Last night, I tried a new combination and it worked really well. Here is the new recipe:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (these can be cut into thirds if very large, or you can use pre-cut chicken tenders instead)
3 tbps extra virgin olive oil
2 tbps honey, plus extra for drizzling
1 tbp lime juice (fresh, if possible)
1/8 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp basil
1/2 tsp minced garlic (or to taste)
dash of salt & fresh ground pepper
Preheat oven to 375F.
Trim fat off chicken and cut if making tenders. Set aside.
Combine oil, honey, lime, thyme and basil in a small bowl. If using a measuring spoon, alternate oil/honey/oil/honey/oil so that the honey doesn’t stick to the spoon, then add lime. Stir in garlic (lime and garlic seem to go well together).
Arrange chicken in a single layer in a baking dish (do not grease). Spoon honey/lime mixture over chicken. If chicken is not completely covered in pan, add extra oil to prevent burning. Drizzle a small amount of honey over the chicken (and lime if desired). Sprinkle with salt and fresh pepper.
Bake 20-35 minutes, depending on size of chicken pieces and type of oven. Stir/rotate chicken every 10 minutes or so, adding oil if sides of dish begin to burn. Chicken is done when the insides are no longer pink.
This went well with steamed broccoli and a dish of Parmesan Herbed Noodles (recipe to be posted soon). Because the noodles have such a strong taste, the spices for the chicken were decresed to allow the honey-lime flavor to come out and mesh well with the noodles.
