Recipe - Herb-Roasted Chicken

2 tablespoon Dried oregano
2 tablespoon Dried tarragon
3 tablespoon Dried thyme
1 tablespoon Dried rosemary
2 Bay leaves, center ribs
removed
1 teaspoon Dried lavender flowers
(optional, but a nice
addition)
1 tablespoon Toasted fennel seed (follow
toasting instructions that
follow for the entire herb
combination)
1 teaspoon Toasted coriander seed
1 tablespoon Coarsely ground black pepper
2 tablespoon Minced dried orange peel
1 tablespoon Minced dried lemon peel
Kosher salt
Balsamic vinegar
Extravirgin olive oil
2 Chickens or 4 game hens
1 lg Lemon
8 Garlic cloves, peeled and
smashed.

To prepare the herb rub: Combine the oregano, tarragon, thyme, rosemary,
bay leaves and lavender flowers in a bowl. In a dry saute pan over med.
heat, toast the herb mixture until fragrant. This will take only a few
minutes. Do not burn. Return to the bowl. Add the fennel, coriander, pepper
and orange and lemon peel and stir to combine. In a spice grinder or with a
mortar and pestle (I used the blender after smashing the fennel and
coriander seeds with a mortar and pestle), coarsely grind the mixture. To
use the herb rub, combine 5 parts of the mixture with 1 part kosher salt, 3
parts balsamic vinegar and 3 parts olive oil.

Rinse the poultry and pat dry. Rub the herb rub liberally over the inside
and outside of the birds. Allow to marinate, covered, in the refrigerator
for 8 hours or overnight.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees (for game hens). Evenly divide the lemon
slices and garlic, placing them in the cavity of each bird. Place them on a
rack in a roasting pan, breast side down. Roast for 10 minutes. Turn the
hens breast side up, reduce heat to 350 and continue roasting for another
2025 minutes or until cooked through and juices run clear. Allow to rest
10 minutes before serving.

I used two upright roasting racks for the chickens, even with the garlic
and lemon inside. I cooked them at 400 for about 2 hours, 10 minutes.

Posted to EATL Digest 25 Aug 96

From: Brenda Pittsley brendap@CORBIS.COM

Date: Mon, 26 Aug 1996 11:54:00 PDT