Apple and Honey Chicken

Gluten Free. Original recipe by Faith Kramer published in j. Serves 4. We found and made this recipe for Rosh Hashanah 5777 (2016) and would like to make it an annual tradition.  

Ingredients

• 3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 lb small Granny Smith apples
• 4 Tbsp oil
• 2 medium onions
• ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
• ¼ tsp dried mint
• ¼ tsp ground mustard powder
• ¾ tsp dried ground sage
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp ground black pepper
• 1 C chicken stock
• 3 Tbsp honey
• 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 3 Tbsp parve margarine
• 3 Tbsp finely chopped parsley

Directions

1. Pour vinegar into bowl. Peel apples if desired. Core. Slice into 1/4-inch wedges. Place in bowl, stir to coat, and let sit to absorb vinegar while you prepare the onion.
2. Slice onions. Heat half of the oil (2 Tbsp) in 12-inch frying pan on medium-high heat. Sauté onions until golden. Stir in red pepper, mint, mustard, ½ tsp of the sage, and half of the salt and pepper. Add apples with vinegar. Pour ¼ cup stock and the honey into pan. Cook until apples are half cooked (maybe 10 minutes?).
3. Empty contents of pan into a bowl and set aside while you use the pan to cook the chicken.
4. In the same pan, heat remaining 2 Tbsp oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken. Sprinkle with remaining sage, salt and pepper. Pan fry until browned and almost cooked through.
5. Remove chicken from pan, cover with foil and keep warm. (Chicken will continue to cook.)
6. Return apples, onions and sauce to pan. Add remaining stock. Raise heat. Bring to low boil, scraping up any browned-on bits from pan bottom. If chicken has exuded liquid, add it back to pan. Stir in margarine. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until sauce is reduced by half. (About 20 minutes?)
7. Taste, adding more honey or vinegar if needed. Use tongs to place apples and onions on platter. Top with chicken. Drizzle with some of pan sauce, serving remainder alongside. Sprinkle with parsley.