Lemon Pineapple Chicken

So, did I tell you I love lemon? I did? Well, okay, then I will share another lemon dish that is also a quick weeknight meal. A friend I worked with gave me this recipe years ago. I have been making it on and off since she passed it along to me.

When I first made Lemon Pineapple Chicken, I used dried rosemary, and the flavor of the rosemary took over. I kept using less and less dried rosemary each time I made the recipe until I stopped making it all together. It was only when I moved to my new house with a rosemary bush in the backyard that I decided to try the recipe again. I used the fresh rosemary from my bush instead of dried, and it made a huge difference. Gone was the woody overpowering taste, and it was replaced by a mellow herb flavor that compliments all of the other flavors. The recipe shines with the fresh rosemary.

Now, don’t be fooled by the name of this recipe. Despite the pineapple and lemon, the sauce is not sweet. The garlic, rosemary, mustard and Worcestershire sauce work together to keep the sauce from being cloyingly sweet.

I also added a can of pineapple juice to the recipe, because I like to have plenty of sauce to pour over my rice, but you could add more lemon juice or even orange juice.

Lemon Pineapple Chicken
Adapted from my friend Vicky’s recipe

1 20oz. can sliced or chunk pineapple
4 tablespoons lemon juice
1 6oz can pineapple juice
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3 cloves garlic (crushed)
2 teaspoons fresh rosemary
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 small lemon thinly sliced
4 chicken breasts

Preheat the oven 400°. Drain the pineapple and reserve the juice. Combine pineapple juice, lemon juice, salt, garlic, rosemary, mustard, Worcestershire sauce and cornstarch. Pour the sauce over chicken reserving a small amount of sauce for the end. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until cooked through. Place pineapple and lemon slices on top and around chicken, and pour in the rest of the sauce. Bake 5 minutes longer.