The combination of honey and chicken might sound strange and unappealing at first but I promise you that if you try this recipe you will be instantly hooked. The chicken is not overly sweet, in fact the effect the honey has is adding a richness of flavor, a wonderful golden brown color and a hint of sweetness. Add the rosemary for the woody, earthy flavor , some lemon and mustard to make things interesting and you have a winner!

I have had this recipe written in my recipe book for years.  I don’t even remember where it came from. I think it might be from cooking light but I’m not sure.

If you have never tried a combination of sweet and savory before this is a great recipe to explore, the sweetness is not overwhelming and the combination of flavors takes chicken from ordinary to interesting and appetizing.

I usually serve my honey rosemary chicken with some rosemary garlic potatoes, a salad and maybe some onion bread

Honey rosemary chicken

2 chicken breasts or thighs or a combination 🙂

1/3 cup of honey

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons mustard

2 cloves garlic

1 tablespoon dried rosemary

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Instructions

Whisk the ingredients of the marinade

Tip:

Measure the oil in your cup before measuring the honey, that will prevent the honey from sticking to the cup

Add the chicken and allow to marinate anywhere between 30 minutes and over night.

Put the chicken with the marinade in your baking dish, cover with tin foil

Place the baking dish into a 200 C (400F) oven for 20 minutes

Uncover, paste with the marinade and continue cooking until the fluids run clear when you insert a knife into the joint area. (another 15-25 minutes depending on the size of the chicken)

Usually the marinade will give the chicken a golden brown color but if you want a deeper color you can place it under the broiler for a couple of minutes