Italian roast chicken

This recipe is a perfect example of how beautiful and simple Italian cooking can be. You will be able to work with fresh rosemary, personally my favorite herb. I love the beautiful, clean, vibrant fragrance. If you’ve never cooked with fresh herbs, this is a great beginner’s recipe. If you don’t have a rosemary bush growing in your yard, no worries! Most supermarkets now sell prepackaged fresh herbs in the produce section. Cooking with fresh herbs really takes your food to the next level. I now always try to use fresh herbs instead of dried, unless dried is specified in the recipe. One teaspoon of dried herbs = one tablespoon of fresh. Simple and easy enough to remember, right?!

I love black olives, don’t you? If you’re my dad, don’t answer that question :0) My dad hates olives. Only person I know. However, my mom loves them and she would bring home the occasional can. I was the kid who put the pitted olives over the end of all five fingers, happily waving them around and eating them off one at a time. Is it just me or did everyone do this as a kid? Whenever I see veggie trays with olives, I load up. If there is a bowl of olives passed around the Thanksgiving table, I load up. When I serve myself a helping of this recipe I pick out a few extra olives for my plate. Terrible, I know. Well, it’s out there now so don’t judge me :0)
A few words about the recipe:
Did you know that fruit sometimes is given a thin wax coating? I always wash my lemons in hot water to melt away any wax, and to make sure the zest is clean for eating.
I don’t know how I managed to get through life without an instant-read food thermometer! I feel it’s an essential piece of equipment for any home chef. While practiced chefs can often judge the doneness of meats by sight and touch, I think it’s so much safer (and easier!) to use a thermometer. No guesswork!
Also don’t skimp on the extra-virgin olive oil and buy cheap stuff. Some generic brands can taste downright awful. I use Colavita brand. It tastes great and doesn’t break the pocket book. Plus it’s been a proven favorite of taste testers :0)

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Italian Lemon Roasted Chicken

Prep 40 mins

Cook 50 mins

Total 1 hour, 30 mins

Author Emily

Yield 10 servings

This recipe for Italian Lemon Roasted Chicken is a perfect example of how beautiful and simple Italian cooking can be. Chicken Thighs roast with the flavors of lemon, rosemary, olive and summer vegetables.

Ingredients

• 10 to 12 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 1 large lemon
• 1/3 cup of extra-virgin olive oil
• 6 garlic cloves peeled and sliced
• 1 onion, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 bunch of fresh rosemary
• 2 and 1/2 pounds of Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into about 1 inch pieces
• 2 cups of baby carrots
• 1 zucchini, chopped into 1 inch pieces, sprinkled with a pinch of salt and pepper.
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 can large pitted black olives

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Trim the fat off the chicken thighs. Place them in a shallow marinating dish large enough to hold them in a single layer. Zest the lemon and sprinkle half the zest over the chicken. Save the rest. Juice the lemon and pour the juice over the chicken, tossing to coat well. Marinate for 10 minutes.
2. Transfer the chicken to a large roasting pan. Add the rest of the lemon zest, the sliced onion and garlic, and half the rosemary sprigs. Drizzle the olive oil over and toss all ingredients together gently. Now let it marinate at room temperature for about 20 minutes.
3. While the chicken marinates, place the potatoes and carrots in a large pot and cover them with water at least 1 inch above the top of the contents. Bring to a boil and cook for just 2 minutes, long enough to par-boil them, then drain well and add to the chicken. Season with salt and fresh ground pepper.
4. Place the chicken and potatoes into the oven and roast for 25 minutes, turning once halfway through. Stir in the zucchini and flip the chicken. Continue to roast, flipping chicken once more, until the chicken has reached 165 degrees in the center on an instant-read thermometer. Remove from the oven and discard the cooked rosemary. Replace with fresh sprigs. Sprinkle the canned olives over the chicken. Serve immediately.

Courses Dinner

Cuisine Italian

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1 chicken thigh + 1/2 cup vegetables

Amount Per Serving
Calories 257
% Daily Value
Total Fat 15.1 g		23%
	Saturated Fat 2.6 g	13%
Cholesterol 80 mg		27%
Sodium 605 mg		25%
Total Carbohydrates 13.2 g		4%
	Dietary Fiber 2.1 g	8%
	Sugars 2.2 g
Protein 20.6 g		41%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

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