Roasted Chicken with Cherry Tomatoes

As much as I may try to resist the Rachael Ray-ificatio of the Dining In category of this site, I'm afraid that fatherhood has wrought a rapid and (seemingly) permanent reduction in the window of time for weeknight cooking.

The great thing about this recipe for chicken breasts roasted with cherry tomatoes, herbs, and garlic (from Bon Appétit via The Wednesday Chef) is that while the dish only takes five minutes (or less) to get ready and cooks for just 35 minutes, it doesn't taste like a quick-cook meal. In such a brief time in the oven, the skin develops a salty, garlicky crunch; meanwhile, as the tomatoes cook and collapse, their juice melds with the chicken drippings and olive oil to form a sauce that constitutes almost a shallow braise, infusing the chicken from below. The result is chicken that is extremely juicy and flavorful.

Kitchen Notes: Cooking the chicken on a baking sheet (with a rim to contain the juices) seems critical, as it allows you to keep everything on one layer. I could not find marjoram, so I ended up substituting fresh oregano, which worked (Luisa from The Wednesday Chef also had success with dried rosemary) [Update: It works nicely with fresh rosemary, too]. Because the pieces of chicken were huge, I cut each breast into two sections to make the dish more manageable. Finally (and reluctantly), I skipped the (crucial) addition of adding crushed red pepper: my wife is not keen on spicy food, and I didn't want to add insult to injury to the teething gums of our baby daughter. Molars are upon us (well, her).