Chicken with Dates, Olives, and Cinnamon

I made this today and it was absolutely fantastic. It had an explosion of different flavors. I didn't have ginger so I substituted for allspice and it was a hit with the entire family!

I kept to the ingredient list but after reading the other reviews I did modify a wee bit. I used 1.5 times the spices because I know we enjoy flavor. I also used boneless/skinless thighs because that's all I had (the package had only 5 thighsI cooked the meat NO LONGER than the time allotted and the chicken was not dry. Oh, I left out the basil since there isn't where I live. That said, what a great meal! The flavor was complex and fresh and over jasmine rice, we left the table satisfied, not stuffed! We were fine with only 1 thigh each.

I made this with a whole chicken plus four thighs (all with the skin removed) instead of the 12 chicken thighs. I also didn't think it needed all the oil that is called for to brown the chicken; I only used half and still had several tablespoons in the pan to brown the onions with. Loved this so very much. I will be making this again and again and again.

I probably shouldn't post a review since I made so many alterations but it still turned out good so, I will. I used a combination of thighs and breasts. I only used 1 T of butter, omitting the 2nd and the oil. I didn't have the olives or the dates so I substituted dried figs. Still very tasty. Served with roasted garlic couscous - next time will use jasmine rice to soak up some of the good sauce. Steamed green beans completed the meal. Will add to my weekend favorites; it was a bit time consuming for a work night.

This was absolutely delicious! I didn't need the second round of butter and oil. I think it made the sauce a little too oily. Also, I didn't have green olives, so I used black. I increased the salt a bit to make up for the missing brine. Next time, I'll only use the butter and oil once, and add green olives. This dish is definitely going into the regular rotation.

This was good and not overpowering. Used ground ginger, no dates or coriander. Good the next day also.

Yummy!!!! Such a great dish!!!

tasty, though mild flavored dish. Increased the spices and ginger by half and added the olives, in with the dates. Cooked the chicken a bit longer and added baby spinach at the end just to wilt for a little color. Maybe basil in season.

This is a delicious dish! I put it over whole wheat cous-cous. My family loves it!

I thought it was OK. The flavors didn't seem to read though. I'll try it again doubling the spices and lemon juice. Like others, I didn't need the second round of butter/oil. I was a little annoyed at the "basil as garnish". Basil is out of season, so it was difficult to find and added almost nothing to the dish.

Great recipe. We have several recipes that have similar flavors but this is the easiest and best tasting. We served this at a dinner party and everyone wanted the recipe. Will make this again and again... Try it you will like it!!!!

Absolutely delicious and really easy to make. I didn't have dates in the house, so I substituted raisins which gave it the sweetness that contrasted with the olives. Solid recipe that I cannot wait to make again!!!

Loved this dish. Will try it with Chicken Breast next time because sometimes thighs gross some of my family members out. Served with Quinoa with wilted spinach and a bit of lemon juice in it and simple steamed asparagus with olive oil, lemon juice, and garlic salt; no joke, this was restaurant worthy. Definitely a comforting dinner I have been thinking about since I made it two weeks ago.

This is very flavorful comfort food and easy to make. Like others I did not add the second round of butter/oil and there was plenty of fat in the pan. Served over whole wheat couscous. Can't wait to eat the leftovers!

Cut back on the amount of thighs and onions, but doubled the spices, knowing that CL is more "kid-friendly", same amount of broth as called for. Simmered a little longer than called for, but that only increased the flavor; turned thighs over a couple of times so that both sides got good doses of that flavorful sauce. Planned to serve over cous cous, but had leftover brown rice, which I just tossed into the sauce for 15 min to warm through. Served with steamed green beans, tossed with a little butter and toasted pine nuts. Very nice dinner with leftovers for a hearty lunch. Could easily be dressed up for company.

Like some other reviewers I used less oil/butter only because I didn't need to add more. I started with 1 tablespoon of each and there was always enough fat in the pan to brown the chicken and the onions. That said, we found this very bland and the sauce was more like Southern-cooking gravy than a north African sauce. If is would make the recipe again (and I probably won't) I would double the spices and either eliminated the flour entirely or cut it to two TEASPOONS rather than two tablespoons. I would also add the olives with the dates in the last 10 minutes and rather than chop them I would simply cut them in half. There are much better recipes for chicken with dates (or prunes or figs).

I cut the oil and butter in half and it was still delicious. Served with brown rice and raw veggies. A hit even with the pickier members of the family.

This dish is a keeper. I made exactly per the recipe. Terrific flavors and a very flavorful sauce. Served with a side of couscous. I will be making this again!

This was very good but I did modify. I doubled the cumin and coriander and added a dash of cinnamon on top of the stick. Great flavor after that. I would make again. I also only used 1 tbsp butter and oil. I found that there was still plenty left on the pan after browning the first batch. I did not need more.

served this last night and it was a HUGE hit. my husband pronounced it a "company dish" - it's that good (though we won't wait for special occasions to repeat it!) The blending of the flavors was fantastic - especially since it's a such a very quick dish to prepare! And I did use all the butter & olive oil - I concur with another poster: it's not that great a quantity, and the coating and richness are simply marvelous. didn't have the recommended couscous so served it with a bit of rice. Way to go, Cooking Light - another superb recipe classic for me!

Got raves on this one -- reduced the recipe to four thighs and it turned out really well. All the flavors meld together delicately. I'm not sure how people were able to cut back on the butter and oil, though, nor why they would. Using it gives a nice browned coat to the chicken from the start and really helped create that rich braised flavor. It really wasn't THAT much butter/oil to begin with--just enough.

We were intrigued by the cinammon, since one of our favorite dishes is armenian-middle-eastern lamb flavored cauliflower rice, which has a generous dose of cinammon, but in the past for some reason North African fruit containing main dishes somehow put me off. The dates were the attraction here, as a healthy fruit we never seem to utilize, so this offered us a chance to experiment. And the result was a good stretch of our sense of normal entree combinations. The only thing we forgot was the ground coriander which was not in our spice shelf. Will have to buy some for the next trial, which will be soon.

I loved this and I didn't use any butter or olive oil! I added some spinach to the sauce and added quinoa and some balsamic sauteed eggplant as a side. Super delish.

This was yummy! Even though I reduced the amount of butter and olive oil (used 1/2 teaspoon butter and a 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil), the recipe was still delicious. I served it with plain quinoa and the fennel salad that appears a few pages before this recipe in the October 2011 issue.