Though I am hesitant to feature yet another chicken recipe (I will mix it up I promise), this roast chicken is too fabulous to put on hold, and it’s fresh on the mind for two reasons. First, I made it last week and it was SO good and devoured by all. AND you may have heard about a small wedding in Windsor over the weekend, well he supposedly popped the question over this dish. Full disclosure, the 1 to 1 1/2 hour cook time may take this off the table as a weeknight option – it was 1 hour for me – if you front load the emails, the put aways, and tomorrow’s to-do’s during the cooking time, it really was a breeze. I didn’t have the Thyme or red onions on hand so proceeded without, and I screwed up the gravy. And absolutely buy kitchen string next time you are at the store – you’ll have it forever, and feel like a rockstar every time you use it. I served it with steamed broccoli (the tea kettle hack for hot steam water is genius BTW) and my favorite risotto ever, it’s printed on the back of this jar. LOVED by ALL, and not one plate to scrape: Barefoot Contessa’s Perfect Roast Chicken.
Author: Week Nights Only
LIFE-CHANGING CHICKEN SHAWARMA
Ok, ok. Life changing may be a BIT much. But not really. Because this was one of the earliest recipes submitted by a friend (who got it from a friend) to Week Nights Only – and it instantly epitomized what I hoped to gain from the site. A recipe I had never made before in my life, and one that at first glance I would have written off as WAY too intimidating to make on a weekend, let alone a weeknight. But because I knew it was SOMEONE’s go to as a favorite weeknight dinner, that’s all I needed to get past my “I can’t make a NY Times recipe” and “marinate in the morning – that’s way too much work” mentality. And thank goodness…because sitting down to this mouth-watering dinner was not only a treat for the taste buds, it symbolized my highest hopes of creating and sharing a recipe collective of the tried and true. Tip: The morning marinade takes about 2 minutes – then all the work is done for the evening other than the preheat and roasting. I served over my fave Jasmati rice. So, without further ado, behold Oven Roasted Chicken Shawarma. If that link isn’t working for you, try this one. Recipe thanks to JF via LC! JF notes: Super easy and really delicious. Kids love too. I leave out cinnamon and red pepper flakes for various taste buds here and it still turns out great. We do chopped red pepper and cucumber (red onion good too) plus tzatziki as toppings for our middle eastern taco night.
xo CH
BORSARI BAKED CHICKEN
The inspiration for one of my favorite weeknight chicken dinners is all thanks to my fab mother-in-law. One day I happened to ask her for a favorite, easy dinner option – and she suggested baked chicken breasts. Somehow, until that point, I had cooked chicken every which way one could, but somehow, never baked a breast.
I went home energized and curious, hit the google machine, and landed on this recipe which I use for the temperature and time only. SPOILER: 400 degree oven, bake 10 minutes first side, 15 minutes second. I put tinfoil on the baking sheet (zero mess!), pour olive oil on the chicken breasts (both sides) and sprinkle with Borsari (my favorite seasoning ever, recommended by a dear friend).
In the oven, and that’s it!
SO good, loved by all.
PS. I usually serve with these Quick Baked Potatoes and Butter lettuce (fresh, or bagged!) with cut up apples, carrots, and Newman’s Own Balsamic Vinagrette.
xo CH
WELCOME!
Aaaaaahhhhh…take a DEEP breathe, and welcome to WEEK NIGHTS ONLY – your GO TO spot for SLAM DUNK week night recipes. No matter what’s going on in your life, or the world outside, there’s one eternal question we face EVERY DAY – what’s for dinner?
One particular night, foraging together a dinner of same old same olds, a lightbulb went off and I immediately send out some SOS texts asking friends to send their one “NEVER FAIL” weeknight recipe.
The mission of WEEK NIGHTS ONLY is to collect and share THOSE recipes, the ones we love and love us back. In fact, feel free to cook any of these recipes ANYTIME, just know on a busy weeknight, you’ve got a recipe friend.
The only criteria for each and every recipe on this site is that it represents, for the sender, their GO-TO dinner. When I was sent an amazing CHICKEN SHAWARMA recipe, my mind was blown how the simple tip of marinating in the morning could make this seemingly complicated, out-of-this-world dinner, a weeknight go-to. All it takes is knowing that for SOMEONE it is, and then it’s up to us if it earns a spot on our greatest hit list. Check out the RECIPE ARCHIVE and find your favorite!
PS: Any and all week night favorites welcome! Can be, but doesn’t have to be, fancy or original – just send credit link. Crockpot recipes welcome too! Send to: [email protected].
WE GOT THIS!
xo CH