Roast Chicken With Spring Vegetables

Total Time: 2 hrs Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 1 hr 30 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 1 (3 -3 1/2 lb) free-range chicken, excess fat removed from neck and body cavity and reserved
• coarse sea salt
• 8 large fresh thyme sprigs
• 5 large savory, sprigs
• 5 large marjoram, sprigs
• 5 large flat leaf parsley sprigs
• 4 large tarragon, sprigs
• 3 large rosemary sprigs
• fresh coarse ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 head garlic, cut crosswise in half
• 3 lemon slices
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 carrots, peeled and cut into 3-inch sections
• 4 asparagus spears, trimmed
• 2 spring onions, halved lengthwise

Recipe

• 1 rinse the chicken inside and out and pat dry.
• 2 sprinkle inside and out with salt; loosely wrap in a kitchen towel, and set on a plate.
• 3 refrigerate for at least a few hours, or overnight.
• 4 preheat the oven to 325°; remove the bird from the refrigerator.
• 5 coarsely chop the thyme, savory, marjoram, parsley, tarragon, and rosemary, including stems, and place in a small bowl.
• 6 add about 1 tablespoon sea salt, 1 tablespoon pepper, and the olive oil; mix to combine.
• 7 rub the mixture into the chicken's cavity.
• 8 put the garlic and lemon slices in the cavity, and tie the legs together with kitchen twine.
• 9 in a small saucepan, melt the butter with a little of the reserved chicken fat over low heat.
• 10 with a basting brush, coat the skin of the chicken with some of the butter and fat.
• 11 season with more pepper.
• 12 place the chicken on a rack in a roasting pan and roast for 30 minutes, basting the bird several times with the remaining butter mixture.
• 13 add the carrots, asparagus, and onions to the roasting pan and continue to cook until the juices from a pricked thigh run clear, about 45 minutes to 1 hour, continuing to baste the bird frequently with pan juices.
• 14 the internal temperature of the thickest part of a thigh should read 165°.
• 15 transfer the bird to a platter and let rest breast side down for 15 minutes.
• 16 cover the roasting pan and keep the vegetables warm.
• 17 remove the string, carve the chicken, and serve with the vegetables.