One of my favorite simple dinner “formulas” is two roasted vegetables and a meat. It’s just so simple and when I can cook them all on one sheet pan, it’s even better. For this Sheet Pan Cranberry Chicken Dinner I also added a balsamic cranberry sauce that cooks on the stovetop, but it’s only three ingredients and takes only about 10 minutes, so it really couldn’t be easier. I hope you get plenty of use out of this super easy, fall/winter-inspired sheet pan meal!
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What’s That Sauce?
As I mentioned above, I made a super simple balsamic cranberry sauce to drench the chicken with flavor. The sauce is simple: whole berry cranberry sauce (canned), balsamic vinegar, and butter. It makes the most deliciously sweet, tangy, and rich sauce that you’ll want to spoon over everything!
Can I Use Bone-In Chicken?
The cooking times and temperatures below are for boneless, skinless chicken breasts that have been pounded to a ¾ to 1-inch thickness. This allows them to cook quickly and evenly. Bone-in chicken takes much longer to cook and it would be best if they are roasted separately. For example purposes, here is a recipe for roasted bone-in chicken breasts.
Meal Prep It!
Sheet pan meals like this are perfect for meal prep! Just portion everything up into individual containers after baking and keep refrigerated for 3-4 days for quick lunches (reheat in the microwave).
Sheet Pan Cranberry Chicken Dinner
Servings 4Ingredients
Roasted Vegetables
- 1 lb. Brussels sprouts ($1.99)
- 1.5 lbs. sweet potatoes ($1.79)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.32)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp freshly cracked black pepper ($0.03)
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder ($0.03)
Herb Baked Chicken Breasts
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (1.33 lbs. total) ($7.70*)
- 2 Tbsp butter, room temperature ($0.28)
- 1/2 tsp dried sage ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp dried thyme ($0.03)
- 1/8 tsp garlic powder ($0.01)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
Cranberry Balsamic Glaze
- 1/2 cup whole berry cranberry sauce (canned) ($0.30)
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar ($0.55)
- 1 Tbsp butter ($0.14)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Rinse the Brussels sprouts and then cut them in half. Peel and dice the sweet potatoes into ½ to ¾-inch pieces.
- Place the Brussels sprouts on one half of a large baking sheet and the sweet potatoes on the other half. Drizzle 1 Tbsp olive oil over each side. Sprinkle ¼ tsp salt and ¼ tsp pepper over the vegetables, then add ¼ tsp garlic powder just to the Brussels sprouts. Toss the vegetables, keeping each on its own side, until they're coated in oil and seasoning. Spread the seasoned vegetables out so they are in an even layer. Transfer the baking sheet with the vegetable to the preheated oven and roast for 15 minutes.
- While the vegetables are roasting, prepare the herb baked chicken. In a small bowl, combine the room temperature butter, sage, thyme, garlic powder, and salt. Stir together until it forms an herb-butter paste.
- Place the chicken breast on a cutting board and cover with a piece of plastic wrap. Use a mallet or rolling pin to gently pound the chicken breasts out to an even ¾-inch thickeness. Cut each pounded chicken breast in half to make two pieces. Pat the chicken dry, then spread the herb butter over the surface of each piece of chicken.
- Once the vegetables have been roasting for 15 minutes, remove the baking sheet from the oven and give the vegetables a stir, keeping each on their own side. Push the vegetables to the side a bit (it's okay if they pile up a little) to make room for the chicken breast. Place the four butter and herb coated pieces of chicken down the center of the baking sheet. Return the baking sheet to the oven and bake for an additional 20 minutes.
- While the chicken and vegetables finish cooking, prepare the cranberry balsamic sauce. Add the cranberry sauce and balsamic vinegar to a sauce pot. Stir and cook the two together over medium heat, allowing the mixture to come up to a simmer. Once simmering, lower the heat slightly and allow it to simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. After ten minutes, remove the sauce from the heat and stir in the butter. Set the cranberry balsamic sauce aside.
- After roasting for 20 minutes, check the internal temperature of the chicken breasts. It should be 165ºF. If it's not, bake for an additional 5-10 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 165ºF.
- To serve, spoon the cranberry balsamic sauce over the chicken. Divide the roasted Brussels sprouts and sweet potatoes between four plates and add one piece of chicken to each.
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Equipment
- Enamelware Sheet Pan
- Chef’s Knife
- White Cutting Boards
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Sheet Pan Cranberry Chicken Dinner – Step by Step Photos
Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Wash 1 lb. Brussels sprouts and slice them in half. Peel and dice 1.5 lbs. sweet potatoes into ½ to ¾-inch cubes. Place them on a large baking sheet, keeping each on its own side. Drizzle with 2 Tbsp olive oil and season with ¼ tsp each of salt and pepper. Add ¼ tsp garlic powder to just the Brussels sprouts. Toss the vegetables, keeping them separate, until they’re coated in oil and seasoning. Transfer to the preheated oven and roast for 15 minutes.
While the vegetables are roasting, prepare the herb butter baked chicken. In a small bowl, combine 2 Tbsp room temperature butter, ½ tsp dried sage, ¼ tsp dried thyme, ⅛ tsp garlic powder, and ¼ tsp salt. Stir them together until it forms an herb-butter paste.
Place two boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1.3 lbs. total) on a cutting board and cover with plastic wrap. Use a mallet or rolling pin to pound the chicken into an even ¾-inch thickness. This helps it cook quickly and evenly.
Cut each chicken breast into two pieces. Pat them dry, then spread the herb butter over the surface of each piece.
After the vegetables have roasted for 15 minutes, remove the baking sheet and give them a good stir. Push them to the sides (it’s okay if they pile up now) to make room for the chicken. Place the herb-butter coated chicken in the center of the baking sheet. Return the baking sheet to the oven and bake for an additional 20 minutes.
While the chicken and vegetables finish cooking, prepare the cranberry balsamic sauce. Add ½ cup whole berry cranberry sauce and ¼ cup balsamic vinegar to a small sauce pot. Cook and stir over medium heat until it comes up to a simmer. Then, reduce the heat slightly and allow the sauce to simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
After the sauce has simmered for about 10 minutes, remove it from the heat and stir in 1 Tbsp butter until melted. Set the sauce aside.
After baking 20 minutes, the internal temperature of the chicken breast pieces should be 165ºF. If it’s not, simply bake for an additional 5-10 minutes, or until it does reach 165ºF.
Finally, spoon the cranberry balsamic sauce over the baked chicken. To serve, divide the Brussels sprouts and sweet potatoes between four plates, then add one piece of chicken to each.
Delish!
Yum. Really enjoyed how juicy the chicken was and the sweetness of the cranberry glaze. I don’t like a strong vinegar taste so I only added 1/2 tablespoon and it worked out well. Paired it with broccoli and baby gold potatoes :) I really want to try the sauce on some turkey breast cutlets, I bet it would go really well
I followed this recipe exactly and it turned out really good. My husband and I both loved it. I sent it to my sister and she also loved it (along with her husband). She used chicken cutlets when she made it. I was surprised that the chicken breast was done after 20 minutes, but it was. I’m making this again this week!
Made this for dinner today. I went exactly by recipe. Too bland as far as vegetables . The sauce i would recommend alot less vinegar that is all i could really taste.
I made this!! Yum!
I had to sub out the cranberries because I didn’t have any BUT I threw a handful of frozen cherries in a pot and a generous slog of balsamic and simmered till it was nice and thick. YUM
My wife and I really enjoyed this dinner! I was tempted to make it because I had a can of whole cranberry sauce leftover from Thanksgiving and a pound of Brussels sprouts in the fridge. I roasted delicata squash (per Beth’s recipe) instead of sweet potatoes, and everything still cooked up nicely at the same temperature and cook time. I find delicata squash bland on its own, so I was pleased how delicious the cranberry balsamic glaze was with the squash. I didn’t have sage by itself, so I used a poultry seasoning instead of the sage and thyme. Everything was delicious.
How would I need to adjust the temp and/or time on this if I used chicken tenderloins instead of full breasts? Thanks!
I’d really need to test it first to see how long they take to cook through.
Made this yesterday and it was delicious!! The seasoning was perfect on the veggies and chicken. The sauce is amazing, such a good pairing with the chicken. Thank you!
I’ve only made the chicken and sauce so far, but wow, so delicious! I’m definitely making this sauce for Thanksgiving to serve with anything and everything!
So yummy so good! I felt so fancy like I was at ikea
This was so easy and delicious! I swear I could drink that sauce!
I couldn’t find whole berry cranberry sauce. Would jellied cranberry sauce work?
Yes, you can do something similar with jellied, it will just be a different texture.
Just made this for the first time (with boneless chicken thighs because that’s all I had on hand) and it was DELICIOUS! The herbed butter and the sauce are so good. My sauce didn’t thicken up like I was expecting it to but I loved it anyway.. I’m hoping it’s just as good reheated, because it could be a go-to recipe for meal prep.
This recipe is good. We like our veggies a little bit more crispy, so I would have left them in longer next time. I also drizzled a Lille honey over the sweet potatoes, which was great!
My husband loved the sauce. I thought it was too sour. I’m not sure what I would do to change it, I just ate the chicken without and thought it was great!
I wasn’t able to get cranberry sauce, but I was determined to try this recipe anyway. I substituted the cranberry sauce with mango chutney, and I loved it. My husband loved it too, and the leftovers made great meals for the rest of the week.
I made this recipe using 4 chicken thighs instead of breasts and it worked great! Such an easy, delicious meal, perfect for meal prep!