This is one of my “mom’s on the go meals” It is a one dish wonder, delightfully simple and healthy too. Sometimes moms may sacrifice health for convenience, when they are pushed for time. Which is precisely why I came up with this chicken casserole, as I have found myself in that position one too many times. The beauty of this dish is that everything goes into a baking dish and into the oven for an hour! It couldn’t be simpler. This gives you an hour of time to get on with the endless list of other things you need to do. I know, I’m a mom too!

The chicken stays moist and tender and has a slight sweetness from baking in its juices. Cherry tomatoes add a slight sourness while the mushrooms a glorious earthiness. The yogurt and basil leaves added at the end perk and freshen this dish up after basking in the oven. Its tasty, effortless, and always a hit at my dinner table.

I have used sumac (lemony middle eastern spice from a berry) as my choice of chicken spice here, but quite honestly you can use anything you fancy, or even just salt and pepper. Chicken spice also works well.

So, here’s to busy moms and healthy meals.

Serves 4

Ingredients –

Chicken pieces – about 1.5kgs, skin on (remove the skin if you want less fat in the meal)

½ cup chicken stock

2tbs Sumac or spice of your choice

1tbs olive oil

1 x onion, sliced

25 cherry tomatoes, whole

1 x packet of mushrooms cut into thick slices. I used the Portobello

Salt and pepper to season

1 cup plain yogurt

½ cup of fresh basil leaves, whole

Tin foil

Method –

• Preheat your oven to 180 degrees C
• In a baking dish add your chicken pieces and spice and rub into the chicken.
• Add the onion and olive oil
• Add the chicken stock
• Bake, covered with foil for 25 minutes
• Then add the cherry tomatoes and mushrooms and cover

• Bake for a further 25 minutes
• Take the foil off and turn the heat up to 220 degrees C
• Add a little water if you feel its drying out too much.
• Bake until chicken skin goes brown and crisp

• Pour the yogurt over the top
• Finally garnish with the fresh whole basil leaves.

Serve with basmati rice,drizzled with the chicken casserole juices and a green salad.

Dee’s extra – Try customizing it.

You can veg it up with some slices of baby marrow, thrown in at the same time as the mushrooms.

Add a few green pimento olives and a sprinkling of crumbled feta cheese at the end for a richer, fancier dish.

Add in some tinned artichokes cut into quarters when you add the mushrooms.