Provencal Roasted Chicken

Thank you Ask Ms. Recipe for following my blog!

With all this talk about travel from a previous post on the Almafi coast...and Dave's house/beach warming party in the Virgin Islands....that had me thinking of other foreign ports of call we would love to visit. Provence. I read about France quite a bit (now that I am done with the Sookie Stackhouse series of books)and am a big fan of the cuisine.

When I ran across this recipe for Provencal roasted chicken, I thought, why not?!



Grab the following ingredients.........

* 1 (3 to 4-pound) chicken, excess fat trimmed and giblets removed
* Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
* 1 shallot, sliced
* 1 bunch fresh thyme
* 1 lemon, zested in large strips
* 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
* 1 tablespoon honey





Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Season the chicken cavity with salt and pepper. Stuff the chicken cavity with the shallot, half the thyme, and lemon zest. Set a v-rack or regular rack in a roasting pan, and brush chicken with a bit of the olive oil.





Whisk the honey and remaining oil in a small bowl. Dip the remaining thyme in the mixture and use it to brush the chicken all over with the honey mixture. Season bird with salt and pepper, to taste.



Tuck the wings under the back, cross the legs, and tie them with kitchen string.



Place the chicken breast side down on the rack and roast until the back is golden brown, about 35 to 40 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and turn the chicken breast side up.

Cut the string where it holds the legs together and open up the legs a bit. Baste the chicken with the pan drippings, using the thyme sprigs as a brush.

Roast the chicken again until the breast is golden brown and a meat thermometer inserted in the thigh registers 170 degrees F., 20 to 25 minutes more. Transfer the chicken to a carving board, and let it rest 10 minutes before carving.

As you can see, the honey makes it almost blackish brown but believe me; it isn't burned!


I served this with fresh steamed broccoli with cheese sauce.......


And wine.....



I don't remember where I got this recipe...it was good but I don't think I'd prepare this one again with all the mess of the clean up. I have soooo many good roasted chicken recipes, mostly from Wandering Coyote at ReTorte......so this was a one night meal and a two day chicken soup dish.

By the way...if you are looking for some great chicken recipes click HERE for a good link...101 use for a Roasted Chicken!