How to Make a Stay at Home Valentine's Day Dinner with Mairlyn Smith and her Hubbie

Make this quick and easy Chicken with Dried Cherries along with the love of your life for a romantic and delicious stay at home dinner for two this Valentine's Day.
Chicken with Dried Cherries
Recipe from Healthy Starts Here! (Whitecap 2011)
Serves 4
One word - YUM!
This is a winning combination of sweet, tangy, and spicy. Served with quinoa and steamed spinach or broccoli it’s a fabulous dinner.
If you don’t have any savory don’t make this! If you’ve never bought savory run to your nearest bulk store and buy just a little bit. You need it, this recipe needs it, and you will become a convert after you have used it.
You need a large frying pan that has a lid for this recipe.
4 cloves garlic, minced and set aside
1 tsp (5 mL) dried savory
½ tsp (2 mL) freshly cracked black pepper
¼ tsp (1 mL) red pepper flakes, optional
¼ tsp (1 mL) ground allspice
½ cup (125 mL) natural apple juice
2 Tbsp (30 mL) balsamic vinegar
2 Tbsp (30 mL) Ribena
1 lb. (500 g) skinless, boneless chicken thighs, about 8 thighs
2 tsp (10 mL) canola oil
4 large shallots, diced, approx. equal to one heaping cup
½ cup (125 mL) dried cherries
In a small bowl mix together savory, cracked pepper, red pepper flakes if you are using them, and allspice. Set aside.
In a small glass measuring cup whisk together apple juice, balsamic vinegar, and Ribena. Set aside.
Heat a large nonstick frying pan over medium heat. Add chicken and brown on both sides. Remove from pan, place on a clean plate and set aside (reserve)
Add canola oil to pan. Add shallots and sauté for 2 minutes or until they start turning brown. Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute.
Add spice mixture. Sauté for 30 seconds.
Pour in apple juice mixture making sure to scrape the browned bits up from the bottom of the pan. Add reserved chicken, any juices from the plate, and sprinkle in dried cherries. Bring back to the boil, cover, reduce heat to simmer and cook for 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Half way through the cooking turn chicken over.
When chicken is cooked remove to a clean plate, cover. Turn heat up to medium and reduce the sauce till about half, about 3-5 minutes.
Serve chicken with equal amounts of sauce on top.