Rosemary olive oil drizzle adds flavor to roasted chicken
This is one of the easiest roasted chicken recipes you’ll find. The chicken cooks faster and more evenly by removing the chicken’s backbone and flattening it out by a process called spatchcocking.
The chicken is roasted on top of a layer of onions, carrots, celery and aromatics. There are numerous varieties of flavored olive oils online if you can’t find them in your local grocery store. A little will go a long way, but that drizzle will add a fantastic finishing flavor. I am particularly fond of either rosemary or garlic flavors.
You will be proud to serve this dish to family AND friends.
Laura Tolbert, also known as Fleur de Lolly, has been sharing recipes, table decor ideas and advice for fellow foodies and novices on her blog, fleurdelolly.blogspot.com for more than eight years. You can contact her at facebook.com/ fleurde.lolly.5, on Instagram and fleurdelolly@yahoo.com.
Roasted Rosemary Chicken
1 (31⁄ 2- pound) chicken 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 tablespoon salt
1⁄ teaspoon freshly ground black 2 pepper
11⁄ teaspoons chopped fresh thyme 2 leaves
2 large onions, thickly sliced 2 medium carrots, peeled 2 ribs celery, ends trimmed 1 bay leaf 3 to 4 sprigs fresh rosemary
11⁄ teaspoons to 1 tablespoon rosemary 2 olive oil, to drizzle
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
As I mentioned above, I spatchcocked the chicken by removing the backbone with kitchen shears, turning the chicken breast side up and pressing down on the breast bone until it broke. The chicken then can be flattened. You can certainly roast the bird whole if desired.
Rinse the chicken with water and pat dry with paper towels. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle thyme leaves over chicken.
Arrange the onion slices, carrots, celery, bay leaf and rosemary sprigs in the bottom of a small roasting pan in such a way as to make a bed for the chicken to lie on while roasting.
Place the chicken on the bed of vegetables, breast side up, and roast in the oven until the skin is golden brown, 30 to 45 minutes.
Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees. Continue to roast until the chicken is cooked through with an internal temperature of 165 degrees, about 35 to 45 minutes longer.
Remove the chicken from the oven, tent with foil and set aside to rest for 10 minutes before carving. When ready to serve the chicken, carve into 8 pieces and serve, drizzled with rosemary olive oil to taste. Garnish with fresh herb sprigs if desired.
Smashed Roasted Potatoes with Rosemary Olive Oil Drizzle
6 to 8 white new potatoes
Salt
Pepper
Rosemary olive oil for drizzling
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with non-stick spray.
Bring a saucepan of water to a boil over high heat. Add 1 tablespoon kosher salt to the water. Add potatoes and let them cook for 7 to 8 minutes until a knife can be inserted easily.
Drain potatoes and place them on the prepared baking sheet.
Using a heavy glass or a meat mallet, press downward on each potato until it is “smashed.” Lightly salt and pepper the potatoes.
Bake for 15 minutes. Using a spatula, carefully turn the potatoes over. Salt and pepper the potatoes and return to oven for an additional 10 to 15 minutes until golden browned. Drizzle with rosemary olive oil and serve immediately.