Barb's Rich Chicken Casserole

Today Martin and Liz were coming for lunch and after some indecision I decided to do a chicken casserole, this is the recipe.

8 Chicken thighs
2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium red onion sliced onion
2 garlic cloves crushed
1 large red (bell) pepper sliced thickly
thinly pared rind and juice of one small orange
4 fl oz chicken stock
1 14oz can of chopped tomatoes
1 oz of sun dried tomatoes thinly sliced
1tbsp chopped fresh thyme
1 3/4 oz pitted black olives
salt and pepper
orange rind and thyme sprigs to garnish

I fried off the chicken thighs in a dry hot pan till they were golden brown, removed them with a slotted spoon and placed them into a frameproof casserole dish.  Add the oil to the pan and fry the onion, garlic and bell pepper for 3 - 4 minutes then transfer them to the casserole, add the orange rind, juice and chicken stock, canned tomatoes and sun dried tomatoes and stir.  Bring to the boil and then cover and simmer over a low heat for about an hour stirring occasionally.  Just before serving add the chopped fresh thyme and pitted black olives and adjust the seasoning to taste.  Scatter the orange rind and thyme over the casserole to garnish and serve with warm crusty bread.