When having family or friends over, this is one of the easiest things we like to make.The

Simple Roasted Chicken.

vegetables are cooked in the same pan and enhanced by the chicken fat flavor. I like to buy whole chickens when they are on sale and freeze them for later use.

• 1 Whole Chicken
• Butter (or Olive Oil) and Salt and Pepper
• Rinsed and Whole Carrots, Small Potatoes (like Red Rose or Fingerling). Or, cut larger potatoes into 2 1/2 inch pieces after rinsing the exterior of the potato skin.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Remove the neck and bag from inside your Whole Chicken’s cavity (between the back legs there’s a hole, reach in and remove the neck, bag of giblets …)

Place the chicken in a roasting pan or casserole dish (we like to use a Paella pan. I like the fat of the chicken but if you prefer the fat to drop off more, use a rack or even the rack from your toaster oven works when placed underneath).

My husband likes to put whole garlic and rosemary under the skin. But just salt and pepper and some oil or butter on the chicken skin and potatoes and carrots is just as delicious. So simple!

Smother the chicken with Butter or Oil.

Place the Vegetables around the chicken and drizzle oil and salt and pepper.

Sprinkle Salt and Pepper (about a teaspoon or two of each) all over the Chicken in as many places as you can reach.

Place in the oven and cook for 75-90 minutes until chicken’s thigh temperature is 165 degrees and juices run clear when pierced.

After 30 minutes, using a Baster, baste the vegetables with the drippings.

When done, remove and let sit for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.

Note that the carrots are baked whole for ease and because otherwise, if smaller, they will cook too quickly. Let your guests cut them while eating them.

Easy Roasted Chicken. Great with a tossed simple salad.

Alternatives: You can flavor your chicken with herbs and garlic if you want to spend a little more time in preparation. My husband will put about 10 cloves or more of whole garlic under the skin with pieces of rosemary that we grow in our front yard along with the salt and pepper and oil. You can experiment with other herbs like Sage or Tarragon.  Herbes Du Provence and Granulated Garlic is what we put on the Roasted Chicken at a restaurant I worked at for many years. And we would stuff the cavity with more whole garlic and season the bird inside and out thoroughly. Fennel is another great addition to the vegetables that surround the chicken (cut into quarters). Brussel Sprouts and even Broccoli also work!

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