Roasted Chicken

This is the perfect roasted chicken for a weekend meal! I love dishes that provide enough for leftovers so that I can have easy meals the next few days. Roasting a whole chicken is great because you can use leftovers in so many ways! If you leave meat you can have chicken sandwiches, add it to pasta, roll it into a wrap! Keep the bones and you can make your own chicken stock or even your own chicken noodle soup! Oh the possibilities are endless with a roasted chicken... who doesn't love that?

This chicken has a crispy skin with juicy juicy meat on the inside, and it's really easy to prepare. I like to marinade my chicken for at least 6 hours, preferably a full 24 hours for maximum flavor. Trust me, the marinading is key!

Here is what you need for a perfect roasted chicken.....

Ingredients:

• Whole raw chicken (2-3 pounds)
• Olive oil/Canola Oil
• Salt/Pepper/Seasoning (I use an Italian blend)
• Fresh Rosemary

Directions:

1. Put the chicken into a large ziploc bag, and add the oil and spices -- be generous with the spices! Get your hand in there and rub it all over the chicken, then after washing your hand with scalding water because raw chicken is bad bad bad, close the bag and refrigerate for 6-24 hours.
2. Preheat the oven to 450 F, and put the chicken in a roasting pan. Stuff the cavity with the fresh rosemary and bake the chicken for 15 minutes. 
3. Reduce the heat to 375 F and bake for and additional 50-60 minutes, or until the juices run clear when the chicken is pierced with a fork.
4. Remove from the oven and tent with foil. Let the chicken rest for 15 minutes before carving and serving!

Enjoy!

Suggestions:
- My BF's mom adds a whole lemon to the cavity of her chicken before she roasts it, which adds a subtle lemon flavor and adds to the juiciness!
- Stuff rosemary stalks under the skin of the chicken before roasting, just remember to remove them before carving!
- Squeeze some lemon juice into the marinade bag to tenderize the chicken even more and add lemon flavor!
- Put peeled garlic cloves into the cavity before baking for a garlic flavored roast chicken