Braised Chicken with Kale and White Wine

Wow today has been a very trying day so far at work, doesn't help that I'm sick but numbers and money can really make things difficult.  Anyway let's talk about food and Europe and things that will make this day turn around!  Our next stop on our trip was Munich, Germany and it was our favorite stop!  After an early morning, a 4 hour flight, and long train ride we finally arrived at the adorable house we were staying in.  Our first mission was to go to the store and buy some food for the 4 days we were staying there but after the store we found this awesome restaurant called Franziskaner Wirtshaus und Biergarten.  Here we had an amazing meal, I had meatballs with kale and potatoes covered in a cream sauce (pictured below).  Michael got the crispy pork with gravy and potato dumplings.  We also had our first German beers here and the waiter was the best, so genuine and nice.  People often say you don't have to tip in other countries because they are not accustom to it...well that is just not true.  There were only 2 people on our whole trip that wouldn't take a tip, everyone else really really appreciated it so just keep that in mind next time you travel.  On another night we were in downtown Munich and were looking at amazing buildings like the Marienplatz (pictured below).  After exploring we ate dinner downtown at a place I can't even remember the name of but we had delicious original bratwurst and cheesy spaetzel with crispy onions (pictured below) they were both to die for.  Onto the recipe, I adapted this recipe last Friday night and it turned out delicious and perfectly saucy.

Serves 2

The Ingredients
4 chicken pieces - I used bone-in thighs
2 tbsp Hungarian paprika
kosher salt, ground pepper
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 medium onion, diced
3 cloves garlic,  minced
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 sprig rosemary
1 sprig thyme
1 large bunch kale (or more!), center rib removed, cut into 1 inch strips
2 tbsp honey
1/8 cup heavy cream


The Process
1.  Sprinkle chicken with paprika, salt, pepper and rub all over.

2.  Heat oil in your braising pan or large skillet and add chicken pieces skin side down.  Do not crowd the pan, so you may have to do this in batches.  Brown the chicken turning occasionally, until it's brown on both sides and transfer to plate. This takes about 8 minutes.

3  Add onion and garlic to pan, cook stirring often until softened, about 8 minutes.  Return chicken to pan, add broth, wine, herbs and bring to a boil.  Cover, and simmer about 30  minutes.

4.  Remove lid, stir in the kale, honey and cream, and let the sauce cook down for another 15 minutes.  Adjust seasonings with more salt and pepper.  Serve with lemon wedges.