Last Of The Summer (Tomatoes)

We have enjoyed watching Last Of The Summer Wine on PBS for years. No wine here, but these are definitely the "last of the summer tomatoes." Someone forgot to tell our garden that summer was officially over a few weeks ago. We are still picking vegetables. The vines are still loaded with green tomatoes. Maybe I should give fried green tomatoes a try. I'll eat them at a restaurant but I've never made them at home. I'll think about it.

Even though last week was crazy, I did cook supper most nights but fell back on the old standby recipes. So last night I was ready to try something new. I had a package of chicken in the refrigerator and discovered I had bought boneless/skinless thighs instead of the usual breasts. I emailed Jessica for a recipe suggestion, thinking she had done something special with thighs before.

And she sent me this recipe. It calls for drumsticks but she had made it with the boneless thighs. Couldn't be easier. And couldn't be better. This will be a regular from now on. Here is my version of that recipe. Had to buy the preserves available in our small town. (Do people here not eat apricots?) Since my substitution worked well, you have my permission to adjust the recipe, also. The sauce was just delicious over rice.

Hot & Sweet Chicken

1 cup pineapple preserves

1/2 cup ketchup

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 teaspoons minced garlic (I used the jar kind)

2 teaspoons Tabasco

1 package boneless/skinless chicken thighs (6 thighs)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small saucepan, combine preserves, ketchup, soy sauce, garlic and Tabasco. Cook and stir over medium-low heat until preserves are melted.

Arrange thighs in a 9x13-inch pan. (I lined mine with foil for easy clean up.) Pour sauce over the chicken, turning to coat. Bake, uncovered, for about 30 minutes, or until done, spooning sauce over chicken while baking. If you use bone-in chicken pieces, the cooking time will be longer. Adjust as necessary.