Lemon Chicken with Leeks and Thyme

My Mom makes awesome lemon chicken. This isn't it.

I'm not allowed to make hers anymore. See, I tried to make hers once - years ago before I had a decent kitchen or knew how to cook. I called and got the recipe, gathered the ingredients the best I could (wine had to be omitted since I was underage and couldn't get any), and set off to make a delicious dinner. I'm not sure what happened, but what I ended up with wasn't delicious at all. It was actually pretty gross. Shawn, who loves my mom's version, has never let me live it down. Occasionally I'll say something about wanting to make lemon chicken, but he just gives me a look and begs me to please just make something else.

This time I promised him it would be different. I wouldn't use Mom's recipe. In fact, I would make it as different from hers as I could, and the only similarities would be that it included lemons and chicken. He hesitantly said ok, so I came up with this recipe. It was a success!

The highlight of this dish is the sauce, which is a lot more like a gravy than my mom's version. The sauce is very bright, and the lemon flavor is extremely powerful without being at all tart or sour. I kept the seasonings simple, with just some thyme and leeks, which I cooked right in the pan with the chicken so they would soak up the lemon while infusing the sauce with their subtle flavor. Together, the lemons and the leeks scream "spring!" and this is the perfect dinner for a rainy March or April night. I served this with rice, but mashed or roasted potatoes would also be nice with the sauce.