Chicken and Apricots

This dish is an inspired blend of two of my absolute favorite chicken dishes, so while I can't take all the credit for it, I can tell you how delicious it is and that you should make it right away. Alison Roman's Chicken with Dates and Caramelized Lemons is one of our constants, as is Amanda Fredrickson's One Pot Chicken with Orzo and Sun-dried Tomatoes. They're both full of flavor and pretty simple to bring together - a winning combo in my book. I wanted to bring the elements I love about each into one, seasonal dish: the delicious meltiness of the dates and the orzo that soaks up all the schmaltzy chicken flavor.In this dish, dried apricots take the place of the dates but still bring a luxurious meatiness to the dish that is super special. They also play with the fresh apricots that get added in two ways - cooked down making the orzo all jammy, and then sliced in right at the end to bring a fresh little pop of flavor (and color). The flavors in the dish are so yummy and comforting - I hope you like it!

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Chicken and Apricots

Serves 2-3Ingredients 

• 3 bone-in, skin on chicken thighs
• Salt and pepper
• Olive oil
• 4 shallots, quartered (can also sub for onion)
• 1 lemon, thinly sliced into rounds 
• ½ cup orzo 
• 1 ½ cups chicken stock
• ½ cup dried apricots (about 10-12), cut into halves
• 3 fresh apricots - 2 cut into quarters, 1 thinly sliced
• Couple sprigs fresh thyme 

Method: 

1. Preheat oven to 375 and sprinkle chicken thighs liberally with salt and pepper on both sides . 
2. In a large oven-proof skillet, heat 2 tbsp of olive oil over medium high heat. Add chicken thighs to pan, skin side down. Cook until the skin is lightly browned, crispy and the fat has rendered, about 5-7 minutes.
3. Remove chicken from the pan (the non-skin side should still be raw) and set to the side. Add the lemon slices and shallots to the pan with a pinch of salt and let cook in the chicken fat until lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Try not to move the lemon and shallot - you want them to sear instead of steam. 
4. Add the dried apricot halves, the fresh apricot quarters (save the pieces that are thinly sliced for later), orzo and sprigs of thyme. Add the chicken back into the pan and then pour the chicken stock around the chicken, submerging the orzo. Carefully put the skillet in the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes, until the chicken stock has absorbed and the orzo and chicken are cooked through. Scatter the remaining slices of apricot on the top and let sit for 5 minutes before serving.