Recipe of the day: Apple cider chicken with butternut squash

This one pan apple cider chicken with butternut squash recipe is exactly what you need to combat the midweek Autumn blues.

This recipe is super easy to recreate, and can be cooked and prepared in just 40 minutes.

Mop up the delicious sauce from this chicken dish with some homemade steamed bread, garlic bread, chewy French bread, or ciabatta bread.

Apple cider chicken with butternut squash

Ingredients

• 5 chicken breasts, boneless, skin-on
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 2 tablespoons paprika
• 1 tablespoon salt
• ½ tablespoon ground black pepper
• 1 cup apple cider (NOT apple cider vinegar)
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 tablespoon mustard
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 2 cups butternut squash, diced into cubes
• 1 apple, sliced
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 215 degrees C.
2. Pat dry each chicken breast with a paper towel completely before adding seasoning. This helps create extra crispy skin when searing and roasting.
3. In a small bowl, combine olive oil, paprika, salt and pepper and mix well with a spoon. Generously smear the seasoning mixture over the chicken breasts and let it rest on a clean plate for at least 15 minutes.
4. Heat an oven-safe or cast-iron skillet on the stove for 5 minutes over medium high heat. Once the skillet is sizzling hot, sear the chicken breasts by placing them skin side down until the skin turns brown, for about 4-5 minutes. Transfer the chicken breasts onto a plate to rest.
5. On the same skillet, turn down the heat to medium and add apple cider, butter, mustard, brown sugar, and soy sauce. Stir to combine. Bring the sauce mixture to a simmer and stir until it forms a smooth texture. Remove from heat and transfer the chicken breasts back to the skillet with the skin side up.
6. In a large mixing bowl, add butternut squash, sliced apples, thyme, and remaining tablespoon of olive oil.  Toss to combine. If using frozen butternut squash, make sure to defrost first and pat dry to remove excess water. Transfer the butternut squash and apple mixture to the skillet and spread it around the chicken.
7. Transfer the entire skillet into the preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes until the skin is crispy and golden brown and the internal temperature for the chicken reaches 73 degrees C on a meat thermometer.
8. Serve the chicken and butternut squash on a plate and drizzle some apple cider sauce from the skillet on top.

This recipe was found on aheadofthym.com