Roasted Chicken with Cherry & Almond Wild Rice

Compliments of Jasper Mirabile, chef/owner, Jasper's, Kansas City, MO

1 cup balsamic vinegar
½ cup brown sugar
4 tbsp butter, melted
1 orange, peeled and quartered
1 onion, julienned
2 lbs Gold’n Plump® bone-in chicken (thighs, breasts, drumsticks)
1/8 tsp sea salt
4 sprigs fresh rosemary, leaves stripped and chopped
1 cup pitted, halved fresh Bing cherries
Cherry & Almond Wild Rice:
1 medium onion, minced
8 tbsp butter
2 tomatoes, seeded and diced
3 cups cooked wild rice
1 cup pitted, halved fresh Bing cherries
¼ cup sliced almonds
½ cup amaretto liqueur
salt to taste
3-4 fresh rosemary sprigs, garnish

Preheat oven to 400°F. In large bowl, combine first five ingredients; mix well. Add chicken, salt, and rosemary leaves; toss to coat. Stir in cherries; place mixture in roasting pan. Bake 45 minutes, until chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165°F; baste as needed. Reserve pan juices. In large skillet, saute onion in butter until caramelized. Add tomato; saute 2-3 minutes. Add wild rice, cherries, almonds, amaretto, and salt; toss. Place on a platter; top with chicken. Pour reserved juices on top; garnish with rosemary sprigs.

Recipe compliments of the Minnesota Cultivated Wild Rice Council