Chicken Breasts with Cranberry-Balsamic Sauce

One long weekend in May (Whit Monday) we travelled North to spend a couple of days in Terchelling, a Dutch island in the North sea. After changing three trains, a boat and a bus we were finally there!!
Spring was at its best and the whole island was covered with wild flowers. As we rode by the numerous farms, we noticed that most mares had very recently given birth to foals.
We'd booked ourselves a little cottage in the middle of the island from where we could cycle the entire length and breath of the island without much difficulty.
      We spend the two days there cycling through the countryside and the woods, visiting quaint churches and farms, gorging on beer and delicious pizza at the shipwreck museum and restaurant, walking along the sea ( it was pretty windy and cold to be good 'beach weather') and trying out the various other restaurants on the island.

The Terchselling island is known for cranberries. Over 250 years ago, a barrel of cranberries, probably from a shipwreck, were washed to the shore. The islanders cultivated them and cranberries finding the environment favourable flourished. We found that most restaurants on the island served cranberry products - flavoured beer, cranberry wine, cheesecakes, sauces, dips, teas, jams, pancakes, etc. Shops in the town sold these products to tourists. We tasted some of the cranberry delicacies - wine ( yummy), beer (yuck), pancakes (delicious), cheese cake( super!!).

On our last day on the island we decided to do some shopping and bought some cranberry honey mustard sauce for our salads ( we loved it!), cranberry jam ( was pretty ok..not sure we'd buy it again), a box of cranberries coated in dark and while chocolate (delicious) and a box of dried cranberries.
We finished most of the stuff we'd bought very quickly barring the box of dried cranberries that lay untouched at the bottom of our storage shelf.
Just a few weeks ago I came across an apt recipe and decided to finally put the cranberries to good use.

Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:


Skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - 4
Dried cranberries - one cup
Sugar - 1/4 cup
Balsamic vinegar - 1/4 cup
Water - 3/4 cup
Maida or all-purpose flour - 2 tbsps
Olive oil

Salt

Ground black pepper powder

Method:


Combine the flour with a little salt and pepper and coat the chicken breasts with this. Heat oil in a pan/grill and cook the chicken on both sides until well done.
To another pan add the cranberries, sugar, balsamic vinegar and water and heat to a boiling point while stirring continuously. Now reduce the heat and continue to cook until the sauce thickens slightly.
Serve the chicken with the sauce poured on top and with some salad on the side.

Enjoy!!


Here is the link to some photographs from our trip:


http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=216190&id=682725954&l=84eb99e11c