This is my roasted chicken recipe I have tweeked and worked on for awhile. I love the flavors of lemon and herbs in a roasted chicken and this recipe is as simple as they come. This is also a nice alternative to turkey on Thanksgiving if you have a smaller crowd to feed. I like to go traditional when we have a roasted chicken....mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet corn and buttermilk biscuits. We are in heaven!
Wisconsin has started to cool down and we are beginning to gear up for winter.....ice fishing discussions have already been happening, chili cook offs are in full swing and football season is hot and heavy. I am hoping that the Packers will still pull out a win this weekend even without our injured QB...they are saying three games last I heard, and I am hoping it is not more.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Ingredients
1 4 lb chicken
1/4 cup salted butter, softened
Zest from 1 lemon
15 sage leaves
2 Tbl fresh thyme
2 Tbl olive oil
1 small onion, quartered
Salt and Pepper
Instructions
Pre-heat oven to 475 degrees.
In a food processor (you could also mince the herbs and mix by hand if you do not have a food processor), add butter, sage, thyme and lemon zest. Process till smooth.
Pat the chicken (inside and out) dry. Using your fingers work under the skin of the chicken breasts and thighs. Rub the butter mixture between skin and meat. Rub skin with olive oil. Salt and pepper the skin and cavity of the chicken generously. Stuff with quartered lemon (reserve from when zested and seeded) and onion.
Place chicken into a roasting pan with rack (you could go without, but I find that the chicken will occasionally stick). Place any desired veggies around the chicken. Roast for 20 minutes. Reduce oven temp to 425 degrees and roast for an additional hour or until a thermometer read 165 degrees when inserted into the thigh. Remove chicken from the oven and allow it to rest for 10-15 minutes before carving.