what a great week for Tyler Florence Fridays! Be sure to check out the official site to see all the other entries which were amazing! We thought that Heather’s Roast Chicken with Wilted Butter Lettuce and Peas was a great dish and especially relevent as it is from Tyler’s recent article in Food Network Magazine. Enjoy!
Roast Chicken= Comfort…Nostalgia
Roast chicken is pure comfort food to me! It is one of the first actual dishes that I remember making when I first lived on my own and really started, really started…cooking. In hindsight, cooking back then was all about developing the basics (whether I realized it or not. Not.). My first roaster was one of those green-painted oval metal deals. Pot roasts, chuck roasts, pork roasts, whole chickens…all with chunks of root vegetables, quartered potatoes and whole cloves of garlic thrown in, a loaf of crusty bread and a bottle of cheap wine, you know…to make it a meal. It was good stuff…satisfying, filling…a big dose of comfort. Over the years, my roasting pan has improved. I actually have 3 to choose from now! I adore my unglazed stoneware roaster, my self-appointed enameled cast iron roaster (I think it’s actually a lasagna dish, but it works wonders as a roaster) and my big, handled silver roasting pan which finally allows me to roast whole turkeys (for my favorite meal of the year). So, although my ways and means have evolved over the years, my affinity for good, roast chicken remains unfeathered. Unfettered! I mean unfettered…sheesh.
The beautiful simplicity of a roast chicken is probably what lures people in…what lures me in. There are endless flavor combinations, endless methods (breast down, breast up, tied, hangin’ loose, stuffed cavity, backbone removed & flattened…need I go on?) and endless personal favorites. I recently came across a Tyler Florence recipe in the Aug/Sep 2009 issue of Food Network Magazine for Roast Chicken. He was trying to make a great meal for $12 or less (ended up being $2.90/serving). I’m going to enthusiastically say that he succeeded…and so did I when I served it for dinner last night. It was devoured. Bones were picked and fingers were licked.
Roast Chicken with Wilted Butter Lettuce and Peas
by Tyler Florence, Food Network Magazine Aug/Sep 2009 issue…or HERE
For the Chicken:
1 3-to-4 lb. chicken, rinsed and patted dry
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 lemon, halved
1 head garlic, halved crosswise
1/2 bunch fresh thyme
4-6 bay leaves
Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
For the Lettuce and Peas:
1 c. dry white wine
1/4 red onion, finely chopped
1 bay leaf
6 black peppercorns
kosher salt
4 Tbs. cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
freshly ground pepper
1 c. frozen peas
1 large head butter lettuce, leaves separated I couldn’t find any butter lettuce so I ended up using 2 small head of bib lettuce and a few leaves of a little radicchio, chopped
1. Prepare the chicken: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Season the chicken cavity with plenty of salt and pepper; stuff the lemon halves, garlic, thyme and bay leaves inside.
Drizzle the skin with olive oil and rub all over; season with plenty of salt and pepper. Place the chicken breast-side up in a roasting pan; roast for 1 hour, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thigh registers 165 degrees F. Let rest for 15 minutes before carving. I’m going to suggest setting the chicken on a rack to allow the under-side to crisp up as well as the breast-side did.
2. Meanwhile, prepare the lettuce and peas; Combine the wine, red onion, bay leaf, peppercorns and a pinch of salt in a saucepan; simmer over medium heat until the mixture is syrupy and just coats the bottom of the pan. (My tip…watch closely hear the end because it evaporated very quickly. If you end up losing it all, just add a bit more wine to the pan and reduce it until syrupy and go from there.) Whisk in the butter cubes, a few at a time, to thicken the sauce and give it a shine. Season with salt and pepper and keep warm. (Remove bay leaf and peppercorns before serving.)
Place the peas in a small pot of salted boiling water until heated through; drain. Toss the peas, lettuce and warm butter sauce (this is called Beurre Blanc…white butter) in a bowl until the lettuce wilts slightly.
Serve with the chicken.
This was a fabulous meal for summertime…or anytime I’m sure. The gorgeous wilted lettuce salad was amazing…the beurre blanc was a silky cover for this mild lettuce, with the sweet little pops of the peas and the addition of the radicchio added a nice little bite. Paired with the beautiful, juicy thyme-essence of the chicken with its golden-crisp skin…I could have been back in my first apartment just as easily as in my current kitchen with my hubby and kiddos. Joy!Be sure to head over to Tyler Florence Fridays to check out what everybody else cooked up with Tyler this week!
Tags: Girlchef, tyler florence fridays
Woo Hoo!!! I’m so excited to actually be on “the” Tyler blog
This was one delicious dish…
Hurray for girlchef! Heather’s blog is one of my absolute favorites! This chicken dish looks amazing!!
way to go Heather – what a super cool thing and the dish is so all about comfort….
You are my favorite chef on Food Network, your food my favorite, your comments about roast chicken, root vegetables, crusty bread and cheap wine defines my culinary view right now. It is so perfect. How can another dish be any better? I do confess a love for roast beef and root vegetables and roast pork and roasted sweet potatoes. Lobster is nice, too (with roasted corn.) Anyway, I love watching your ultimate recipes and being inspired to try something new while also attempting to make my classic cooking absolutely wonderful and unforgettable. Thank you!
opps! Heather, your description of roast chicken is the one I responded to, but it is Tyler Florence that I love. I guess we agree on that. Anyway, awesome recipe.
That is one gorgeous chicken Heather! Congrats on being selected as the TFF featured dish for the week. Your photos are beautiful!
That is sooo cool Heather! YEAH!! Congrats!!!!
congrats heather! this dish looks amazing! i can’t wait to try it.
Congratulations Girlichef, Heather! Your photos are good enough to eat & your joyful description brought yearnings to share this wonderful dish!
Beautiful pictures! Great post Heather.
Congrats heather at this honor.
Congratulations Girlichef!!! Very well done, Heather–it’s not even 6 am here and you have me craving wilted butter lettuce
Way to go Heather, Congratulations!
Thanks, Heather, for this recipe. I have a frozen trukey that needs a recipe to go with..have any suggestions? And also, thank you for being a member of the dairy association.
LOL @ShariSunday!! I knew what you meant…I mean, I know I’m not a Food Network chef and that you were way more likely to gush over the awesome Tyler than myself
So yes, we agree!
Simply divine Heather! Great job- and beautiful photos as usual.. You never disappoint!
YUM YUM! I actually have the mag. I might just have to make this. I am not sure if the hubby will like it, but tough.
Congratulations to my big sister Heather!!! Not only can she cook it but boy, can she write in a way that even if you just ate….would somehow find yourself hungry again. Love you sis!
This dish looks so amazing and I love all of Heather’s recipes….Tyler I think you should invite Heather to do a feature on Food Network! You guys are awesome!
Always have been proud of your accomplishments and love the tasty dishes you bring to our ‘get togethers’. Congratulations! Love, Grandma
Oh, so very well done Heather! this is a very tempting and then oh so satisfying dish
awwwww…my grandma left a comment
Thanks gram!
ditto to ma-Ma’s comments – with a kitchen cupboard full of wonderful, overflowing recipe-boxes, Heather has brought ma-Ma’s “kitchen cupboard era” into the “Now” with Style & Grace – another proud Congratualations! Love, Mom
Hello Tyler,
OMG!!! What a fabulous recipe…I must try it!
~ Gabriela ~
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