657188 Mon Oct 05 11:37:51 -0700 2009 18 31 Home Cooking 0 5080310 I'm having company for dinner, and I'd like to serve a roast chicken. Here's my proposed menu.. please let me know if anything should be changed. We'll be 4 people. -arugula salad with balsamic glazed cippolini onions - roasted whole chicken - anybody have a recipe for something nice and herby? I was thinking to rub herbs and olive oil or margarine under the skin and roast it. How long to roast? - side dishes--- I was thinking roasted potatoes and brussel sprout hash with shallots. My plan is to prepare everything the night before- clean and prepare the chicken and have it ready in the roasting pan. Have the arugula ready and peel the cippolinis. Have the potatoes scrubbed and spiced and in a ziplock. Shred the sprouts, chop the shallots and garlic, and have in all separate ziplocks. Any ideas for a dessert? Needs to be dairy free- can use margarine- and prepared a day or two in advance. Thanks!! I really want to impress with this dinner... Mon Oct 05 11:37:51 -0700 2009 217807 cheesecake17 1 5080398 Why don’t you spatchcook the chicken, ie take out the the back bone, and trim of all the fatty bits, you can even get out some of the thigh bones, it is real easy then to get aromatic herbs or even compound butter under the skin, I like to use butter with white or black truffles, cook it skin side down so it gets real crispy, there are loads of videos on line regarding spatchooked chicken, its also way easier to carve Mon Oct 05 12:04:45 -0700 2009 5080310 160146 djr222 2 5080478 I'd rather keep it whole. I think ithe guests would appreciate it more. No butter (I keep Kosher)... would you recommend olive oil or margarine to mix with the herbs? Mon Oct 05 12:30:05 -0700 2009 5080398 217807 cheesecake17 3 5080535 I'd use butter flavored shortening, its Kosher and has more butter flavor than margarine. Mon Oct 05 12:45:46 -0700 2009 5080478 279577 just_M 1 5080440 I like a mixture of Herbs de Provence, minced garlic & butter rubbed under the skin all over. Then squeeze lemons all over the chicken & throw them in the cavity. Will you have a few hours to do a brine? That's your best insurance to have a juicy & yummy chicken. Dairy free dessert? How about something with fruit, like a pie or crisp? Mon Oct 05 12:18:56 -0700 2009 5080310 1099702 sparkareno 2 5080488 I'm buying a kosher chicken, so no need for me to brine. I'm planning on prepping the chicken the night before and popping it in the oven right when I get home from work. I want the whole meal to look effortless since the guests are coming home with me from work. I don't want the kitchen to be a flying madness while my guests watch in disbelief! Was thinking an apple crisp, but it gets mushy made beforehand. It just occured to me to prep the apples and have them in a casserole dish and have the topping in a ziplock and combine the two at the last minute. Mon Oct 05 12:32:31 -0700 2009 5080440 217807 cheesecake17 1 5080449 Your meal sounds just great. You will have some lucky guests. I would cut the potatoes in chunks and let them roast in the oven for about 15 minuets. Than add the chicken to the layer of potato and roast at 400 for 1:00 to 1:00 hours. Add herbs as you like to potato and some fat. For desert a loaf or pound cake or angel food served with a sorbet may work Mon Oct 05 12:21:59 -0700 2009 5080310 10136 Robert Deutsch 2 5080494 Was thinking to do the potatoes mixed with the chicken, but I hate my potatoes chicken-y tasting. Maybe I'll carve out lemons and serve sorbet in the shells. No time though... the dinner is on a Tues night and I really only have Sunday for prep Mon Oct 05 12:34:16 -0700 2009 5080449 217807 cheesecake17 1 5080594 The menu sounds great. Both potatoes and apples prepped ahead of time will brown unless you leave the potatoes soaking in cold water (Cooks Illustrated says you can do this up to 24 hours but preferably only 12 hours) and the apples in water and lemon juice. Mon Oct 05 13:05:48 -0700 2009 5080310 13756 GretchenS 2 5080609 I was planning on buying tiny red and yellow potatoes- they're like the size of a dime- so no need for me to cut them up. Apples I usually toss with lemon juice and cover the bowl or casserole dish tightly with plastic. I'm not so worried about the apples as much as the chicken... Mon Oct 05 13:10:07 -0700 2009 5080594 217807 cheesecake17 3 5080826 The potatoes sound so pretty! Don't be worried about the chicken, it will be great, honestly. It's really hard to mess up roast chicken and I think it's a great choice because everyone loves it. Here is a recipe with the Julia method I have used all my life. I'd use multiple herbs as some of the reviewers have suggested and of course something instead of butter given your specified restrictions. http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Julias-Roast-Chicken-with-Lemon-and-Herbs-102264 (As a young newlywed my sister was horrified when her new husband invited one of our most famous local chefs to dinner (husband was in grad school and worked for the restaurant's landlord as a handyman). She made the Julia chicken with mashed potatoes and green beans and they all ended up sitting around the dining room table picking the chicken carcass clean and talking late into the night -- pretty good recommendation for this method, I'd say!) Mon Oct 05 14:24:45 -0700 2009 5080609 13756 GretchenS 4 5081118 Great story! The chicken idea looks good, but I would prob use olive oil. Something about margarine and chicken irks me.. Mon Oct 05 16:41:19 -0700 2009 5080826 217807 cheesecake17 1 5080897 I thought you'd get a lot more suggestions for apple desserts, so I linked a few pear ones here just for comparison. Either pears or apples would be a lovely finish to your meal. Here are a few that I found particularly enticing from Tastespotting. If you use tiny Seckel pears, you could serve three to a plate for a nice symmetry. http://ourchocolateshavings.blogspot.com/2009/09/chocolate-dipped-ginger-poached-pears.html This link has an internal link to the gingerbread crust recipe which uses coconut oil as the fat. http://veganvisitor.wordpress.com/2008/12/24/countdown-to-christmas-dessert-ginger-pear-tarts/ This pudding is served with a dairy custard, but perhaps you could substitute with Tofutti. http://seasonalontariofood.blogspot.com/2008/10/gingerbread-pear-pudding.html You could substitute chopped pistachios and apricots. Good tip on how to core the pear whole. http://www.blue-kitchen.com/2008/10/22/you-can-keep-your-apples—baked-pears-make-for-a-great-seasonal-dessert/ Mon Oct 05 15:09:31 -0700 2009 5080310 84890 nemo 2 5081121 I love the pear idea. Would you prepare in advance and dip right before serving? Mon Oct 05 16:42:25 -0700 2009 5080897 217807 cheesecake17 3 5081228 cheesecake17 -- I have not made this so am only going by the recipe. It says to poach the pears, dry off, chill at least one hour. Then drizzle the choc over, let harden on the chilled pears. If you wanted to prep the pears much ahead, I wonder if you could quick-chill the poaching liquid and store the pears in that. Then an hour or so before, drain, pat dry, chill, and then do the melted chocolate drizzle. I'm guessing the key is to have the pear cool and dry enough to harden the chocolate so it doesn't run down all over. I think a few trial runs, eating the rejects, is in order! Mon Oct 05 17:30:05 -0700 2009 5081121 84890 nemo 4 5082619 That seems like it would work. I would prepare the pears on Sunday and quickly chill the liquid in the freezer. Maybe instead of drizzing chocolate over the pears, I could plate them on some type of sauce? Tue Oct 06 08:44:27 -0700 2009 5081228 217807 cheesecake17 1 5081021 My very simple, very easy roast chicken method, which always gets rave reviews (and makes a fantastically flavorful carcass for making chicken soup a couple days later!): mix together lots of dried thyme, garlic powder, black pepper, and kosher salt or sea salt (you should have 3-4 tablespoons of the mix by the time you're done). obviously you want to go heavier on the thyme & garlic than on the salt rub the chicken all over with olive oil - generously sprinkle the spice mix all over the chicken, rubbing gently (do the back first, so that it will be cooked breast side up) halve a lemon and squeeze a little (not all) of the juice from 1/2 over the chicken. put that half in the cavity & save the other half for something else also cut a small onion in quarters and stuff the quarters inside the cavity too cook 1.5 hours at 375 for a medium-sized bird, breast-side up make sure to baste it regularly during the last 1/2 hour with the juices that will be filling the pan by then - tip the pan slightly to make the juices pool and just drizzle it all over the skin with a spoon Mon Oct 05 15:55:21 -0700 2009 5080310 22011 Kitchen Imp 1 5081040 Hi, We tried a Jamie Oliver recipe yesterday that was to die for, olive oil rubbed with salt and pepper and thyme and lemon, with roasted potatos that was so easy, you rub the chicken with the olive oil and salt and pepper, throw the whole lemon and some garlic cloves with the cut up potatos in the water for 12 minutes then stab the lemon 10-12 times and place with the thyme sprigs and rosemary and garlic inside the chicken and place on the roasting pan at 375 (No Rack) after 45 minutes, remove the chicken and add the par boiled potatoes and cook another 45 minutes the roasted chicken and potatoes that came out were amazing and I thought it was one of the easiest chicken recipes ever. Mon Oct 05 16:06:37 -0700 2009 5080310 143241 tidecreek 1 5082709 we roast chicken(s) pretty much weekly. remember that it is just as easy to cook two birds as one. indeed, i prefer two smaller chickens to one big roaster. we use three herbs--thyme, tarragon, and rosemary--in a slurry with olive oil, minced garlic, lemon juice and lemon zest. stuff with lemon chunks and onion chunks start the birds breast side down and flip at about 40 minutes. baste with white wine and stock. i'm really fond of glazed carrots and marjoram with roast chicken. i expect you could precook the carrots the day before. the bright color is welcome on the plate and the sweetness is nice with zesty chicken. if you want apples for dessert, how about an apple chip/applesauce cake. it'd improve overnight. Tue Oct 06 09:45:00 -0700 2009 5080310 270283 silverhawk