Better Than Basic Baked Chicken Drumsticks

or economical and delicious weeknight chicken

Things certainly ebb and flow with a toddler in the house.  Add into the mix two parents constantly re-adjusting their "groove" to the season at hand and it adds up to chaos at dinner more nights than not.  With our budget tighter than before it doesn't give a whole lot of flex room for impromptu inspiration either, so I have been working on dinner planning and digging up some old favorite recipes to add into the rotation.  Summer is giving way to Fall so our stir fry/veggie sautes are turning to the roasted route and our oven is making its grand return to use.

This week we revived my old chicken drumstick recipe and served it alongside a delicious mix of roasted veggies from the Farmers' Market (recipe to come soon).  This was great because the chicken was on sale, we used farm fresh local veggies, the rest of the ingredients were already in our pantry, and the leftovers were cut up and mixed together for an easy lunch the day.  I have done several variations of this recipe and they have always turned out great, alternate ideas are included in the ingredient list to shake things up.  The chicken is so tender it practically falls off the bone, you can reduce the liquid by half a cup if you want to make sure it is more of a finger food type of meal.  I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!  Here's how the chicken goes down:

Chicken drumsticks - 6 to 8
House spice blend - 1 tbsp
Paprika - 1 tsp (can replace with 1/2 tsp sage for more traditional flavor)
Chicken stock - 1 cup
White wine - 1/4 cup (optional, replace with chicken stock if desired)
Dried minced onion - 1 tbsp
Salt & pepper

Hardware: glass baking dish large enough to fit chicken without overlap

Preheat oven to 350 F

1. Add chicken stock, wine, and dried minced onion to the baking dish.  Stir to combine.

2. Next add in the drumsticks, alternating direction so they fit loosely together like a puzzle (there should be a little space between each if possible)

3. Season the chicken with spice blend, paprika, salt and pepper.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 min.

4. Remove the foil and turn the oven up to 450 F, return to oven for 10 min uncovered.

5. Turn to broil for a few minutes to crisp the top.  Carefully flip the drumsticks over, season with spices again, and broil to crisp skin.  Remove from oven and place the chicken on a plate separate from the stock mixture.

Optional: heat the stock mixture until simmering, slowly stir in a couple tablespoons of a slurry mixture (equal parts cornstarch and cold water), and season to taste.  Serve as gravy with the chicken.