CHICKEN ROMANO WITH LACINATO KALE AND ROMANESCO

CHICKEN ROMANO WITH LACINATO KALE AND ROMANESCO image

Yield 4 to 6 servings

Number Of Ingredients 15

Ingredients

3 large chicken breasts halves with bones and skin
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 teaspoons salt divided, plus more for the chicken breasts
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 yellow onion, fine chopped
1 rib of celery, fine chopped
2 fresh bay leaves (or 1 dried)
3 cloves of garlic
1 large red bell pepper, diced
1 large yellow bell pepper, diced
1/2 cup white wine
1 26 ounce can/box of San Marzano tomatoes
3 cups romanesco florets
2 cups black kale, ribs removed and torn
1 teaspoon fresh parsley

Steps:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. First, get the sauce started by heating a large Dutch oven on medium high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil, onion, celery and bay leaves. The longer you cook this starting mixture the tastier the sauce will be. Keep some water handy to add in if things get a little brown too quickly. After about 10 minutes add the garlic, bell pepper and one teaspoon of salt and pepper (or to taste). Continue to cook an additional 10 minutes. Add the wine and stir up any bits on the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Now, add the tomatoes, breaking them up with your spoon. Stir in the remaining salt. Taste for additional seasoning, cover and continue to simmer while you finish searing the chicken. Cut the chicken breasts halves in half, so you end up with quarter pieces. You're going to cut perpendicular to the breastbone through the middle of the breast bone (see photo). You'll need a sharp knife to slice through the bone. You can have your butcher do it for you (if you're lucky enough to have a real live butcher). Salt and pepper the breast quarters. In a frying pan, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil and sear the chicken on all sides until golden brown - depending on the size of your pan, you may have to do this in batches. After the all the chicken is browned, nestle it into the sauce, bone side up. Cover chicken completely with sauce, spooning it over so all of the pieces are covered. Cook in the oven 45 minutes. Then, flip chicken pieces over and add the romanesco and kale. Cover and return to the oven for 15 minutes. To serve, portion out the chicken and sauce into shallow bowls - if you're entertaining, you might want to remove the breastbone from the chicken prior to serving. Sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve.