orange with a hint of spice.

I've been juicing lately. As a result, there's a whole bunch of fruits and vegetables clogging the counter and waiting to be used. One such fruit are some navel oranges that I got on sale. I went a little crazy and got a little too much...sales on fruit here in Guam is something that I try to take advantage of. I just went a little overboard this time around...

So, what to do? Cook with it, of course! That's where this recipe comes in. I've made orange chicken before but I kind of wanted to do something a little different, flavor-wise. What struck me as interesting was the use of cumin and coriander. Cumin? Coriander? With orange?? I gotta try this!

Obviously I made some changes to what I had on hand. Navel for blood oranges. Chicken thighs for chicken breast. Also, dried rosemary as opposed to fresh. But what I ended up with did not disappoint! The spices gave the orange chicken a hint of exoticness which complimented the sweet orange sauce. The added zest I threw in also really kicked up the yummy orange flavor. I do, however, wished that I had fresh rosemary...my dried herb was starting to lose it's potency. To round out the meal, I paired this with some sauteed green beans and some creamy mashed potatoes. Yummy! Definitely worth making and hopefully again very soon!

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Spice Crusted Chicken with Blood Orange Maple Glaze
(from Simply Scratch)

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 tbsp toasted and freshly ground cumin
1 tbsp toasted and freshly ground coriander
1 tsp kosher salt
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp light olive oil
2 medium shallots, sliced
3/4 cup blood orange juice, strained {about 4 blood oranges}
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup maple Syrup
2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
1/4 tsp coarse ground black pepper

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

In a small bowl; combine the cumin, coriander and kosher salt. Season both sides of four chicken breasts using all of the spices in the bowl.

Add the two tablespoons of butter and olive oil to a large 12-inch oven-safe skillet and heat over medium-medium/high heat.

Once hot add the chicken in {top side down} and cook for 4-5 minutes or until a nice crust forms and it is easy to turn the chicken. If the chicken sticks, it needs more time.

Once the crust has formed, flip and slide the whole pan into your preheated oven. Bake the chicken for 20 minutes. Once the chicken is fully cooked, use tongs to transfer the chicken to a clean plate and tent with tin foil to keep warm

Heat the skillet over medium-high heat and add in the sliced shallots. Cook, stirring occasionally until they're soft and translucent. Next, pour in the blood orange juice, chicken broth and maple syrup. Add in the rosemary and black pepper and simmer until reduce by half to 75 % and a thick glaze remains... about 8-10 minutes.

Taste and season with kosher salt to taste {if needed} and add the chicken back it to warm up a tad more, then spoon the glaze over top of the chicken and serve.