Serving Up Sedar

I had to help out the Poppers, so I made Passover dinner last week, letting my Jewish side shine through. Admittedly, I did pull a bit of a Sandra Lee and use box mixes (upon his request). That probably won't happen again so let's move on from that quickly, shall we?

I did whip up a "perfect" roast chicken a la Ina, although in my recipe search I found that everyone claims their roast chicken is perfect. Not so interestingly, these recipes are all very similar. I will say with a long-cooking recipe like this, you will want to check your oven temperature with an actual thermometer to make sure you have it right. You never know when onions might become "deeply carmelized" as my dad calls it; however, the onions get discarded when you make the gravy, so even some extra carmelization won't kill you.

Another perk of the roast chicken? Chicken salad! I had to make lunch for five on short notice so thank heavens we had a bit of leftover. Just toss it with some mayo, mustard, and lemon juice. Ok and salt and pepper. And some cherry tomatoes if you have them.

I'll just end by letting you know that this truly is the best roast chicken. By all accounts.

Perfect Roast Chicken

Barefoot Contessa Cookbook (Ina Garten)

Serves 3 to 4

1 (5 to 6 pound) roasting chicken

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 large bunch fresh thyme (I tied it together with kitchen string)

1 lemon, halved

1 head garlic, cut in half crosswise

2 tablespoons butter, melted

1 Spanish onion, thickly sliced

1 cup chicken broth

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Remove the chicken giblets. Rinse the chicken inside and out. Remove any excess fat and leftover pinfeathers and pat the outside dry. Place the chicken in a large roasting pan. Liberally salt and pepper the inside of the chicken.

Stuff the cavity with the bunch of thyme, both halves of the lemon, and all the garlic. Brush the outside of the chicken with the butter and sprinkle again with salt and pepper. Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken. Scatter the onion slices around the chicken.*

Roast the chicken for 1 1/2 hours, or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh.

Remove to a platter and cover with aluminum foil while you prepare the gravy.

Remove all fat from the bottom of the pan, reserving 2 tablespoons in a small cup. Add the chicken stock to the pan and cook in high heat for about 5 minutes, until reduced, scraping the bottom of the pan.

Combine the 2 tablespoons of chicken fat with the flour and add to the pan. Boil for a few minutes to cook the flour. Strain the gravy in a small saucepan and season it to taste.** Keep it warm over a very low flame while you carve the chicken.

Slice the chicken onto a platter and serve immediately with warm gravy.

*If you want to roast vegetables with the chicken, place 8 whole new red potatoes and 4 carrots, cut diagonally into quarters, and add them with the onions. Place the chicken on top of the vegetables for roasting.

**If you find the sauce too thick to strain simply add more broth or even plain water, while it is still over the heat. After you reach the desired consistency, strain the gravy into a saucepan.