Chicken with Figs, Pumpkin and Red Wine or Yes, it’s Fall

(This is a repost from 2013. This chicken is a perfect fall dish and I felt it deserved new photos. Enjoy!)

Yom Kippur has ended and officially my new year has begun.  Actually, this is a new year until January 1, when if this new year isn’t going so right, I get a second chance at another new year. It’s good being Jewish! You get to make resolutions twice, in case the first set didn’t take! I hope I’ve been written down in the book of life, and I sincerely hope I haven’t offended anyone this past year, and if so I apologize. Yes, once a year it is good to ask for forgiveness, as sometimes you just don’t know who you might have rubbed the wrong way. In truth, I should have asked this about 20 days go, but I’ve been really slow in looking at dates lately. Forgive me. Time just passes too fast.

But this Yom Kippur, I finally got my act together and cooked some traditional food.  This week there are some really great leftovers in my fridge and hopefully some you will find interesting. This chicken with figs, red wine and pumpkin  is perfect for fall. And a very wet fall it has been; uncommonly wet here in Denver.

Our weather has been so strange. It is not uncommon to have snow in September. This year though, no snow. Just rain. So much rain, I thought we’d have to build an ark. Luckily, we are fine, but many others aren’t. Stories keep flooding out (no pun intended) from the news and there are lots of people needing help. In the past, we have had numerous  floods in our basement, mainly because we have big trees and their roots have collapsed our drain. Yes, we need to fix it, but unfortunately it isn’t in the budget. But let me tell you, our floods, though a pain in the rear, are nothing like what many in our area are going through. I’m not sure how the news has covered it elsewhere, but there will be a lot of people needing a lot of help and there is nothing worse than dealing with water and mold and mud and sewage.  Be thankful for what you have. I’m not sure anyone saw this coming.

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So like I said, our weather has felt like fall. Of course today we are finally back to normal, and it feels like the middle of summer. I guess that is good because maybe it will help dry things out around here. But back to chicken… Friday night, erev Yom Kippur, I cooked this chicken. I liked it and  our small group did too. Full of herby fall flavors, hearty and rich with the taste of a honey, wine and pumpkin sauce and fruity with figs, this chicken is a crowd pleaser and so simple to make. Filling enough to hold us for our 25 hour fast – or maybe that was the potato kugel and dessert that did that. And yes, for those that are wondering it was the famous Omi’s potato kugel, and yes, I will post it tomorrow. Just wanted you to lick your chops, because this is a kugel like no other, and it doesn’t contain eggs.

But we are talking chicken here. I found this recipe in a new cookbook that came out this year called, The Modern Menu. It is billed as a kosher cookbook but could easily be found in anyone’s kitchen.  Containing figs, red wine, pumpkins, honey, and cinnamon this chicken is perfect for the Jewish holidays or even a special weeknight dinner. Now you must know my manservant is a lover of figs.

I don’t think I ate a fig until I met him. Some people have apple trees in their backyard; well, he had a fig tree. I’m still not so sure about figs. Seedy little devils they are, but full of luscious flavor and after all they are very biblical. Perfect for a traditional meal. Don’t worry about the cinnamon or the honey making this too sweet. This is not a dish that is sweet; though this is a good dish to symbolize a sweet year. Everything seems to peacefully meld together, creating a luscious and hearty chicken that is sure to please.

Pumpkin, on the other hand, is found in the New World.

But crazily, it works well with figs. If you think about it, pumpkin by itself, doesn’t have a lot of flavor, but it seems to take on the flavor of what it is cooked with. Therefore it makes a great base for a drool worthy sauce. I’ll be making this dish again. It was savory and hearty and perfect for a fall dinner. Yes, this chicken with figs, pumpkin and red wine is amazing and amazingly simple to throw together.

Now if you are looking for a good, one dish, chicken dinner you have found it. I have others on this blog, but this one will get Fall off on the right foot. We could use it. Along with a good weather forecast. Maybe one that calls for peace and some dry weather.  Happy New Year!

Other great fall dishes:
Pumpkin Brown Sugar Muffins

Chicken Scarpariello

Microwave Caramel Corn

Brown Sugar Spice Cake with Caramel Glaze

More Fig Dishes:

My Mother In Law always made fig jam. Check out this cardamom fig jam from The View from Great Island. And who doesn’t like fig newtons? These from Saving Room for Dessert must be delicious.

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Chicken with Figs, Pumpkin and Red Wine or Yes, it’s Fall

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• Author: Abbe Odenwalder
• Prep Time: 25 Minutes
• Cook Time: 60 Minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
• Yield: 6-8 Servings 1x
• Category: Main Course
• Method: Stove Top
• Cuisine: American

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Ingredients

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12 pieces skinless bone in chicken, white or dark (I used 4 boneless, skinless breasts that were big and cut them into two pieces and 4 chicken thighs with skin – I guess I’m not good at reading directions) seasoned with salt and pepper

2 peeled onions

2 cloves of garlic

Leaves from 6 sprigs of thyme (I used 1/2 t of dried thyme)

Needles from 2 sprigs fresh rosemary

2 T olive oil

1 15 oz can plain pumpkin puree

1 c red wine

1/4 c honey

1 1/2 c water

1 c dried Mission figs or 2 c fresh figs, stemmed (Substitute dried prunes or apricots if you prefer)

2 cracked cinnamon sticks (I buy these in the Mexican section of my grocery)

1 t ground allspice

Slivered almonds for garnish

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Instructions

Combine onions, garlic,thyme and rosemary in the bowl of a food processor and pulse once or twice. YOU DO NOT WANT MUSH!

Heat oil in skillet or Dutch oven on medium high heat. Add the onion mixture and saute until soft and fragrant, about 6 minutes. Push onion to side and add seasoned chicken in batches. Brown for several minutes on each side.

Meanwhile, whisk pumpkin puree, wine, honey figs, cinnamon, allspice and 1 1/2 c water. Pour over the chicken to cover. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium. Cover and cook until the chicken looks plump and is cooked through. This should take no longer than an hour and if you are using white meat, probably only 45 minutes. If there is too much sauce, take the chicken out and place on a plate covered with foil. Leave the lid off and let sauce cook down for a few minutes.

Discard the cinnamon sticks. Place chicken on a platter. Spoon sauce over. Sprinkle
toasted almonds on top.

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