Mondays are for sheet pan dinners

It’s tough to get back into your normal routine after time off, but it does feel good when you find your rhythm again. For me, part of my routine means cooking at least some of our meals at home, and on a good week, most of them. Sometimes this adds pressure to my life, but other times it’s cathartic and enjoyable. And, no matter how I feel going into it, I always appreciate the end result of something home-cooked.

If you’re like me and easing back in to reality during what is a generally tough month (hey January), then I have a dinner for you. It doesn’t require much prep or chopping or planning, and you generally cook everything together at the same time.

Melissa Clark’s Harissa Chicken with Leeks, Potatoes and Yogurt via NYT Cooking and Food52

Notes for the chef:

• In terms of marinating, you can actually let the chicken and potatoes sit up to 8 hours in the fridge in the seasoning and sauce if you want to go longer than 30 minutes. And if we’re sharing, I let mine sit at room temp a little longer than 30 minutes…

• If you’re new to using Harissa, I use Mina Harissa sauce for this. It’s easiest to find at most stores and works well! It’s usually located with the condiments, vinegars and oils.

• While I cut down the amount of chicken and potatoes the recipe requires to avoid leftovers, I use the same amount of everything else for max flavor.

• I’ve done this with boneless, skinless chicken and it’s fine, but bone-in really makes a difference so go with that if you can.

• The Food52 version of her recipe does not call for arugula, but the NYT version does. I like this better because it builds in your veggie.