My mom made a Garlic Chicken dish that was out of this world. This was back in the days before the link between diet and heart disease was widely known. Let me tell you, that chicken was swimming in garlic butter! I don’t know how much she used, but I remember it was at least a half inch deep in the baking dish, maybe more. We sopped up the butter sauce with bread, so none of it went to waste. My parents both grew up during the Great Depression and came of age during WW II. There wasn’t much butter available back then; I think they were making up for lost time! Dad used to put butter on everything, even chocolate chip cookies. We’d always stop at the dairy in Penn Yan, NY when we went to visit my Aunt Myla. Now, that was butter! It’s color and flavor varied by season and weather because the cows were pasture raised. When the grass was green, the butter from their milk took on a deep yellow hue — no food coloring needed. Of course, some dairy farms still raise cows that way, but they’re few and far between.

While I still love butter, it’s not the healthiest substance out there; lots of calories and saturated fat without much nutritional value. So I set about reworking my mom’s recipe, keeping the fabulous flavor but reining in the butter. I added some potatoes, mostly because I had some that were on their last legs. They’re so delicious in this, though, that I’m going to include them every time. I’m happy to say this tastes even better than I remember Mom’s, and is a whole lot healthier! What’s more, it’s quick and easy — it only took me about thirty minutes, an ideal weeknight dinner.

I hope you’ll give it a try and let me know how you like it!

Ingredients:

1 pound (454 g) boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed

6 cloves of garlic

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 tablespoon butter

1 cup (240 ml) no-sodium, fat-free chicken broth

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

¼ teaspoon salt

10 oz (285 g) baby potatoes

Preparation:

1.) Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the chicken with the salt and pepper. Add the chicken to the pan, working in batches if necessary to prevent overcrowding. (Overcrowded chicken won’t have enough room for steam to escape, which means you won’t get as much browning.) Brown both sides without cooking through, then transfer the chicken to a plate. Keep warm.

2.) While the chicken browns, cut the potatoes into quarters. Once the chicken has been removed from the pan, add the last tablespoon of the olive oil and the potatoes. Brown the potatoes without cooking through, stirring occasionally.

3.) While the potatoes brown, peel and mince the garlic. When the potatoes are done browning, reduce the heat to medium-low. Clear a spot in the pan and add the butter and minced garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, until the garlic softens and begins to turn golden and fragrant. This should take less than a minute; be careful not to let the butter or garlic scorch. If you have an electric stove, you can turn the heat off instead of down. There will be enough residual heat to handle the garlic.

4.) Pour in the broth, scraping up all the yummy browned bits from the bottom of the pan.

5.) Return the chicken to the pan, nestling it between the potatoes, and cover it. Cook until the chicken is done and potatoes are fork-tender, about 10 to 15 minutes.

6.) Transfer the chicken and potatoes to a serving plate. Turn the heat back up to bring the broth to a boil. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens to about the consistency of cream. When you’re satisfied with it, pour it over the chicken and potatoes and serve immediately.