Can a Recipe be a 5 Spoon even if You Can't Eat It?

This week I wanted to make tapas...Spanish for I want to eat a little of everything...but at the last minute I made this recipe instead. Why? Because it looked good!

Have you ever been moved to cook something based on a picture? Check out the recipe at realsimple.com and you will see what I mean.

Tapas will have to wait til next week. This week I wanted some Orange Coriander Chicken! But it wasn't meant to be...a few onions got in the way.

Orange-Coriander Roast Chicken With Red Onions

from realsimple.com

By Kate Merker, April 2008

Ingredients

• 4 small red onions, sliced into 1/2-inch-thick rings
• 2 3 1/2-pound chickens
• 3/4 cup orange marmalade
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
• kosher salt and pepper

Directions

1. Heat oven to 400° F. Arrange the onions in a metal roasting pan. Place the chickens on top and tuck the wings under the backs.
2. In a small bowl, combine the marmalade, oil, coriander, 2 teaspoons salt, and 3/4 teaspoon pepper. Spread the mixture over the chickens and roast until they are cooked through, about 1 hour and 15 minutes (internal temperature of 165° F).
3. Transfer the chickens and onions to a platter and let rest for 10 minutes. Strain the pan drippings into a bowl. Let stand for 5 minutes. Skim the fat from the surface and discard. Serve the chickens and onions with the remaining juices.

Here's where it all started to go down hill...Hubby ran out to get me 4 small onions...and instead came home with soft ball size. I thought of my love of sauteed onions...and decided that it would be alright to use all 4. Big Mistake. The onions were so pungent that once I was able to get them all sliced...I literally had to leave the kitchen...my eyes were burning - tears so strong and steady you would have thought Friends was ending again.



After opening a few windows and drying my tears - I was able to inspect (I found 3 pin feathers), wash, and drain my chicks. I made sure to put them right side up and tuck back the wings.



Mixed up orange marmalade, coriander, oil, salt and pepper and slathered it on.




Now Hubby tells me that this chicken is definitely a 5 spoon recipe...but the smell of the onions was so overwhelming while they cooked (I got such a headache) that I couldn't eat it. My kids also thought it was fantastic - as long as I took it off the bone for them.

What do you think?

Can a recipe be a 5 spoon even if you can't eat it?