This recipe is from the book From the Oven to the Table, by Diana Henry, published in 2019. Along with another cookbook of hers entitled Roast Figs, Sugar Snow, I could be completely happy if I used no other recipes for a year.

What’s interesting to me is that Ms. Henry’s recipes are not challenging in any way, shape, or form. In fact, I’d place them in the “quick and easy” category – perfect for novice cooks, which I am not. But they’re great recipes!

From Amazon: “Diana Henry’s favorite way to cook is to throw ingredients into a dish or roasting tin, slide them in the oven and let the heat behind that closed door transform them into golden, burnished meals.”

I wanted to make this recipe because I love fall ingredients and fall cooking. In spite of the weather not behaving, and cranberries not yet in stores, I needed this dish. And it’s perfect.

The big change I made was to use boneless skinless chicken breasts instead of thighs. Because of this, the breasts look somewhat anemic. My husband doesn’t care; he won’t eat thighs. Certainly thighs or breasts with skin would bake up better looking.

Chicken with Wild Mushrooms, Pumpkin, Rice & Sage Butter

1/2 ounce dried wild mushrooms
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup basmati rice
1 onion, roughly chopped
1/4 pound cremini mushrooms, trimmed, thickly sliced
8 good sized skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs, excess skin neatly trimmed (I used breasts)
3/4 pound pumpkin, seeded, chopped into big chunks or wedges
A little extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt
Ground black pepper
Thyme

For the sage butter:
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
6 sage leaves, finely chopped
1 small garlic clove, finely grated

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Soak the wild mushrooms in 1/3 cup just-boiled water for 15 minutes.

To make the sage butter, mash the butter with the sage and garlic and set it aside.

Drain the wild mushrooms, adding their soaking liquid to the chicken stock. (I also chopped the mushrooms.)

Wash the rice in a sieve under the cold tap, until the water runs clear. (I did not do this.) Put the onions and both the cremini and dried mushrooms into a 12″ sauté pan or shallow casserole and sprinkle on the rice.

I cut up the small sugar pumpkins into wedges.

Put the chicken thighs, skin side up, and the pumpkin on top. Sprinkle a little olive oil over the vegetables and chicken and season well with salt and pepper. I added dried thyme. Bring the stock mixture to a boil, then carefully pour it around the chicken thighs.

Bake in the oven for 45 minutes, by which time the chicken will be lovely and golden and the stock will have been absorbed.

Put pats of the sage butter over the chicken thighs, allow it to melt, then serve.

The sage butter is exquisite!

I love this dish.