As I’ve written here before, The Six O’Clock Scramble is a wonderful resource for busy parents trying to pull together family dinner on hectic weeknights.

For a modest fee, Scramble creator and D.C. mom Aviva Goldfarb will email you a weekly menu of five easy, kid-friendly dinner entree recipes, along with suggestions for side dishes, a shopping list and access to the vast Scramble recipe archives.  Or, if you’re not in the market for a subscription service, you can also find Aviva’s recipes in her two cookbooks, the original The Six O’Clock Scramble and her newer SOS! The Six O’Clock Scramble to the Rescue: Earth-Friendly, Kid-Pleasing Recipes for Busy Families.  (Both of those cookbooks are front and center on my kitchen shelf, well-used and marked with lots of Post-its.)

In an earlier “TLT’s Table” feature I shared one of my family’s favorite Scramble chicken recipes, Crispy Baked Drumsticks (and Thighs) and I promised in that post to share another TLT favorite with Lunch Tray readers.  So, with Aviva’s permission, I’m reprinting below her recipe for “Spiced Chicken with Maple Butter Glaze,” known in my house simply as “cinnamon chicken.”

This is one of those dishes that’s slightly sweet and appealing to kids (cinnamon, maple) but sophisticated enough (the cumin lends an almost-Moroccan note) that I’ve served it to adults as well.   Everyone loves it, and I love how quickly you can make it:  even though you’re using bone-in chicken, which usually takes a long time to cook, here the oven rack is placed close to the heating element in a very hot oven so dinner’s ready in half an hour.

And now the best part!  Just leave a comment below (you can share your own recipe, comment on this one, or just say hi) and I’ll use a random number generator at noon CST tomorrow (November 8th) to select TWO lucky winners of a free three-month subscription to the Scramble!

Thank you, Aviva, and good luck, everyone!  :-)

Spiced Chicken with Maple Butter Glaze

Reprinted with permission from The Six O’Clock Scramble

Prep + Cook = 30 minutes

6 servings

This scrumptious chicken, adapted from a Weight Watchers recipe, has received raves from subscribers when I have run it in previous newsletters.  It cooks so quickly because of the high heat and the chicken’s proximity to the oven’s heating element.  Serve it with bulgur wheat and Lemony Asparagus.

• 1 1/2 tsp. paprika
• 1 tsp. salt
• 3/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp. ground cumin, or use chili powder
• 1 whole chicken, cut up, (purchase it already cut up for greater ease)
• 3 Tbsp. pure maple syrup
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. butter or margarine
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.  In a small bowl, combine the four dry spices.

Place the chicken pieces skin side up on the baking sheet.  Sprinkle and rub the spice mixture evenly over the chicken (leave the drumsticks without spices for picky eaters).  Position the sheet in the upper third of the oven, about 4 inches from the heating element, and bake it, without turning it, for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan combine the maple syrup, butter and mustard.  Stir it over low heat until the butter melts.  Remove it from the heat.  (Start the bulgur now, if you are serving it.)

After the chicken has baked for 15 minutes, remove it from the oven and brush it with the maple glaze and bake it for 5 more minutes.  (Prepare the asparagus now, if you are serving it.)  Brush the chicken with the glaze again and bake it 5 minutes more.  Remove it from the oven and serve it.

Do Ahead or Delegate:  Combine the dry spices.

Scramble Flavor Booster:  Substitute 1/4 tsp. of the paprika with cayenne pepper.

Tip: In comparison to honey, maple syrup has fewer calories and a higher concentration of minerals.  It’s a great source of manganese and zinc.

Side Dish suggestion:  In a medium saucepan, cook 1 1/2 cups bulgur wheat in 3 cups chicken or vegetable broth or combination of broth and water.  Bring it to a boil, cover, and simmer it for 15 minutes until it is tender. Or, prepare quick-cooking brown rice according to package directions, using broth or water.

Side Dish suggestion:  Trim 1 lb. asparagus and cut it into thirds.  In a heavy skillet over medium heat, sauté 1/2 tsp. minced garlic (about 1 clove) in 1 tsp. olive oil, add the asparagus and sauté it for 4 – 5 minutes until it is tender crisp.  Sprinkle it with the juice of 1/4 fresh lemon or with 1/2 – 1 tsp. salt-free lemon pepper seasoning, to taste.

Nutritional Information per serving (% based upon daily values):
Calories 310, Total Fat 16g, 24%, Saturated Fat 5g, 26%, Cholesterol 105 mg, 34%, Sodium 360 mg, 15%, Total Carbohydrate 7g, 2%, Dietary Fiber 0g, 0%, Protein 33g, Sugar 6g

 

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Tagged as: Aviva Goldfarb, chicken, giveaway, kid-friendly, Spiced Chicken with Maple Butter Glaze, subscription, The Six O'Clock Scramble, weeknight dinner