Chickety-Split

This recipe is so vague that it hardly counts as a recipe, but this was yesterday's dinner and today's lunch, and I am still impressed that it was so easy to make and is still so tasty, so I'm going to share it anyway. It's been cold and dreary, and this was a perfect pick-me-up on a bitter Sunday night and a gray Monday afternoon. The only thing that would have made this better is football.


CHICKETY-SPLIT

• 1½ lbs. boneless chicken thighs*
• 3-4 medium red-skinned potatoes
• 3-4 large carrots
• seasonings: salt, pepper, dried thyme, rosemary (all to taste)**
• olive oil (and/or cooking spray)
  

Preheat oven to 350°F. Rinse chicken in cool water and pat dry. Season on all sides with salt, pepper, thyme, and rosemary. Arrange in a single layer in a covered baking dish that has been coated with cooking spray (or put 1/2 tsp. olive oil in the dish and spread around bottom and sides of the dish with a paper towel -- strictly to prevent sticking). Wash potatoes and carrots. Cut potatoes into 1-1½" chunks. Cut carrots into pieces about 3-4" long, and half if necessary. (You want long pieces, not matchsticks.) Arrange in a covered baking dish. Drizzle very lightly with olive oil (mostly to prevent sticking), stir to coat, and season with salt, pepper, thyme, and rosemary. Cover both dishes and bake at 350°F for 1-1¼ hours or until chicken is fully cooked and vegetables fall apart when pierced with a fork. Let rest 5 minutes before serving.

Makes about 6 servings, depending on how many thighs you have, and how many potatoes and carrots you used (1 thigh, approximately ¾ potato, and approximately ¾ carrot per serving). You can always adjust the number of potatoes and carrots you use to suit your needs.


STANDARD DISCLAIMERS:
* = I don't usually use dark meat, because I don't really like it, but thighs don't bother me, and I think breasts will get too dry.
** = I used kosher salt, fresh-ground pepper, dried thyme leaves, and dried rosemary leaves on everything, and little bit of some kind of lemon-herb seasoning blend on the chicken. We couldn't really taste or smell the lemon, though, so it's definitely NOT required.