Red Wine Braised Chicken Thighs with Sauteed Collard Greens

I cannot even put into words how amazing this dish is.  It is definitely one of my new favorites.  I have no idea how it turned out this good but lucky for me (and you) it did.  I made a quick red wine sauce to braise the chicken thighs in and then I condensed the sauce once more into a glaze to coat the final dish.  Yes, this meal takes quite a bit of time to make (took me an hour and a half) but I assure you it is well worth your time!  I am so glad I made a large batch of this so I can eat the leftovers for lunch the next few days.  The rich and tender chicken pairs nicely with the garlic and lemon in the collard greens.  This meal feels so gourmet but I promise you it's foolproof! 

A new staple in my household!

Chicken Ingredients:
12 boneless skinless chicken thighs
1tbs corriander
1/4tsp allspice
2tsp sea salt
2tsp red pepper flakes
1tbs macadamia nut oil
1 sweet yellow onion, sliced
1-15ozcan fire roasted diced tomatoes (Muir Glen is best)
1tsp dried thyme
1tsp dried oregano
1c of your favorite red wine
1/4c balsamic vinegar
1 to 1 1/2c beef stock (gluten and msg free)
2tbs red wine vinegar
handful of chopped cilantro for serving

Collard Green Ingredients:
1 bunch collard greens, washed, trimmed and cut into 1" slices
2tsp minced garlic
1tbs butter (preferably from grass fed beef)
juice of 1 lemon
sea salt, to taste

Chicken Directions:
1. Preheat your oven to 350F.  In a small bowl mix together your spice rub:  corriander, allspice, salt, and red pepper flakes.  Rub the seasoning evenly on all chicken thighs.
2. In a large saute pan, heat oil over high heat.  Add the chicken thighs (in batches if needed) and cook until browned on both sides.  Remove from the pan and place in a roasting or glass casserole dish for baking.
3. Meanwhile, start sauteing your onion in another pan with some oil.  When translucent and browning, add your tomatoes, thyme, oregano, balsamic vinegar and wine.  Boil until reduced by half.  Add your beef stock.  Boil again until reduced by half.
4. When your chicken is done, add a bit of your red wine broth to that saute pan and cook, breaking up all the brown bits at the bottom of the pan (that's where the flavor's at!).  Then pour that sauce back into the original sauce pan.
5. When the chicken is in your roasting/casserole dish, pour the red wine sauce over the entire dish.  Cover with a double layer of foil and braise in the oven for an hour.  When the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 180F, they are done.  Take them out of the oven, remove the chicken to a dish and keep warm (careful not to break them; they are very tender).
6. Pour your sauce form the bottom of the pan through a fine mesh colander back into one of your saute pans (basically you are removing all the tomato and onion chunks to come out with a pure liquid sauce).  Return this sauce to the stove and cook on high until it reduces a bit to form a glaze.  Stir in red wine vinegar. 
7. Pour this glaze over all of your chicken thighs evenly.  Serve over collard greens and top with some cilantro.

Collard Green Directions:
1. Place your greens in a stock pot and cover with water (I started this before my chicken but you could do it either way).  Bring to a boil and simmer 45min to an hour, or until tender.
2. Drain your tender greens.  In a saute pan (or the same stock pot), heat 1tbs of butter.  Add garlic and cook until fragrant.  Add the greens and cook stirring frequently about 5 minutes.  Add your lemon juice and cook a few minutes more or until liquid is gone.  Season with salt and serve warm.