Cranberry Chicken

Makes six servings.

6 bone-in chicken breasts (or thighs), skin removed

1 (16-oz) can whole berry cranberry sauce

1 (8-oz) bottle French, Russian or Catalina dressing

1 envelope onion soup mix

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place chicken pieces in a 13-by-9-inch baking dish.

Mix remaining ingredients; pour over chicken and turn to coat evenly.

Bake uncovered 1 hour, or until chicken is done (internal temperature of 165 degrees). Baste with pan juices during the final 10 minutes of baking.

Looking for a hard-to-find recipe or can answer a request? Write to Julie Rothman, Recipe Finder, The Baltimore Sun, 501 N. Calvert St., Baltimore, MD 21278, or email baltsunrecipefinder@gmail.com. Names must accompany recipes for them to be published.

Sherri Trilling from North Chicago, Ill., was looking for the recipe for the cranberry chicken dish that was served at the Indian Trail restaurant in Winnetka, Ill. She said the restaurant is no longer open but that it was quite famous back in the day and had a very loyal following.

She said the dinner entrees changed daily, and many people would come in especially for the cranberry chicken, which was sweet but tart and had the cranberry flavor all through the chicken.

While my research found that the Indian Trail restaurant was indeed an Illinois institution, it has been closed for a long time and unfortunately I did not have any success locating the exact recipe she sought.

I did receive a recipe for a cranberry chicken from Julie Cahan of Baltimore that she thought might be a good substitute for the one Trilling was hoping to find. Cahan said that “it’s quick and easy, and even people who don’t particularly enjoy chicken always seem to love this dish.”

She prepares it with bone-in chicken breast with the skin removed because they tend not to dry out the way boneless breasts do. She says it’s absolutely delicious served with wild rice. Cahan also said this simple combination works equally well on brisket or pork, so long as you don’t mind that it is a little bit on the sweet side.

Request

Gwen Austin from Kershaw, S.C., is looking for the recipe for what she calls sourweed pie. She said a “little old lady” made the pie for her many years ago, and she has searched everywhere for a recipe. She was told that sourweed is actually used in the pie. It had a regular crust and the filling was a beautiful bright green color, and was creamy and sweet with a bit of tang.