Arugula Salad with Oranges and Cambozola Served with Pan-Roasted Chicken Thighs

I love the peppery taste of arugula mixed with sweet, salty and crunchy ingredients. This salad can be adjusted according to your preferred ingredients: vary the jam or marmalade, the fruit, the cheese or the nuts. For a weeknight dinner, serve this with a simply cooked piece of fish or chicken or for a dinner party, it makes a delicious first course. I paired it with the pan-roasted chicken thighs with homemade seasoned salt below.

For the salad:
5 t. orange marmalade
2 T. plus 2 t. lemon juice
3 T. extra-virgin olive oil
1 small shallot, minced fine (about 1 T.)
salt and pepper
1/2 fennel bulb, trimmed of stalks, cored, sliced thin; fronds chopped
8 c. baby arugula
2 navel oranges, peel and white pith removed, and sectioned
3 oz. cambozola, crumbled or sliced (about 3/4 c.)
1/2 c. toasted pecans

Whisk marmalade, lemon juice, oil, shallot and salt & pepper to taste in a large bowl. Add fennel, arugula and oranges. Toss and adjust seasonings. Divide salad onto individual plates and top each with cambozola and pecans. Makes 6 first course servings.

For the chicken:
6 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs
Kosher salt (or my homemade seasoned salt below) and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 475º. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat a 12″ cast iron or heavy nonstick skillet over high heat. Nestle chicken in skillet, skin side down, and cook 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium high and continue cooking, occasionally rearranging chicken pieces until fat renders and skin is golden brown, about 12 minutes. Transfer skillet to oven and cook 15 more minutes. Turn chicken over and continue cooking until skin crisps and is cooked through, about 10 minutes longer. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate, blot to remove excess fat and serve.

Clarabelle’s Seasoned Salt
This recipe was given to my mother by a friend and it has been used for many years in our family. The combination of spices and dried herbs give an added dimension of flavour to a great variety of foods. My favourite foods to use it on are eggs, chicken and tomatoes. You can vary the amounts to taste. Just combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and stir well to mix.
4 c. salt
4 t. thyme
6 t. oregano
4 t. garlic powder
2 t. celery seed
4 t. dill
4 t. parsley
10 t. paprika
3 t. curry powder
8 t. dry mustard
2 t. onion powder
2 t. ginger
6 t. basil