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By: Chef Laura Bonicelli Sourdough Bacon Sheet Pan Chicken is a perfect alternative to a turkey dinner. This one is holiday-worthy and has an added benefit; you have your main dish and sides all in one pan. Buy your ingredients at your favorite Farmers Market! 

Sourdough_Chicken

About Sourdough Bacon Sheet Pan Chicken

 Sourdough Bacon Sheet Pan Chicken takes about 20 minutes to get into the oven. After that, set a timer and your table and enjoy the aroma! The bacon flavors everything, but, in particular, it makes the sourdough bread is irresistible! So much so, I often add more bread to the recipe; because it always gets rave reviews, and it’s the first thing to go. It’s important to toss the bread and vegetables together with the olive oil. Make sure squash gets coated, so it cooks properly. I spend a little time moving the bacon to the outer edges of the pan. It won’t be crisp if you put it under the chicken. Alternatively, I remove the chicken when cooked and put the vegetables back in the oven for 5-10 minutes.

Bacon will add saltiness; therefore, I usually limit salt to the chicken until it’s cooked. Then, I add more if it needs it or leave it up to my guests to salt their own. The red onions become sweet and browned. They also add some beautiful color. The oregano cooks right off the stem and, as you stir the vegetables, flavors all of the entire pan.

In the final 15 minutes, stir in your Brussels Sprouts, making sure they come in contact with the pan juices. They will roast nicely but will still maintain their bright green color. Not a Brussels Sprout fan? You can skip them or substitute them with broccoli.

Sourdough Bacon Sheet Pan Chicken is a dish that encompasses all of the elements of a complicated holiday dinner, without any of the hassles. I hope you love it!

I like marshmallows in my hot cocoa, but I’ve never been a fan of them on my squash or sweet potatoes. As it turns out, the marshmallow industry instigated that tradition. They even wrote the recipes for us! We’re duped again by advertising dollars. I find a little maple syrup and the natural sweetness of the butternut squash is all you need. Plus, who wants to cover up that beautiful orange color?

Yet, this dish has much more than that going for it. Let’s start with the pecans. I spiced the pecans with rosemary and cayenne, which gives them an earthy quality with a little heat. They are also sweet because of the brown sugar. I usually put half of the nuts on the dish and serve the rest on the side, and they never make it through the dinner – people love them.

Feta has that salty-sour quality, and it complements and contrasts the sweetness of the butternut squash. Feta is sheep’s milk. Not a feta fan? Goat cheese would be a second choice. Many people with dairy intolerance are only troubled by cow’s milk; that’s an added benefit. The cheese also adds richness, and it looks pretty.

Speaking of looking pretty, pomegranate arils (that’s the fancy name for the seeds) are beautiful. Again, more flavor and more color. They are sweet, tangy, fresh, and good for you. Pomegranates are a little challenging. Extracting the seeds can be a mess. My best method is to spit the pomegranate in half and beat the skin with a wooden spoon over a large bowl. The arils will fall out of the membrane; for the most part, they will be completely free of the membrane and ready to use.

I hope you love this recipe. Please take a look at other side suggestions below and rate the recipe if you make it!

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sourdough-chicken-in-oven
sourdough-chicken-stuffing
Buon Appetito!

Step by Step Instructions

Sourdough_Chicken

Sourdough Bacon Sheet Pan Chicken

© Chef Laura Bonicelli
Everyone loves a good chicken dinner and this one is holiday-worthy. The beauty of cooking all of this together is that the bread and squash get the benefit of all of the flavor of the bacon and chicken juices.
5 from 2 votes

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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Course Dinner, Main Dish - Meat, Main Dish - Poultry, MM-Blue
Cuisine American
Servings 8
Calories 788 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 1/2 pound sourdough bread loaf or any crusty bread -- torn into 2-inch pieces
  • 1/2 pound bacon sliced and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
  • 1 large garnet yam sweet potato or hard squash -- peeled and cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks
  • 1 large red onion peeled and cut into 1-inch wedges
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter cut in pieces
  • 4 fresh oregano or thyme sprigs
  • 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1 4- pound whole chicken cut up into 8 pieces
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

=====

  • 10 ounces Brussels Sprouts -- cleaned and halved

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 400º F.
  • In a large rimmed baking sheet covered with aluminum foil or parchment paper, toss the bread, bacon, yam, onion, butter, oregano, and crushed red pepper with the olive oil. Spread in an even layer. Season the chicken with salt and black pepper and arrange on the bread mixture.
  • Roast the chicken and bread mixture for about 45 minutes, until the bread is crisp and an instant-read thermometer inserted in the chicken registers 165º or above. Stir the bread and vegetables several times during cooking to keep the cooking even. Stir the Brussels Sprouts into the vegetable mixture for the last 15 minutes of baking.
  • Serve, arranged on a platter.

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Notes

Add salt to season the chicken. The bacon will make the bread and vegetables salty and you can always add more salt at the end if it needs it.  Copyright: Chef Laura Bonicelli 

Nutrition

Calories: 788kcalCarbohydrates: 31gProtein: 30gFat: 60gSaturated Fat: 21gPolyunsaturated Fat: 9gMonounsaturated Fat: 27gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 140mgSodium: 291mgPotassium: 726mgFiber: 3gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 431IUVitamin C: 11mgCalcium: 38mgIron: 3mg
Keyword bacon, chicken, onedish, sheet pan, sourdough
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