Plum-Marinated Chicken with Balsamic Roasted Carrots and Baked Potatoes with Chipotle Butter

After checking out the cookbook “Robin Rescues Dinner” from the library, Bart hinted that he would like to receive a copy of the book for his birthday. Who am I to turn down a request for a cookbook? So, of course, he received it. We started our way cooking through it from the very beginning. Although we don’t tend to eat many “meat and potato” type of meals, this meal was very satisfying. We love how the recipe includes planned leftovers that give you a jump start on two other meals, which I will also post.

7 large baking potatoes
8 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 5 ounces each)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup plum preserves, blueberry preserves, or seedless blackberry preserves
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
2 teaspoons finely minced peeled fresh ginger
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
3 cups (1-8 ounce bag) baby carrots (we used a 1 lb. bag instead)
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, softened
1 teaspoon minced chipotle chiles in adobo sauce

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Prick the potatoes all over with a fork and place directly on the oven baking rack. Bake for 45 minutes to 1hour, until fork tender.

Meanwhile, coat a shallow roasting pan with cooking spray (I covered the pan with aluminum foil first). Arrange the chicken in the pan and season with salt and pepper.

In a small bowl, whisk together the plum preserves, soy sauce, rice vinegar, ginger, and garlic. Brush the mixture all over the chicken in the pan.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the balsamic vinegar and honey until blended. Add the carrots and toss to coat. Arrange the carrots alongside the chicken in the pan.

Roast the chicken and carrots for 25 to 30 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and no longer pink on the inside and the carrots are tender. (I had to use a higher rack in the oven to get room for both the potatoes and chicken to roast at the same time).

In a small bowl, combine the butter and chipotle chiles. Mix until blended.

Serve 4 of the chicken breast halves with all of the carrots and 4 of the potatoes. Top the potatoes with the chipotle butter. (Reserve the remaining 4 chicken breast halves for the Asian chicken dish and the remaining 3 potatoes for the soup.)