Lemon-Sage Roasted Chicken

I tried this recipe the other night; it's found in the "Two Dudes, One Pan" cookbook mentioned previously in my Kitchen Essentials post. It turned out so well that Steven took a picture to show that it looked exactly like the photo in the cookbook! :-) The meat was really tender and juicy and the skin browned nicely thanks to the rubbing with olive oil. I didn't have any thyme in the garden yet so I substituted oregano and I also smash the garlic cloves a little to make sure they release as much flavor as possible. I don't have an official roasting pan so I used a glass 13x9 pan on a cookie sheet to help the heat distribute evenly. I served the chicken and onions with creamy parmesan orzotto (orzo pasta prepared like risotto) and steamed sugar snap peas. Mmmm, mmmm good! Here's a link to a good review and article about the cookbook from the Tucson Citizen; it also includes another FABULOUS recipe that I've made, the Cuban Roast Pork. I made it in our CrockPot--another great reason for its honorable mention since it didn't make it onto the Kitchen Essentials list!

Lemon-Sage Roasted Chicken

1 2 1/2- to 3-pound chicken
3 Tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 fresh sage sprig plus 6 fresh sage leaves
3 Tablespoons olive oil
1 Tablespoon kosher salt
2 yellow onions, sliced into 1/2-inch-thick rings, PLUS 1 yellow onion, quartered
3 fresh tyhme sprigs
1 lemon, halved
5 garlic cloves


Preheat your oven to 450 degrees F.

Place the chicken on your cutting board. Slip your fingers under the skin of the breast and gently work them down the breast to create a pocket. Insert 1 1/2 Tablespoons of the butter and 3 sage leaves into each breast pocket. Rub the chicken with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and then salt the cavity and the entire surface of the chicken.

Toss the sliced onions with the remaining 2 Tablespoons of oil in a roasting pan and then evenly spread them over the bottom of the pan. Stuff the chicken with the thyme sprigs, the sage sprig, the quartered onion and whole garlic cloves and plug with the lemon halves. Tuck the wings under the breasts and set the chicken on top of the sliced onions.

Place the pan in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 425 degrees F and roast the chicken until browned and the juices at the leg-thigh joint run clear, 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes (a digital thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh should read between 160 and 165 degrees F). Remove the chicken fom the oven and transfer to a cutting board. Tent the chicken loosely with aluminum foil and let the chicken rest for 5 minutes, then remove the stuffing from the cavit and disccard everything but the lemon. Squeeze the lemon halves over the chicken, then carve and serve.

Tip: After taking the chicken out of the oven, place it on your cutting board breast side down so some of the juices collect in the breast, yielding nice moist white meat.

Serves 4.