Chicken Marbella

I love to cook and when asked to help cook a chicken dinner for Passover, I knew the dish to impress would be Chicken Marbella. This spectacular dish with its beautiful colors and delectable flavors is scrumptious served hot or at room temperature. Chicken Marbella is so luxuriously delicious; your guests will request it every time they come.

                                                               Chicken Marbella
                                                                    adapted from
                                                                 The Silver Palate
                                                       Julee  Ross & Sheila Lukins

                                                          with Michael Mclaughlin

Ingredients

4 chickens, 2 1/2 pounds each, quartered
1 head of garlic, peeled and finely puréed
1/4 cup dried oregano
coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
1 cup pitted prunes
1/2 cup Spanish green olives
1/2 cup capers with a bit of juice
6 bay leaves
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white wine
1/4 cup Italian parsley or fresh coriander  (cilantro), finally
   chopped

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine chicken quarters, garlic, oregano, pepper, and coarse salt to taste, vinegar, olive oil, prunes, olives,  capers, and juice, and bay leaves. Cover and let marinate, refrigerate, overnight.

2. Preheat the oven to 350 °F.

3. Arrange chicken in a single layer in one or 2 large, shallow baking pans and spoon marinade over it evenly. Sprinkle chicken pieces with brown sugar and pour white wine around them.

4. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, basting frequently with pan juices. Chicken is done when thigh pieces, pricked with a fork at their thickest, yield clear yellow (rather than pink) juice.

5. With a slotted spoon transfer chicken, prunes, olives, and capers to a serving platter.  Moisten with a few spoonfuls of pan juices, and sprinkle generously with parsley or cilantro.  Pass remaining pan juices in a saucepan.

6. To serve Chicken Marbella cold, cool to room temperature in a cooking juices before transferring to a serving platter. If chicken has been covered and refrigerated, allow it to return to room temperature before serving. Spoon some of the reserved juice over chicken.

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