Lemon Rosemary Chicken

This past weekend my family spent all day on Saturday raking leaves, jumping in giant piles of leaves, and eating lunch on the porch on the uncharacteristically warm (75 degree) November day! It was GREAT! We even went to Jonathan's parents house that night for a bonfire. We roasted hot dogs and marshmallows, sang songs by the campfire & played flashlight tag. Yes, it was a grand weekend full of fun and great memories...and not a single picture!! Yeah, I'm so not "on the ball" these days, but you know what....I could care less. It's just how I roll sometimes & I'm totally OK with that :-)

So......because I have no leaf jumping or bonfire pictures to share with you, I'll share another recipe. This is actually one I made up a few years ago when my mom gave me a gallon of rosemary from her herb garden & I tried my hand at being creative in the kitchen. OK, so It's not a very creative idea....but it's yummy & a HUGE crowd pleaser. Chances are if you live close to me and have a baby, or a surgery & I bring you a meal, this is what I will show up with. I'm SO original like that! Oh, and because I'm so not the "Pioneer Woman" I regret to inform you that I do not have detailed pictures of the whole preparation/cooking process. I even forgot to take a picture of the finished masterpiece because my family was experiencing a dinner time meltdown & when this happens my mind turns to mush, I cry tears of blood, and then I curl up in a ball and forget my name for a few days. Sorry... I'll try to do better next time :-).

Here goes nothin'

Lemon Rosemary Chicken

You will need:

-Salt

-Pepper

-4-6 garlic cloves

-1 red onion

-1-2 lemons

-1 stick of butter softened

-Rosemary (about 4-5 sprigs)

-Finely chop 2 cloves of garlic

-Pull rosemary leaves of the stem and finely chop (I use about two of the sprigs here)

-Make a "herb butter" paste with your salt, pepper, garlic, and rosemary.

Next, get a big fat "roaster" chicken that is at least 5 lbs. (This one is about 6 lbs). Rinse the chicken well & then pat it dry with paper towels. Left up the skin on the breast meat & pull back very gently. Be very careful not to tear the skin though, you want to try to keep it in tact. Run your hand under the skin to separate the membrane from the meat. Do this on the drumsticks as well. Next, try to carefully pat down the breast meat with a paper towel (this helps the herb butter "stick" to the meat a little better.) Rub the herb butter under the skin of the breast meat & legs. If you have extra butter left over rub it all over the outside of the chicken as well.

-Now, for a little fancy "extra" you can very thinly slice some lemon wedges and slide those under the skin as well. This really enhances the "lemony" flavor of the chicken...and it looks pretty!

-Crank that oven up to a blazing hot 425!
-Chop the onion into wedges
-Chop the lemon into wedges
-Smack a few more garlic cloves with the flat side of a big knife to remove the peel...
Stuff the cavity of your herb-buttered bird with the lemons, onions, garlic, and then cram at least 2-3 sprigs of whole rosemary in there too!
-If you have any leftover onion wedges, or crushed garlic cloves throw those in the pan too. I usually cut up about 1.5 lbs or new potatoes and sprinkle em' with salt and pepper and place those around the bird too. It's up to you :-)
-Throw your stuffed, buttered bird into a roasting pan, or a "V" rack inside a roasting pan if you have one, and stick it in the 425 degree oven.
*I'm too lazy to truss my birds, but it does help keep the skin from splitting while they roast, so by all means...truss your bird if you want to...or don't -I really don't care!
-Roast at 425 for 20 minutes, then baste it, turn the pan, and turn the heat down to 375.
-Keep basting with a brush every 15-20 minutes. Turn the pan a few times too. It helps it brown evenly!
-I roast a 6 lb bird using this method for about 2 hours. Give or take about 15 minutes. I use a meat thermometer to know when it's done, so you will have to do the same :-). Every bird has different cooking times so it kinda varies.

*Because I usually throw potatoes in the roasting pan the only other side I serve with this is a salad, and some crusty bread! It sounds like a lot of work, but it's really not. Once you butter and stuff the bird you've got two hours to clean up the kitchen & get ready for dinner. It's pretty simple & SO yummy. Enjoy!