Tag Archives: Roasting

Skillet Roasted Whole Chicken

Dinner, , ,

 

I am utterly amazed by the ease and deliciousness of a simple whole chicken.  This bird cost me about $2.50 and only about an hour to make.  It doesn’t get better than that!  Oh, and Chloe ate a good amount of this chicken without complaint…she even devoured a leg!

 

Ingredients:
1 Whole Chicken
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon Salt
1/2 Tablespoon Black Pepper
Pan sauce:
1 Shallot, minced
2 garlic cloves, finely grated
2 teaspoons fresh thyme, minced
2 teaspoons Dijon Mustard
1 cup Low Sodium Chicken Broth
2 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter
2 teaspoons Sherry Vinegar

 

Preheat oven and an oven-safe skillet to 450°F.  Just put the skillet in the oven when you turn it on and it will be nice and hot when you are ready for it.

Pat the chicken fry with a paper towel.  Rub the bird down with olive oil.  Season with salt and pepper.  With the chicken breast side up, tie up the legs (as shown in the picture).

Carefully remove the hot skillet from the oven and place the chicken, breast side up in the skillet (it will sizzle quite a bit).  Place back in oven and roast for about 30 minutes, or until the breast reaches 120°F.

Turn the oven off and leave the chicken in the oven for another 30 minutes, or until the breast reaches about 165°F.

Remove from oven and let rest for 20 minutes before carving.

 

To make the pan sauce:

Pour off all but about 1 Tablespoon of fat from the skillet.  Add the shallot, garlic and thyme.  Sauté over medium high heat until softened.

Add the Dijon mustard and chicken broth.  Bring to a bubble and let it reduce to about 3/4 cup.

Turn off the heat and melt in the butter.  Stir in the vinegar.

*Note: I didn’t use the mustard and I substituted Rice Wine Vinegar for the Sherry Vinegar

 

Carve the bird and serve with the sauce.

Yield: 1 Whole Chicken

-Recipe by America’s Test Kitchen-

 

 

 

Roasted Tomato & Pumpkin Soup

Dinner, , , , , , ,

Here is a good way to use up some leftover pumpkin puree.  Oh, and don’t sprinkle roasted pumpkin seeds on top like I did because they instantly turned really chewy and hard to eat.  They do look pretty though!

 

Ingredients:
2 ½-3lbs Tomatoes, cut into large chunks
6 Cloves Garlic, finely grated
1 Onion, Sliced
Extra Virgin Olive Oil, to drizzle
Salt & Pepper
3 Cups Chicken Stock
2 Bay Leaves
2 Tablespoons Dried Basil
2 Cups Pumpkin Puree

 

Preheat oven to 450°F and cover a baking sheet with foil for easy clean up.

Place the tomato chunks, garlic and onion on the prepared baking sheet.  Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Roast for 45 minutes.

Transfer the roasted tomatoes, garlic and onions to a large soup pot.  Add the chicken stock, bay leaves, basil and pumpkin puree.  Bring to a bubble, reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes.

Remove the bay leaves.  Puree until smooth with an immersion blender.  Adjust seasonings with salt & pepper if needed.

Serves: 4

Roasting Pumpkins & Pumpkin Puree

Miscellaneous,

 

Don’t even think for a second about using canned pumpkin puree for your pumpkin pies this Thanksgiving!  Here is a super easy way to have fresh pumpkin puree.

 

Ingredients:
1 Pie Pumpkin

 

 

Preheat oven to 350°F.

 

Cut the very top of the pumpkin off to remove the stem.  Cut the pumpkin in half and scoop out the seeds.  I like to use a grapefruit spoon for seed removal.  Don’t throw out the seeds!  Keep them for roasting!

 

Cut the pumpkin halves into smaller wedges and place on a baking sheet.

 

Roast for 45 minutes, or until the pumpkin in tender.

 

 

Once they are done roasting, let cool until you can handle them.  Peel off the skin and puree in a food processor until smooth.  You might need to add a couple Tablespoons of water.

Roasted Green Beans

Side Dish, , ,

Roasted vegetables is probably the easiest side dish you can make.

Ingredients:
Green Beans, washed and trimmed of stems
Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
Grated Garlic (optional)

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Toss the green beans in olive oil and season with salt, pepper and garlic.  Roast on a baking sheet until browned, about 25 minutes.

Thanksgiving Turkey

Dinner, , ,

Thanks Alton Brown for making Thanksgiving awesome!  In Alton’s recipe, he brined the turkey, but I didn’t brine mine.

Ingredients:
1 turkey, any size (thawed)
1 red or green apple, sliced
1/2 onion, sliced
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup water
1 teaspoon dried sage
Canola oil

Preheat oven to 500°F.  Move the oven rack to the lowest position.

Combine the apple, onion, cinnamon stick and water in a bowl.  Microwave for 5 minutes.

Place the apple, onion, cinnamon stick, and dried sage inside the turkey.  Put the turkey on a roasting pan breast side up.  Tuck the turkey wings under the body and rub canola oil on the bird.

Roast for 30 minutes.  Turn the oven temperature down to 350°F and insert a probe thermometer into the breast.  Set the thermometer to 161°F.  A 14-16 lb turkey will take about 2-2½ hours.  My 20lb turkey took just over 3 hours.

After roasting, cover with a foil tent for 15 minutes before carving.

Roasted Broccoli

Side Dish, , ,

Seriously the best way to eat broccoli!

Ingredients:
1 head broccoli, cut into florets
2 cloves garlic, grated
salt & pepper
Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

Preheat oven to400°F.

On a baking sheet, toss the broccoli florets with the garlic, salt and pepper and enough olive oil to coat.

Roast in oven until browned, about 20-30 minutes.