Winner Winner Chicken Dinner: Roasted Chicken Done Right!

Say goodbye to dry chicken!

I cook chicken several times a week and this is one of my all time favorite recipes for roasting a whole bird. It's simple, affordable and doubles as a new dinner later in the week.

Fragrant rosemary, tart lemon, and fresh aromatic vegetables elevates this chicken recipe to the level sought after by professional cooks-with the ease of cooking sought after by home cooks. Using the French style of searing the skin of the chicken at a high oven heat ensures it stays crisp. While finishing the dish at a lower temperature results in a tender juicy chicken.

BONUS: use leftover chicken for other dishes like Chicken Pot Pie, Chicken Croquettes and the always delicious Chicken Salad.

Enjoy!

Chef Jenn

Roasted Rosemary &

Lemon Chicken

Yields 8 servings

Recipe courtesy of

Dinner Deja Vu: Southern Tonight, French Tomorrow

Ingredients: 1 (5 to 6 pound) roasting chicken Kosher salt Freshly ground black pepper 10 stems fresh rosemary

10 stems fresh flat leaf parsley

1 lemon, halved 1 head garlic, cut in half crosswise 1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon melted butter 1 large yellow onion, peeled and quartered 4 carrots peeled and cut in half then into 4-inch pieces

2 celery stalks, cut in half then into 4-inch pieces Garnish:

½ fresh lemon

2 tablespoons melted butter

Directions: Preheat the oven to 425* F. Remove the chicken giblets and save for another recipe.

Trim any excess fat from around the chicken cavity. Rinse the chicken inside and out; pat dry with a disposable towel.

Liberally salt and pepper the inside of the chicken. Stuff the cavity with half of the rosemary and parsley stems, both halves of lemon, and one half of the garlic.

Place the remaining rosemary, parsley, the onions, carrots, and celery in a large roasting pan; toss with salt, pepper and drizzle with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of the melted butter. Set aside.

Tie the drumsticks together, (right at the 'ankle'), with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken.

Brush the outside of the chicken with the remaining olive oil and melted butter; liberally sprinkle with salt and pepper, rubbing the seasoning all over the skin of the chicken.

Place the chicken on top of the prepared vegetables in the roasting pan.

Place the chicken in the preheated oven and roast the chicken for ½ hour at 425*F.

Remove the pan from the oven and reduce the temperature to 350*F. Cover the chicken breast with a triangle of folded aluminum foil and return to oven.

Bake an additional hour to 1 1/2 hours or until the juices run clear when you pierce the joint between the leg and thigh and the internal temperature reaches 165*F.

Remove the chicken and vegetables from the pan and place on a large serving platter-tongs and a metal spatula works best for this.

Squeeze the half of lemon over the top of the roasted bird and brush with melted butter.

Cover loosely with a large sheet of aluminum foil and allow to rest for about 15 minutes before carving.

Enjoy!

For more recipes like these, please pick up a copy of Chef Jennifer's cookbooks; Field Peas to Foie Gras: Southern Recipes with a French Accent, and Dinner Deja Vu: Southern Recipes with a French Accent.