Make no mistake: This is some good chicken. The legs have a beautiful golden brown, lightly crispy skin, and the meat is tender, juicy, and full of savory flavor. But the best part of Chicken Marbella is all the goodies that surround it on the platter, a veritable cornucopia of rich Mediterranean flavors.

The chicken marinates overnight in red wine vinegar, olive oil, and a jumble of capers, Castelvetrano olives, dates, garlic cloves and aromatics. So many strong personalities! But the long soak mellows out those big flavors, so what you're left with is a perfect balance of salty, sweet, briny, and acidic — and some very tender chicken.

We dump the whole kit and kaboodle on a sheet pan and slide it into the oven with a drizzle of white wine and earthy-sweet date syrup. What could be easier? And yet, the resulting dish has so much flavor between the warm, briny olives, the fruity richness of the dates, and the lush sweetness of the caramelized garlic.

It also looks beautiful on a platter. It’s perfect for a slow, easy meal with friends and family. A little wine, some good conversation, lots of love and tasty food — that’s a fine way to celebrate any holiday or special occasion.