 1 t balsamic vinegar
2 T orange juice
1/2 c crumbled feta cheese (could be omitted for vegan version)

1. Rinse Brussels sprouts and cut in half length-wise. Pre-heat over to 400 degrees F.
2. Mix Brussels sprouts with all other ingredients, except feta cheese, in medium bowl. Pour all into 9x13 baking pan.
3. Roast Brussels sprouts for 30-35 minutes, or until leaves of Brussels sprouts start to get brown and crispy.
4. Remove from oven and add feta cheese while still warm. Mix all together.

Apple Chicken Curry - end of winter Sunday night dinner, part 1

A couple of weeks ago, I had the craving for a big Sunday night dinner.  Something that took a little bit longer to cook and really comforting for the winter weather. My Swiss host Mom when I was studying abroad made roast chicken for Sunday dinner every single week, almost always with Brussels sprouts. Remembering this, I decided to make chicken and Brussels sprouts, but with curry and citrus flavors: apple chicken curry, and roasted Brussels sprouts with orange.

I'd been curious for a while about trying curry powder in a dish that isn't necessarily Indian by using it along with ingredients that could be used in a lot of other types of cooking, and in using it a less dominant way.

I ended up sauteing apples, ginger, and onions until they were almost caramelized, and then mashing them together with the curry powder (and a little chili powder) to make the sauce, and then adding the chicken to that.

I used a different method for the chicken than I usually would for a dish like this. Instead of sauteing sliced raw chicken to cook it, I boiled chicken breasts that still had the bone and skin on them until they were cooked through, sliced them after they were cooked, and then only briefly sauteed them in the sauce at the end to mix the chicken with the sauce (more below on this). I feel like chicken can easily get tough and chewy when it's sauteed, and so I was curious to try out a way to keep the chicken more tender.

And it ended up being really, really good. I think it's one of the best things that I've made in a while.

The curry flavor combined really well with the apple and ginger flavors, which left it really earthy tasting. I also think that the method I used with the chicken made a huge difference; it was much moister than usual.

I debated including this, because the dish is so good on its own, but I also ended up making a yogurt sauce to go with this the next night, partly out of curiosity. And out of having already bought the ingredients....

But it's a really simple sauce, and does go really well with the curry. It takes away from the apple flavor a little, but if you like yogurt sauce, it's really good mixed with the curry and rice. It's not necessary, though, so with or without yogurt sauce, the curry is still delicious!

I envisioned this as a winter mood dinner, and I think it turned out to be a farewell to winter one - see the blossoms on the tree in this picture I took walking home the other night (still in February)?

Apple Chicken Curry 
Makes 3-4 servings

About 1.5 pounds chicken breasts on bone with skin
1 onion, chopped
2 medium apples, peeled, cored, and finely chopped
1.5 - 2 T chopped ginger
1 T curry powder
1/2 t chili powder
salt and pepper to taste

1. Boil the chicken: put the chicken, still on the bone and with skin on, in a medium-sized sauce pan, and cover completely with water. Turn on medium-high heat, and bring water to boil. Once water is boiling, reduce to medium heat, and cook chicken for 10-15 minutes. Check chicken to see if it has cooked through, and remove from heat once it has. Remove chicken from water, and let cool on a plate.

2. While chicken is cooking, saute the onions and ginger on medium-low heat for 5-10 minutes, until onions are tender. Turn heat to low, add apples, and saute for 10 additional minutes.

3. Add the curry and chili powder, as well as salt and pepper, and mash all with a mallet or large spoon, continuing to saute over low heat. 

4. Once the chicken has cooled, take the meat off of the bone and remove the skin, and slice into bite-sized pieces. Add the chicken to the pan with the apple curry sauce, and saute only briefly, about three minutes, until all is blended and the chicken is slightly sauteed.

Remove from heat. Goes really well served with white or brown jasmine rice.

Optional accompaniment sauce:

Lemon-cilantro yogurt sauce

1/2 pint greek yogurt
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 T fresh cilantro, finely chopped
1/4 t ground cayenne pepper
juice from 1/2 lemon
salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients in small bowl; serve.

Next: Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Orange for part two of this post...