Spice Roasted Chicken x BHM Potluck

One of the very first dishes I "mastered" when I began my culinary journey in earnest was the classic, beloved, roasted chicken.  Growing up, you'd be hard pressed to find a kitchen that didn't have some variation and ode to this home-cooking staple.  But what I set out to perfect was not your grandmother's roasted chicken.

Upon finding my stride with the technique of yielding a crispy skin, coupled with moist, tender white and dark meat, I fell in love with the seeming ease of bringing this dish together with varying flavor profiles.  Stuffing the cavity with herbs and aromatics, seasoning abundantly, lathering the skin with compound butters, and more, my roasted chicken earned a place all its own in my cooking repertoire. And my friends and family will attest that it makes its appearance as the star of many a dinner party and holiday meal.

So as I contemplated what I wanted to share for the, now annual, Black History Month Virtual Potluck, roasted chicken was a natural choice. **See the full 2019 BHM Potluck lineup below, following the recipe!

Being the self-proclaimed "Spice Girl" that I am, I decided to bring some of my favorite spices to the flavor profile.  I made a chili-spiced compound butter with chipotle chili powder, cumin, paprika, garlic powder, and kosher salt. The yield was a deep burnished color (like chili!), crispy skin, and tender moist chicken infused with flavor, from the inside- out.

And for an extra special touch, I threw chopped vegetables into the roasting pan to roast alongside the chicken, while absorbing the flavor of the chicken juices.  Umm-umm, good and an easy meal-in-one that also happens to be one of my favorite ways to serve this dish.

Make it and prepare to add it to your cooking rotation again and again.

Happy Eating!

Spice Roasted Chicken 
Ingredients:
1 Whole Chicken (3 to 4 lbs.)  
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 large onion, quartered

1 lemon, quartered
1 head of garlic, halved with skin on
1 teaspoon ground chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more for additional seasoning

Freshly ground black pepper

Vegetables (sweet potatoes, fennel, and carrots), peeled and chopped

Method:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Combine butter, spices and 1 teaspoon of salt in a small dish.  Set aside. 

Place chicken in a cast iron skillet or roasting pan and sprinkle the cavity with salt and pepper.  Stuff the cavity with onion, lemon, and garlic.  Rub the chicken with the spice butter and gently lift the skin over the breast and tuck butter underneath.  (Be careful not to tear the skin.)  Season the chicken all over with additional salt and black pepper.  Tuck the wings under and tie the legs together.

Spread the root vegetables in the roasting pan to form a bed around the chicken.  Place chicken in the preheated oven and roast for thirty minutes, then lower the temperature to 350 degrees F and roast for another 30 to 35 minutes, or until the juices run clear and the internal temperature from the thigh reads 165 degrees.  Remove the chicken from the oven, tent with foil and allow to rest for 10-20 minutes.  Carve and serve with the vegetables.  Enjoy!

Black History Month Virtual Potluck, 2019

Beautiful Eats & Things | Okra, Corn, & Tomato Chicken Stew

Beyond The Bayou Blog | Mackerel Balls With Biscuits & Cane Syrup

B Sugar Mama | Red Beans and Rice

Butter Be Ready | Caribbean- Curry Goat with Rice and Peas

Cooks with Soul | Boudin balls

D.M.R. Fine Foods | Spice Roasted Chicken

Dash of Jazz | Soul Food Power Bowl

Dish it with Tisha | Jamaican Curry Chicken

Domestic Dee    | Chicken Sliders

Eat.Drink.Frolic. | Bourbon + sweet potato pie

First and Full    | Homemade Peach Pie

Food Fidelity    | Nashville Hot Shrimp Sandwich

Food is Love Made Edible | Smothered Okra with Chicken and Smoked Sausage

Foodie In New York    | Chess Pie

Immaculate Bites | Pimento Cheese

Kaluhi's Kitchen | Pilipili & Rosemary marinated mbuzi choma with Kachumbari

Kenneth Temple | Chicken & Sausage Gumbo

Marisa Moore Nutrition | Sweet and Spicy Roasted Cabbage

Meiko And The Dish    | Hot Buttered Rum Biscuits

My Life Runs On Food | Southern Style Caesar Salad

Rosalynn Daniels | Osso Bucco

Savory Thoughts | Haitian Patty

Simply LaKita | Fried Okra

Sweet Tea & Thyme | Spiced Peach Shortcakes

That Girl Cooks Healthy | Scotch Bonnet Pepper Sauce

The Hungry Hutch | Cornbread Dressing

The Seasoning Bottle | Guava Short Ribs

Whisk It Real Gud | Banana Bread

{Cooking for Dad}: A Father's Day Menu

There are few things that compare to the love, care, protection, guidance and affirmation that come from a father (or father-figure).  An undisputed daddy's girl, my father represented many "firsts" in my life.  He was my first love; the first man to affirm me and see the best in me; the first to lovingly foster the big dreams that he had for me.  And although he wasn't perfect, he was perfect for me.

Our earth story ended shortly before my 19th birthday, when he moved to heaven, but there isn't a day, or year, that goes by in which I'm not thinking of him, thankful for the love he gave to me, and wishing I still had him on this side of heaven with me.

If my dad were still here with me, I would prepare for him a meal fit for a king.  And as you prepare to cook for the special man (or men) in your life, this menu is all you need to make for a delicious and unforgettable meal:  Roasted Chicken and Vegetables, Rosemary Popovers, Arnold Palmer Special, and Cherry Upside Down Cake.  Now who wouldn't want that for dinner?! (No guy that I know. :))

So here's to a Happy Father's Day...and Happy Eating!

Arnold Palmer Special
Roasted Chicken and Vegetables
Rosemary Popovers
Cherry Upside Down Cake

Herb and Garlic Roasted Chicken with Root Vegetables

Herb-Garlic Roasted Chicken with Root Vegetables

When it comes to selecting a dish for all things delicious, hearty, comforting and crowd-pleasing, roasted chicken tops the list.  I count it as one of my favorite go-to bites when I’m looking for an unforgettable dish that comes together with ease--and often when I’m hosting dinner guests.

On a recent occasion, I decided to infuse some extra “love” into my recipe by flavoring the chicken with my Herb-Garlic butter.  Starting with my classic preparation of seasoning the cavity and stuffing it with herbs, citrus and aromatics, I then rubbed my compound butter on the skin (and tucked a little away underneath the skin to help the breast meat remain extra moist) before roasting the chicken over a bed of hearty root vegetables.  

And you can probably guess the results.  Within an hour and a half, a beautifully golden, crispy and succulent chicken, with tender root vegetables, emerged from the oven ready to be devoured. 

The next time you’re ready to wow your guests—and your palate—this easy and delicious recipe should top your list as the ultimate crowd pleaser.  

Happy Eating!

Herb and Garlic Roasted Chicken with Root Vegetables

Ingredients:
1 Whole Chicken (3 to 4 lbs.)
Herb–Garlic compound butter
1 large onion, quartered

1 lemon, quartered
1 head of garlic, halved with skin on
Fresh thyme
Fresh rosemary

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Root vegetables (parsnips, potatoes, and carrots), peeled and chopped

Method:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Place chicken in a roasting pan and sprinkle the cavity with salt and pepper.  Stuff the cavity with onion, lemon, garlic, thyme and rosemary.  Rub the chicken with the herb-garlic butter and gently lift the skin over the breast and tuck butter underneath.  (Be careful not to tear the skin.)  Season the chicken all over with salt and pepper.  Tuck the wings under and tie the legs together.

Spread the root vegetables in the roasting pan to form a bed around the chicken.  Place chicken in the preheated oven and roast for about an hour and fifteen minutes or until the juices run clear.  Remove the chicken from the oven, tent with foil and allow to rest for 10-20 minutes.  Carve and serve with the vegetables.  Enjoy!

Foodie Vocabulary: Bouquet Garni

As the cooler temperatures settle in, there's nothing like hearty, warming dishes to knock off the chill and bring on the comfort.  Soups, chili, stews, oven-roasted fare, and the like, make the kitchen a warm and cozy place to be--not to mention a delicious one.  I love that these dishes also lend themselves well to the flavor explosions that herbs (dried and fresh) impart.  In fact, when you're looking to up the savory quotient of a dish with the least amount of effort, herbs are a game changer.  Here enters the bouquet garni.

A bouquet garni (French for "garnished bouquet") is a bundle of herbs used to flavor soups, stews, sauces, stocks, meats, vegetables--you name it!  Selected herbs are gathered together--in a sachet of cheesecloth or similar fabric for dried herbs and bundled with kitchen twine for fresh herbs--to form the "bouquet".  The bouquet is placed in the dish during the cooking process to infuse flavor and removed, as a whole, once the cooking process is complete.  And the mission of flavorful, hearty fare is accomplished.

So the next time you're looking to infuse some herbaceous goodness into your eats, consider a fresh or dried bouquet garni--and let it do all the work for you.  I purchased my first bouquet garni (multiple jars in fact) during my last trip to Paris a few years ago, and I haven't stopped using them since, although today I definitely make my own!  To help you indulge, below are two recipes perfectly suited for this special touch.

Lentil Soup 

Roasted Chicken and Vegetables 

Enjoy & Happy Eating!

Comfort Food Calling: Roasted Chicken and Vegetables

Herb Roasted Chicken and Vegetables

As the snow flurries fell and the wind howled yesterday afternoon, my thoughts eventually settled on what would make for a cozy, warming and comforting dinner:  my favorite herb-roasted chicken and winter vegetables.

I can dine on this dish year-round, and often do, but the hot oven, robust herbs and hearty vegetables made this especially perfect for knocking the chill off, while bringing me the familiar flavors that I love.  Delicious and comforting all in one, I recommend adding it to your repertoire.  You won't be disappointed.

Here's my tried and true recipe for re-creating the perfect roasted chicken dinner-- every time.

Happy Eating!

Recipe:

Herb Roasted Chicken and Vegetables:

Ingredients:
1 3.5 to 4.5lb whole chicken
Fresh poultry bouquet (suggested: thyme, sage, rosemary and marjoram)
1 lemon, quartered and divided
1 onion, quartered and divided
1 head of garlic, halved and divided
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Herbs De Provence
3-4 Medium carrots
2-3 Medium parsnips
Kitchen twine

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees
Place chicken in roasting pan of choice 
Season chicken cavity with salt, pepper and dried herbs
Stuff cavity with half the lemon, onion, garlic and the entire poultry bouquet
Lightly oil entire chicken
Season liberally with salt, pepper and dried herbs
Tie the legs together with the twine and tuck the wing tips to ensure uniform cooking
Toss the remaining lemon, onion, garlic and the vegetables in the pan
Roast chicken for an hour and 15 or so minutes or until the juices run clear
Cover with tented foil and allow to rest for another 15 minutes
Carve and serve with roasted vegetables.
*Optional: finish vegetables off with a sprinkling of fresh herbs