This was a revelation to me. I had never roasted a chicken before. I started this post back in September when I actually cooked this particular bird, but I have done it since then too. It is so easy! I got my recipe off of The Pioneer Woman Cooks blog. (Sometimes I think I would like to be Ree Drummond when I grow up - she cooks the most amazing things, takes beautiful photographs, and has a witty way with words. I've said it before and I'll say it again, if you haven't checked out her blog, you should.)
Let's start with some butter (or in my case, margarine, due to a milk allergy). But butter just sounds better, doesn't it? Scoop the butter into a bowl, and zest a lemon over it.
I used half margarine and half coconut oil.
Then we put some fresh rosemary over the top. Chop it up and throw it in.
Next comes kosher salt and pepper. Someday I am going to get a pepper grinder and have "fresh ground pepper" like all these recipes call for. But I haven't gotten around to it yet.
There it is. A colorful combo of fat and seasonings.
Stir it all up.
See, this is kinda like painting by numbers. You just look at the photo and do what you see. This is my kind of cooking! You've got a bird, I've got a bird, so does Ree. It is like a group cooking therapy session. Or something.
Scoop the goop onto the bird.
Smear the butter mixture all over the bird, and squeeze one of the lemons over it.
Then stuff the other lemons and a sprig of rosemary into the chicken's cavity.
Make sure and use it all up!
Then put it in the oven at 425 degrees for a regular oven (400 for convection) and roast the bird for about an hour and 15 minutes or an hour and a half. This is what surprised me the most! I was able to make this meal on a work night, because the cook time isn't crazy-long.
Here is what it looked like when it was done.
Delicious!
Cover it up with foil for about ten minutes to let all those juices set inside there before you carve it.
It doesn't look like much wrapped up tight, but it smells like heaven!
As an aside, I use only the freshest ingredients when making my sides. I would never reach into my pantry and find, for example, a spud that has been in there so long it has grown another potato.
Then I looked up how to carve the thing. I turned to Video Jug for this info. Seemed to work just fine.
And there is dinner!
Enjoy!
