"Dressed to Impress" Orange Honey Glazed Chicken

Whether you have Cornish Game Hens, a regular old Roaster Chicken, or a Holiday Goose you can’t go wrong with this recipe. I use this for my “honey, my boss is in town and I thought we’d extend an invite to dinner!” phone call, or “my colleagues are coming over to work on some reports– could you throw something together?” requests. This recipe is such a favorite at our house for every day that my kids ask for it as lunch the next day at school...and their teachers will ask for the recipe!

You’ll Need:

1 Roaster Chicken (any size or use any birds you’d like), about half a dozen red potatoes (adjust for the number of people- about 2 per person), a medium roaster pan (with a small rack), and an oven pre-heated to 425 degrees.

For the Orange Honey Glaze you’ll need:

The juice of 2 whole oranges (fresh is best and save the peels)

1/2 cup of honey (I love my friend Addy’s special ranch honey but any yummy local honey will do!)

2 Tblsp Brown Sugar

2 Tblsp Orange Zest (use your peels then keep them for the bird cavity)

And a couple splashes of Brandy (okay, one for you and one for the sauce)

For the chicken rub, potato rub and pan rub...massage license not required:

4 cloves of garlic made into a paste (see tip)

2 Tblsp Herbs de Provence (French herb mix of savory, fennel, basil, lavender, & thyme– if you don’t have this herb mix then some rosemary and thyme will do fine)

1/4 cup of Olive Oil (or Coconut Oil can be wonderful depending on the flavor choices)

Salt to taste (remembering you have already salted your paste)

Technique:

Massage your chicken with your garlic herb rub and rub down the inside of your roaster pan. Place small rack inside pan (use a couple teaspoons white wine, or chicken stock, or water in the pan so your drippings don’t burn, and if you don’t have a rack then tinfoil will do).

Place bird BREAST DOWN in pan on rack and bake for 15 min at 425. Remove bird from oven, and from pan, and set aside. Reduce Oven Heat to 350 degrees.

Quarter your potatoes and massage them with garlic herb rub and place them in the bottom of the roaster pan. You will use the potatoes as a rack now, so toss the rack aside. Stuff bird cavity with your orange peels and use the last of the garlic herb rub to re-rub your bird.

Place the bird back in the pan but this time BREAST UP and on top of your potatoes using the potatoes as a rack.

Glaze your bird with the Orange Honey Glaze (reserving 1/2 for basting).

Cook at 350 degrees for about another hour (use your meat thermometer for exact temp as it will vary for bird size and style) basting every 20 minutes or so with the glaze.

You will get a beautifully colored bird with a gorgeous crust and potatoes to serve on the side! Serve with your favorite green veggie and the nice wine your spouse’s boss probably brought.

Tip: Well pasted garlic is a technical must in any kitchen. Smash your garlic clove with the large part of your knife, and the peel should slip right off. Finely chop the garlic then sprinkle a little coating of salt on it and let it sit a minute. Next, again with the large part of your knife, smoosh your garlic into the cutting board into a smooth paste. Voila! Garlic Paste. Be careful when salting your recipes because you’ve already used salt in the paste, but the best part of cooking is to taste, taste, taste!.