Roast Chicken

My adventures with cooking real food continue!  Once again, the Pioneer Woman has provided me with a new recipe to try.  Once again, it's something I've never cooked before.  I have cooked pieces of chicken, but I've never cooked an whole one!*  Today, let's talk about roasted chicken!

I'm a big fan of easy to understand recipes that I can follow and execute.  I'm happy to say that this one passes the test.  You don't need anything really special or hard to find with this recipe.  Pick up a chicken, some lemons, rosemary, and butter.  That's all you need.  I did have to buy a zester, as I did not own one.**

Mark was not allowed to juggle the lemons.

After patting the chicken dry, it made its home on a cookie sheet covered in tinfoil.  I then set about zesting lemons.  It was weird, really weird.  After undressing the lemons, the zest got thrown into the bowl of softened butter.  Perhaps the most difficult part was chopping up the rosemary.  I'm sure there is an easy way to do it, but I'm not that skilled yet.

Butter?  Check.

Lemon zest?  Check.

Finely chopped rosemary?  Kinda.

Once they were all mixed up, it was time to rub it all over the chicken.  I feel bad that I didn't buy the chicken dinner first, but it had to be done.  I felt a bit dirty afterward.

That is a lot of butter.

Before begining the buttery massage, I realized I needed to check inside the chicken in case they left a gift in there.  What I found in there was scary, and I don't care to relive it.  I didn't even take a picture of it.

This is not one of the prettier prepped meats.

Also, jamming those lemons in there was not easy.

Once the chicken was wearing its butter sunscreen, it went into the oven for about an hour and a half.  I never realized it, but the smell of rosemary is one that I associate with Christmas.  Having cooked with it minimally in the past, I never realized it.  Mark said the cooking bird smelled amazing.

Crispy!

Luckily, it also tasted amazing.  The meat had a good flavor, and it was nice and moist.  I don't really care for eating the skin, but Mark does.  He ate his and mine.  He made me taste a bit of it because he thought it was so great.

Om nom nom.

I expect to make this recipe again.  It was pretty easy, and it was fun.***  The meat tasted great, and I'm sure it will make superior buffalo chicken dip or chicken salad.  Yum.

*Technically, the head isn't there, so does it count as a whole chicken?

**Now, I have one!  Someday, I'll have a grown up kitchen!  I'm getting there one piece of equipment at a time.

***It was also weird at times.  Seriously, who wants to rub a naked bird all over.  *shudder*