farctate

The other night, I made the most amazing roast chicken and vegetables.

It was hard to stop eating. I even texted my SiL to see if she could help.

Unfortunately, she lives 6 hours away, so she could not. She did, however, demand I tell her all, so I said I'd post the recipe on my blog.

I highly recommend buying all your chicken pieces pre-cut, unless you're really good at separating a chicken. I bought halves and still struggled to get the thighs apart from the legs, etc. And I think you could skip the Brussels sprouts, but I encourage you to develop a taste for them, as this recipe makes them delicious!

from Cook's Country, a freebie issue we received
serves 4 (ha!)

¾ lb Brussels sprouts, halved
¾ lb red potatoes, cut into 1 in pieces
½ lb shallots, peeled and halved
4 carrots, peeled and cut into 2 in pieces
6 large garlic cloves, peeled
2 t minced fresh thyme
1 T veggie oil
1 t minced fresh rosemary
1 t sugar
¾ t salt
¼ t pepper

2 T unsalted butter, melted
2 t minced fresh thyme
1 t minced fresh rosemary
¼ t salt
dash pepper

3½ lbs bone-in chicken pieces (2 breasts cut in half, 2 thighs, 2 legs)

1. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position (almost to the top) and heat to 475ºF. Toss first set of ingredients together in a large bowl. Combine the second set of ingredients in second smaller bowl.
2. Pat chicken dry (ensures crispness) and season with salt and pepper. Place vegetables in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet, arranging the sprouts to be in the center so they don't overcook. Place chicken, skin side up, on top of the veggies, with the breast pieces in the center on top of the sprouts--again, so they don't overcook.
3. Brush the chicken with the melted butter mixture and roast for about 35 to 40 minutes. Rotate the pan halfway through cooking. Let everything rest for about 5 to 10 minutes, then remove chicken pieces to a platter and stir the veggies to soak up any extra butter and juices in the pan. Serve.

My notes: make sure all your veggies are the same size--we had a couple garlic cloves and carrot pieces that turned to carbon because they were smaller than all the other pieces. Also, I didn't halve my breast pieces and they turned out fine, but if you really do want to serve 4, be sure to cut them. If you're really not going to try the sprouts, perhaps put the shallots and garlic in the center and up your potato requirement to a full pound. Or add 4 parsnips, prepared the same as the carrots.