Black Cherry Balsamic Chicken Thighs

1. .        First marinade the chicken. Start by poking holes in the chicken or scoring the skinless side of the chicken (You do this by making several shallow cuts across its surface. This technique is useful in marinading because it allows for better absorption of the marinade).

2. Place the chicken and marinade in a Ziploc bag. Make sure the vinegar and garlic completely cover the chicken. Marinade the chicken for 2 to 8 hours (we marinaded overnight).
3. When it’s time to make the chicken, pull out of refrigerator and set aside for at least 15 minutes to allow the chicken to have an even temperature and to prevent overcooking parts of the chicken.
4. While the chicken is sitting. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Start getting an oven safe pan hot on a stove top using medium high heat (we used a cast iron skillet).
5. Once the pan is hot, add a few drizzles of Chipotle Olive Oil (you can use any Olive Oil) to the pan. Once oil is hot, pull the chicken out of the marinade and brown the chicken on both sides for approximately 3 to 5 minutes. Reserve the marinade!
6. Once the chicken is browned turn the heat off and add the reserved marinade ingredients (garlic, pepper, salt and balsamic vinegar) into the pan.
7. Place the pan in preheated oven and bake the chicken uncovered for 12 to 15minutes or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 degrees when a food thermometer is inserted into the chicken.
8. While the chicken is cooking you can make your sauce for garnish.
9. Drizzle the Olive Oil into hot pan and add garlic. Cook until fragrant. Then, add remaining sauce ingredients above to the pan.
10. Bring the mixture to a boil, then turn the heat down to medium low.
11. Cook the mixture for about 8 to 10 minutes or until the sauce thickens, and the cherries have broken down a bit.
12. Salt and pepper the sauce to taste.
13. When the chicken is fully cooked, pour the sauce into the pan of chicken about 5 minutes after the pan has been removed from the oven. (This prevents the hot pan from causing your sauce to evaporate).

ENJOY!!!