The rise of the sheet pan dinner...
...and citrus-herb roasted chicken drumsticks and potatoes...
Good morning, friends! This week’s newsletter is dedicated to the wonderful soul that decided “sheet pan meals” were the next big thing. Thank you to that person. We love you.
(We of course being the people who make dinner and clean up after - the people who say “yes please” to tossing it all the oven together, the ones who have better things to do than stand over four pots on the stove, those who will gladly only wash one pan while also trying to get kiddos out of the bath and into pajamas!)
It seems that the popularity of sheet pan recipes (a close cousin of the one-pot meal) started to rise just a few years ago. I certainly don’t remember any sheet pan dinners from my childhood. Sheet pans were for roasting vegetables and baking cookies. (Or the occasional box of Banquet frozen fried chicken…)
I did a quick internet dive to explore how and when this trend took off (nerd alert!) and found several interesting articles and tons of “our best sheet pan recipes” lists.
Eater.com theorizes that the rise of sheet pan meals came about because of Instagram since they’re just so darn photogenic, equating a beautiful meal on a sheet pan to a “flat lay” that a food photographer would use, and that “once you got bloggers doing ‘sheet pan dinners’, it exploded.” And explode it did! Now, not only are internet cooks touting the wonder of a sheet pan dinner, we have entire cookbooks dedicated to the subject. (Such as this new one, Hot Sheet by Olga Massov and Sanaë Lemoine, that includes both savory and sweet dishes. Adding it to my wish list now!)
Trendy or not, the fact remains that most of us love a good “sheet pan supper”. Even I’ve been on a sheet pan dinner kick lately, getting creative with different combinations. Especially this time of year when the easier the better, and we can squeeze in one more hour at the pool or one more bike ride.
But before you go throwing meats and veggies and potatoes on a pan all willy nilly, pause and plan it out for a minute. For instance, if you cook a pan of chicken thighs, potatoes, and asparagus for the 40-ish minutes the chicken needs, you’ll have some really sad asparagus. The easy solution is to give the chicken and potatoes a head start, then add the asparagus for the last 15 minutes.
For more tips and tricks, this Washington Post article has some good pointers, or you can check out Dan Pelosi’s Guide to Sheet Pan Meals. For recipes and ideas, a quick google search will give you lots of choices such as Eating Well's 20 Most Popular Sheet Pan Dinners of 2023 and Food Network's 57 Best Sheet Pan Recipes.
As for me, this week’s recipe is a great sheet pan dinner - the Citrus-Herb Roasted Chicken Drumsticks and Potatoes below are full of flavor with hits from lemon and orange and a pile of fresh herbs. The drumsticks brown up so nicely after soaking in the marinade for a couple of hours (and I can usually catch them on sale!), and the scattering of yukon gold potatoes roast alongside the chicken, getting so creamy while soaking up all of the extra flavor. Just add a salad on the side to finish it out. (Yes, a bagged salad kit from the grocery store counts!)
Take it easy this week, try a sheet pan meal (or two)! And I’ll see you back here next week.
MONDAY - Memorial Day Cookout
Yaya is taking care of BBQ grilled chicken and deviled eggs. I’ll bring a corn salad, potato salad, and banana pudding!
TUESDAY - Roasted Chicken with Cheesy Broccoli and Rice Casserole
I got Rebekah Peppler's Le Sud for Mother’s Day. It’s filled with recipes, stories, and beautiful photography inspired by the South of France, and now all I want to do is sit on the patio drinking rosé and nibbling on olives while a chicken is roasting away in the oven. For a Tuesday night, I’ll compromise and go with the perfectly roasted chicken and add a traditionally Southern broccoli and rice casserole on the side.
WEDNESDAY - Tortellini with Creamy Tomato Sauce and Italian Sausage
This is one is pretty quick and easy - italian sausages can roast in the oven (I love doing it this way - 375 for about 35 minutes, flipping halfway through) and in the meantime I just have to boil some ready-made cheese tortellini and make a quick creamy tomato sauce. Slice the sausages and toss it all together, and dinner is done!
THURSDAY - Cheeseburger Sliders and Tots
I’ve been craving a cheeseburger, so I’ll do little beef sliders with caramelized onions and cheddar cheese on hawaiian rolls with tater tots on the side. Don’t you think small food is more fun?!
FRIDAY - Friday Night Pick-Up!
SATURDAY - Dinner at YaYa’s (the in-laws!)
She’s planning spaghetti night, and we’ll never say no to two pasta nights in one week.
SUNDAY - Dinner at Dad’s
Dad says mediterranean style chicken and veggie skewers with yellow rice and tatziki. Sounds good to us!
LUNCHES for this week -
I’ve been working on a recipe for a slow-roasted carnitas/pork roast for tacos, and man this latest batch is a winner! So, I’ll be eating on that this week for lunch…maybe turn some into taco bowls.
EXTRAS for this week
I actually need to take a week off from “extras”. We have plenty of goodies around here, and I need to focus on editing some pictures and getting recipes typed up. (But playing in the kitchen is such a good way to procrastinate!)
Citrus-Herb Roasted Chicken Drumsticks and Potatoes
Makes 5-6 servings.
Marinade
· 1 Lemon, zest and juice
· 1 medium Orange, zest and juice
· 4 cloves Garlic, minced
· ½ teaspoon kosher Salt (Morton or other store brand)
· 1/8 teaspoon ground Black Pepper
· 2 tablespoons White Sugar
· 1 tablespoon Italian Seasoning
· ½ teaspoon Paprika
· 1 teaspoon Onion Powder
· 1 tablespoon fresh chopped Thyme Leaves
· 1 tablespoon fresh chopped Rosemary Leaves
· ¼ cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Chicken and Potatoes
· About 3 pounds Chicken Drumsticks (8-10 drumsticks)
· 2 pounds Yukon Gold Potatoes, cut into 1 ½ - inch pieces
· 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
· Salt and Pepper for seasoning
· 1 tablespoon fresh chopped Parsley, for serving
For the marinade, in a large measuring cup, mix together the lemon zest and juice, orange zest and juice, garlic, salt, pepper, sugar, Italian seasoning, paprika, onion powder, thyme, and rosemary. Whisk in the olive oil.
Place all of the chicken drumsticks in a zip-top bag and pour in the marinade. Close the bag, removing as much air as possible, and massage marinade into chicken. Place bag in the refrigerator and allow chicken to marinate for at least 3 hours (or up to 12 hours), turning bag over about halfway through.
Preheat the oven to 425 and arrange the rack in the upper third.
On a large rimmed baking sheet, toss the cut potatoes with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and spread out into an even layer.
Remove chicken drumsticks from bag and nestle each one down into the potatoes. Make sure to straighten the skin back over the chicken leg and arrange it skin side up on the pan. Sprinkle the entire pan (chicken and potatoes) with about ¼ teaspoon of salt and a little fresh cracked pepper.
Bake for about 40 minutes, until a thermometer reads 165 for the chicken drumsticks. Remove from oven and sprinkle with fresh parsley before serving.
NOTES: Chicken thighs would work well for this recipe as well.
That’s all for now, thanks for reading! See you back here next week!
(Don’t forget you can see all of the past newsletters and recipes at the archive link below!)