By Julie White

A retired fireman friend of mine, Ken, gave me this recipe. He says that it was always a big hit with his fellow firemen when he would whip it together for dinner. It is an easy recipe and tastes like BBQ chicken. Serve it with a simple salad and broccoli for a quick dinner. I would like to thank Ken and all of the firemen in San Diego and La Mesa for their dedication and hard work.

Fireman Chicken
Serves four to five

Ingredients:

1 whole cut up chicken or 6 chicken thighs (bone in and skin on)

1/2 bottle (8 ounces) Kraft Catalina salad dressing

1 can whole berry cranberry sauce (crushed with potato masher)

1 envelope Lipton Onion Soup Mix

1 teaspoon granulated garlic powder

1 pinch of red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, mix the salad dressing, crushed cranberry sauce, soup mix and spices. (For “one-alarm” chicken, use a pinch of pepper flakes. For “two-alarm” chicken, use two pinches of pepper flakes; for “three-alarm” chicken, use three pinches.)

Add chicken pieces to this mixture and coat well.

Move coated chicken to a baking sheet and place in heated oven for one hour or until the pieces are golden brown and juices run clear when pierced.