This recipe is my own version of a recipe I found in The Complete Cooking Light Cookbook (Oxmoor House, 2000). It is the perfect blend of sweet and savory. I am big on presentation, so for me one of the best things about this dish is how pretty it is! I am always looking for new (and easy) ways to prepare chicken breasts. This one has become one of my favorites. 

Ingredients: 

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon vegetable oil (don’t use olive oil – need an oil that can stand up to higher temperatures)
½ cup finely chopped red onion
½ teaspoon dried thyme
¾ teaspoon salt, divided
2/3 cup seedless raspberry preserves (get the good stuff and DO NOT use low or no sugar preserves)4 tablespoons quality balsamic vinegar
¼ - ½ teaspoons black pepper (to taste) 

Instructions: 

1)      Place each chicken breast between plastic wrap and pound out to an even thickness (about ½ inch). Pounding the chicken does a couple of things. First, it tenderizes it a bit. Also, it helps to ensure even cooking. Chicken breasts tend to be very thick at the top and very thin at the bottom. By the time the thick part as cooked through, the bottom part is as dry as beef jerky! To prevent this, I almost always pound the breasts out a bit.

2)      Sprinkle the thyme and about ½ teaspoon of salt on the chicken, coating both sides.

3)      Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until hot (usually takes about 5 minutes on my stovetop.)

4)      Once the pan is hot, add the chicken. It should make some noise. If it doesn’t, your pan isn’t hot enough. Sauté about 5 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken from pan, cover with foil, and set aside.

5)      Reduce heat to medium (take pan off heat for a minute to cool it off a bit.) Add the onion and sauté for about 5 minutes or until tender. Once the onion is cooked, add the raspberry preserves, balsamic vinegar, pepper, and ¼ teaspoon of salt stirring constantly until the preserves melt. Taste and add more salt if needed.

6)      Once preserves have melted, add the chicken back into the pan to coat with sauce. Serve immediately.

7)      Once the chicken is plated, drizzle with more sauce. Bon Appetit!

 Notes: 

• I like to serve “pretty” meat recipes with roasted asparagus. Of all the vegetables, I think it’s the most elegant.
• Because the sauce is so yummy, this is a great one to serve with some kind of rice pilaf.