in my kitchen | whole roasted chicken

some people crave pasta as their comfort food. for me, hands down, it's almost always a whole roasted chicken with vegetables. some people are intimidated by cooking an entire bird, but i can vouch that it's the easiest thing in the world to cook and, even better, it's all cooked in one pan.

so, here's my fool proof roast chicken. enjoy!

| left | pan vegetables | right | chicken ingredients

whole roasted chicken with seasonal vegetables
(serves 4 hungry adults)

what:
1- 4lb organic free range chicken, rinsed and patted dried
1 fennel bulb, sliced
1 lb fingerling potoatoes, halved
3-4 medium carrots, large chop
1/2 large yellow onion, sliced
1 bulb fresh garlic, cut in half horizontally
1 bunch of fresh thyme
1 lemon, quartered
1 navel orange, quartered
2 bay leaves
2 tbsp unsalted real butter, room temperature (NOT margarine. i have a lot of issues with margarine)
maldon sea salt
freshly cracked black pepper
1/4 tsp fennel seeds
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

how:
preheat your oven to 375.

place the potatoes, carrots, fennel, and onion in the bottom of a large cast-iron skillet. you want to create a bed for the chicken so that the skin on the bottom can get crispy, too. (any roasting pan will do.) drizzle the olive oil on top of the vegetables and season them with salt, pepper, and dried oregano.

dry the skin of the chicken with paper towels. this is a necessary step to achieve golden brown, crispy skin. (the skin is my favorite part, am i right?) after the chicken is dried, stuff the cavity of the chicken with the bundle of thyme, quartered lemon and orange, garlic pod, and bay leaves. place the bird on top of the bed of vegetables.

beware: your hands are about to get dirty and massage raw chicken so take your rings off. take the room temperature butter and liberally apply it to the skin of the bird, really making sure that it covers the entire chicken. not only will the butter guarantee crispy skin, but it will also run down onto the vegetables. butter is everything. anyway, after you have gotten to know your bird intimately, liberally apply salt and pepper to the bird. just when you think you've added too much, go ahead and add a little more.

cook at 375 for an hour to an hour and fifteen minutes. the skin should be golden brown and the juices should run clear. you can also use a meat thermometer but i'm not sure what temperature to look for? done?

cover the chicken with aluminum foil for ten to fifteen minutes to allow it to rest and the juices to redistribute. then, serve to yo' guests. along with some wine. dinner guests love wine. or is that just me?