Sassy Southern Cooking with a French Twist

Recipes from My Kitchen

Recipes from my kitchen – either from my cookbooks or recipes tested for events or for upcoming books I’m working on.

The Big Williamsburg Move

From the Lowcountry to the Rolling Hills of Williamsburg, Virginia

When I moved to Charleston, SC in 2000 all the way from Jackson, WY, I didn’t see it coming. It was love at first sight with me and that beautiful, historic, soulful old city, and within minutes (it seemed), I was driving across the country with my dog Waco and my (former) husband Greg to set up a new home and life there.  I spent twenty very happy and wonderful  years there, growing further in love and deeper in my knowledge of the city. I watched (and tasted) her restaurant scene grow from adolescence to super star adulthood and had the pleasure to write about much of it, as well as teach and write nine cookbooks from that home base, enveloped by so many wonderful friends and an overflowing, endless cup of kindnesses.

For me, my usual maximum length of time to stay interested in anyplace and many things is seven years. This was the time’s-up-span for my love of yoga, tennis, Jackson, WY, and even (sadly) my marriage. Still, I thought I might stay in Charleston forever. But the winds of change started blowing in my heart and mind a few years ago, and like a waning love affair, it took over and delivered me to my new home, Williamsbug, VA in July.  When I “met” Charleston, charming expressions like “I was over-served last night” spoken in that half drawl, have Brit-speak unique to real Charlestonian’s were commonplace and most people knew the difference between a Lowcountry shrimp and an imposter. She’s still there and I love her but it’s different and I needed to get to higher, quieter ground that’s closer to the country roots of my New England childhood, but still firmly rooted in history and the South.

As when I moved to Charleston, I know virtually no one in Williamsburg, except my dear friend Michael who drove my dog Rocky, and two cats Sid and Mr. Purrfect, their respective crates, and everything we could cram into my Juke Nissan one month ago to my new house, eight long hours away. Michael’s certainly earned his wings in Heaven for that kind gesture, at the very least. I’ve spent that month making it a home and making some wonderful new friends and am ready to start really digging in getting to know Williamsburg, specifically her Colonial foodways, culinary distinctions, history, her people and her places. I will continue developing recipes, teaching cooking classes, writing cookbooks and some new genres, and conducting culinary tours. I plan to add seasonal dinners to my “menu” of offerings, but need a little time to fully update the website, so bear with me for a few more days, possibly a week or so on that.    Similarly, all the contact info for my social media, YELP and Google accounts.

In the meantime, I’ve been enjoying some exceptional peaches, cantaloupes, and butter beans from farmer Hermon (with an “o”) Smith’s farm stand just down the winding road from my house.  The peaches are mostly from SC, NC and GA and I’ve been eating two of the sweet, tangy, juicy delights daily with a splash of cream. The butter beans are local and as far as I can tell are slightly more mineral in flavor and a tad sweeter than their Lowcountry cousins. It must be related to the terroir. They’re delicious here, as there, stewed with ham hock and finished with butter and fresh basil – from my new pot outside my new (old) door. And, the cantaloupes, sweeter than honey. They make me understand better why they say Virginia is for lovers.

But, to really make it feel like home, I needed to make a favored summer staple in my new kitchen, a BLT prepared with beefy tomatoes from Hermon’s stand and Duke’s mayo. That sealed the deal! Rocky enjoyed a few crumbs and now we’re officially home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here’s a great recipe using cantaloupes in the late summer, when days are still hot and beg for something cool, refreshing, fruity, and seasonal. It’s from The French Cooks – Soups & Stews and remains one of my favorite summer soup recipes. From my Williamsburg kitchen to yours.

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Hot southern summers cry out for the cool, sweetness of melon. I can’t see or taste cantaloupe without thinking of many afternoons I spent in France supping with friends on the smaller, sweeter varietals they serve there, often wrapped in Jambon de Bayonne and served with a cool, bubbly glass of Blanquette de Limoux.

This sparkling cantaloupe soup brings these luscious flavors together, and gets blessed with a dash of cream, which recalls a kind of grown-up ice cream float, minus all the calories and with the peppery pluck of fresh basil and ground black pepper. I substitute the more easily found prosciutto (dry-cured ham found in the deli section) and brut Champagne for the Blanquette. The soup is not cooked, so if you’re not comfortable with a bit of alcohol in the soup, substitute sparkling cider. Refrigerate the soup thoroughly for an hour or up to three hours (any longers and the bubbles will lose their luster)  and serve in shallow bowls. Garnish the center of the plate with the basil and prosciutto and finish with a drizzle of black pepper.  This presentation gives a pretty French touch while putting the perfect finishing touches on this fabulous soup’s flavor package.

Sparkling Cantaloupe Soup with Prosciutto and Basil

(Makes 6 to 8 servings)

1/2 large, ripe cantaloupe, halved, seeded and peeled cut into 1/4″ cubes (about 4 cups)

2/3 cup brut Champagne (or substitute non-alcoholic sparkling cider)

1/2 cup whole cream (do not substitute with another reduced fat cream)

Kosher or sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Zest of 1 lime

Garnish:

8 slices prosciutto, trimmed and cut into thin strips

1 tablespoon fresh basil leaves, finely chopped

1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

You’ll need a food processor or blender; I find the latter yields a frothier, smoother soup. After that, it goes fast! Prep the cantaloupe. To remove the outer rind, it’s easiest to cut the melon into several slices (usually about 4 to 6). Then, using a sharp, medium chef’s knife, slice along the bottom to remove the rind. Cut the melon into cubes. Place in the blender with the Champagne and cream. Pulse a few times and then blend until smooth and frothy.

Pour out into a medium sized bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in the lime zest. Cover with plastic wrap and chill thoroughly for one hour in the refrigerator. Meanwhile, prep the garnish and toss the prosciutto, basil and oil together in a small bowl.

To serve, ladle the soup into shallow bowls. Top with a dollop of the garnish set up in the middle of the bowl. Dust with a sprinkle of ground black pepper. (Note: Taste the soup after it has chilled.  The colder temperature may “numb” your previous seasoning. Adjust salt and pepper as needed).

Bon appetit!

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Cool, Hot Weather Cooking

Splash Into Summer with Crispy, Cool Cucumber Chips and Dip

Cucumbers are somehow always cool and crunchy, even when pulled fresh from a warm garden vine.  Like watermelon in this way, they are one of hot weather cooking’s best friends. Technically a fruit, cucumbers eat more like a savory vegetable, and have a taste so subtly herbal, it’s more like an aroma than a flavor. Their magic is in their super crunch and texture and their ability to pair well with many ingredients, especially when summer’s warm weather comes calling. Farmers’ markets are brimming with the traditional varieties, but also readily available at supermarkets is the “European” variety.  The latter is longer and leaner with tiny seeds that are more palatable for some people than traditional garden variety cukes. I used European cucumbers in this recipe, but traditional work just fine, too.  I would cut the sticks with seeds in, but they can also be scooped out and discard before cutting the batons.

This recipe was inspired by the traditional bagel spread of smoked salmon, red onions, and capers, and any left-overs can be used that way, too. You may want to thicken it by whipping in some cream cheese and folding in a fine dice of – what else? – cucumbers. I brought this chip and dip treat to a recent book club party and they were a big hit. Perfect for any summer entertaining opportunity, or a crisp nibble on a warm summer’s night, they’re easy, quick to prepare, and go down fast.

Cucumber Chips with Salmon, Sour Cream, Red Onion and Caper Dip

(Recipe Serves 8 to 12 appetizer portions)

 

For the chips:

Two European Cucumbers, peeled, and cut into 3″-long, 1/4-wide sticks

For the dip: 

1 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon red wine vinegar

1/4 teaspoon kosher or sea salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black (or substitute white) pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric (optional, but gives a sunny color and interesting flavor note)

1/4 cup finely chopped red onion

1 tablespoon coarsely chopped capers

1/2 cup finely chopped smoked salmon

To prepare the chips, peel the cucumbers. Cut the cucumbers into approximate 3-inch lengths. Cut vertically at 1/4-inch width. Stack 3 or 4 of these upon each other, and cut through in 1/4-inch intervals. Cover with damp towel and refrigerate up to three hours before serving.

To prepare the dip, whisk together the sour cream, Dijon mustard, vinegar, salt, pepper and turmeric in a medium bowl.  Fold in the red onion, capers, and salmon. Refrigerate up to 1 hour before serving to allow the flavors to develop. Serve the dip in a pretty service bowl on a platter with the cooled cucumber chips arranged artfully around.

Bon appetit!

Wishing you all a most glorious and safe summer as it’s unofficially begun and soon will be officially underway. It certainly feels official in Charleston where it is currently 100F.  Thank goodness for cool, ocean breezes, air conditioning, and cool, summer cooking.

Warmly,

Holly (and Rocky Rocken Roll!)

 

 

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Easy Bake Creamsicle Cream Puffs For Mother’s Day

Sweet, Nostalgic Treats to Spoil Mom on Her Big Day

With the daily onslaught of National-this and National-that days for everything from hot dogs to pets, it’s easy to get a case of celebration fatigue. Don’t get me wrong, I love hot dogs and pets, but in my book, Mother’s Day and Father’s Day are HUGE. After all, we all have one of each, even though some of us never knew them or in an increasing number of cases among my friends, they have passed on.

I’m very lucky, I knew both of my wonderful parents, they’re still living, and I have been blessed to have several “extra” mothers in my lives, mothers of my close friends, who helped me feel safe, loved, and nurtured. And, lucky for me, they all loved to cook and were great at it and sharing their goodness with me and my friends. Two of these dear women, Mrs. Unger and Mrs. Neale, passed in recent weeks. Another, Mrs. Kimmel, likely has, as well, but I long since lost touch with my childhood friend Cathy, to whom she was mother. I wrote about her recently in a piece I have not yet published, and since Mother’s Day is approaching, and since much of this could be said about my own mother and my cherished extra mothers, I’m sharing some of it here:

“Petite, pretty, and just slightly plump, Mrs. Kimmel wore her hair in perfectly coiffed, tumbling curls, like Marilyn Monroe’s in ‘Some Like it Hot,’ and often wore a floral dress that looked like it was cut from the giant magnolia blossoms on 1930’s-era wallpaper. When she was in the kitchen (which seemed like all the time), she wore a frilly, chiffon apron over her dress, tied with a crisp bow around her waist. Like Cathy, she work dark pink cat eye glasses that set off her pale blue eyes and corn silk blonde hair.

Her kitchen, the entire Kimmel household in fact, had a very distinct and persistent aroma that forty years later, I can still remember. It was a cross between maple syrup, browned butter, baking bread, and very, very remotely, moth balls. The source of the latter remains a mystery, but as for the food aromas, that’s a cinch. Mrs. Kimmel, a native of Mobile, AL, excelled in cooking all things Southern.  In her country, New England kitchen, I experienced my first White Lily Flour baked biscuits, slathered with butter. Also, crunchy, black walnut-dusted waffles cooked on a folded-top waffle iron and drizzled with warm sorghum molasses, golden, thick-crusted fried chicken fresh from her ancient cast-iron skillet, and green beans from her garden cooked in a pressure cooker.

She could cook anything, and I loved her and Cathy even more for it. In the cold, snowy New England winters, Mrs. Kimmel mixed clean, country snow with sugar, cream, and vanilla extract and served it in bowls for an after-school snack. It the fall, it was hot chocolate chip cookies fresh from the oven. Late summers were spent canning. Throughout the winter her blackberry jams and bread and butter pickles were staples on her kitchen table, which she lined with a plastic, red and white gingham table cloth, the combination casting a flow of eternal summer and warmth upon the entire space, and my early childhood.”

When I started thinking about a recipe to share for you to consider sharing on Mother’s Day, I thought of cream puffs, made from choux pastry.  Like a good, loving mother, it has sturdy, tough walls, indifferent to spoiled or brat behavior, and a tender, airy, delicate interior, like a kind, maternal heart. Also, you have to beat the heck out of the pastry to get it to react that way once it’s in the oven, not unlike the trials and travails I know me and my siblings railed against my mother, not even knowing we were doing it.  The creamsicle flavors of cream and orange are perfect for spring, and remind me of Mrs. Kimmel’s retro flair and childhood ice cream pops. On a practical note, “choux” is easy to prepare and can be prepped ahead and even frozen (then thawed) before filling. This recipe comes from my cookbook The French Cook – Cream Puffs and Eclairs (Gibbs Smith, 2013).

Creamsicle Cream Puffs from The French Cook – Cream Puffs and Eclairs – are the perfect way to spoil Mom this coming Mother’s Day, or any day. Photograph by Alexandra DeFurio.

Creamsicle Cream Puffs

(Yields 24 to 30 petite cream puffs)

For the choux pastry:

1 cup water

3/4 stick unsalted butter, cold, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1/2 cup bread flour

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt

4 large eggs, room temperature, beaten together

Egg wash: 1 egg yolk, splash of water, pinch of salt, blended together

Preheat oven to 425F. Line two half-sheet baking pans with silicon mats or parchment paper. Measure all the ingredients and have them ready before starting to prepare the dough.

In a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat the water and butter together of medium-high heat, stirring once or twice to help the butter melt. Once melted, reduce the heat to medium.

Sift together the two flours and salt over a medium bowl. Add the sifted dry ingredients all at once to the water mixture, and set the bowl nearby. Stir the dough vigorously with a wooden spoon to bring it together. Continue stirring, less vigorously, until the pastry pulls away from the sides of the pan and forms a uniform ball. Turn the pastry into the reserved bowl and let it sit for about 1 minute. Add half of the remaining egg mixture and continue to stir until the pastry is uniform and glossy, about 1 minute. Repeat with the remaining egg mixture.

While the pastry is still warm, pipe or plop into 1 – 2 inch size balls on the prepared baking sheets, leaving space between them to expand. Brush the top of each pastry with a light coating of egg wash, being careful not to let the egg wash drip down the sides of the pan.

Bake until puffy and golden brown, about twenty five minutes. Do not open the oven door until they’re done or very near done. They should feel light in your palm and sound hollow when done.  Set aside to cool. (Note: Once cool, they can be stored in the freezer for several months in an air-tight container. This makes them perfect for instant entertaining, as well as Mother’s Day. Thaw at room temp before filling).

For the filling:

3 tablespoons fresh orange juice (do not substitute concentrate)

1 cup cold whipping cream

Zest of 1 orange, finely chopped (about 1 teaspoon)

1/4 teaspoon orange extract

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup powdered sugar

Reserved reduced orange juice

For the royal icing:

1/3 cup powdered sugar

1/4 teaspoon orange extract

2 tablespoons heavy cream

Orange-colored granulated sugar

To prepare the filling, in a small saucepan, reduce the orange juice to 1 teaspoon over high heat, 1 to 2 minutes. Turn out into a small bowl and refrigerate to cool. In a large, cold bowl, combine the remaining filling ingredients, including the cooled teaspoon of orange juice. Using a blender, blend on medium speed until the cream is whipped to firm peaks.

Prepare the royal icing by stirring together the ingredients in a small bowl until smooth and incorporated. To fill the choux, cut each in half horizontally. Plop a heaping teaspoon of the cream filling in the center of each. Replace the respective “caps,” trying not to press down too firmly on the filling. Glaze each lightly with the royal icing using your fingertip or the back of a teaspoon. Top with a pinch of the orange sugar. Freeze for at least 30 minutes to set the cream.

Bon appetit!

Wishing you and your Mother, extra mother, memories and families a beautiful Mother’s Day. This column is dedicated to my mother, Mrs. Neale, Mrs. Unger, and Mrs. Kimmel. God bless you all!

Holly

 

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Roasted Chicken – The Feast That Keeps on Giving – Part II

Divine Chicken Divan

Last week, I roasted one 6-pound, $7 chicken and created 4 separate dishes and 16 meals, beginning with the roasted chicken, the ensuing stock, a Chicken and Dumpling Soup made from the stock  a luscious Chicken Divan casserole, and four substantial chicken sandwiches enhanced with a homemade Nutty Whole Grain Bread. That’s going the distance in the economical and no waste cooking department, which was, and for the long-haul is, my most intense cooking ambition these days. Along with keeping things delicious, of course.

Here’s the original post for the roast for easy reference:

Roasted Chicken – The Feast That Keeps on Giving

It was cold last week and like most of us in the snowy, Northern Hemisphere, I was in the mood for some soothing, creamy, savory comfort food.  Chicken Divan, something a Facebook friend aptly described as ‘legacy fare,’ came to mind. Named after the restaurant where it was created in the Chatham Hotel in New York City, divan is a French word meaning ‘meeting place’ or ‘grand hall.’ In addition to being descriptive, like all French words, it sounds prettier than many English words and its base is a mother sauce, a Bechamel turned cheesy, also known as a Mornay sauce. Classically, it’s prepared with broccoli and mushrooms, but I kept broccoli out of the equation (mostly because I didn’t have any to use) and beefed up the mushroom ratio with dried porcini macerated in warm, dry vermouth which was later added to the Mornay. The end result was stunning and doubles as brunch (I served it to friends as such with a side of roasted asparagus), lunch, dinner or a midnight snack.

A word on bread crumbs and mushroom feet:

Unless you are one of the rare few that seldom has a nub of baguette or left-over bread hanging around, there is no reason to ever buy bread crumbs at the grocery. Store the bread bits and pieces in the freezer and crumble them in the food processor as you’re ready to use them, as in the topping for this casserole. Same goes for most types of cheeses (except soft cheeses), which I freeze and use in forgiving dishes such as a casserole or omelet frequently. In cooking school, we were taught not to use the feet of mushrooms in dishes, except in stock, but I disagree. Except for some very tough mushroom types, such as shitake, they are perfectly palatable. With all mushrooms (except morels which are another story), clean them simply by rubbing them down with a damp paper towel or clean kitchen towel to remove excess dirt.

Divine Chicken Divan

Divine Chicken Divan

(Makes 10 generous portions)

1 ounce dried wild porcini

1/2 cup extra dry white vermouth

3/4 cup chicken stock (from roasted chicken – see link above – or best quality commercial chicken stock)

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped

8 ounces, or 2 1/2 cups crimini mushrooms, halved and thinly sliced, feet-on

1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

For the Mornay:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons all-purpose

2 cups whole milk

Reserved strained liquid from the porcini mushrooms

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon kosher or sea salt

1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

2 cups grated Gruyere cheese

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Compiling the casserole:

Shredded meat from the 1 chicken breast and one leg/thigh from the roasted chicken, skin and bones removed – approximately three cups

5 scallions, finely chopped

1 1/4 bread crumbs

2 tablespoons butter, halved

Preheat the oven to 400F.  Place the porcini, vermouth, and chicken stock in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce to a simmer, cook 3 minutes and set aside, at least 10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat two tablespoons butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped onion, stir to coat, and cook over medium low heat until softened, 5 minutes. Add the chopped crimini, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Stir to coat and saute until softened, five minutes. Set aside. Meanwhile, strain the liquid from the porcini through a coffee filter into a small bowl and set aside. Coarsely chop the porcini and add to the mushrooms in the saute pan and set aside.

Prepare the Mornay.  Melt the two tablespoons butter in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Add the flour and stir to combine with a wooden spoon. Cook 1 minute, or until blond and barely bubbling. Add the milk, reserved strained porcini liquid, bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer over medium low heat. Cook, stirring, five minutes or until thickened. Season with the nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Remove from the heat and stir in the Gruyere and Parmesan cheeses until melted.

To compile the casserole, use 1 tablespoon of the butter to rub down the sides and edges of a 4-quart casserole dish.  Arrange the shredded chicken meat on the bottom. Scatter with the chopped scallions and reserved mushrooms in the saute pan. Pour the warm Mornay sauce evenly over the top. Separately, melt remaining tablespoon of butter in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the bread crumbs and toast lightly, stirring to coat. Top the casserole evenly with the browned bread crumbs.  Bake 30 to 40 minutes until golden, fragrant and bubbling. (Note: Can prepare/compile ahead, refrigerate overnight, and bake just before serving. Also, reheats well in oven or microwave after baked).

Happy cooking! Look for the Nutty Whole Grain Bread and Chicken and Dumpling Soup recipe next week. In the meantime, please remember to keep this upcoming cookbook writing retreat and Folly Beach spring wellness vacation in mind and by all means, tell  your friends about it. We still have spots open. Beckie and I would love to see you there! It’s going to be delicious, fun, and educational.

Cracking the Cookbook Code. Writing, Cooking, Marketing, Photography + Wellness Retreat

 

 

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Roasted Chicken – The Feast That Keeps on Giving

Make the Most of  Your Roast with This Adaptable Method

Saturday mornings in my house are spent cooking, especially foods that need to be cooked (lest they expire) and will provide delicious, nutritious meals throughout the week.  It’s a relaxing time to enjoy cooking and put together odds and ends in savory, cohesive dishes. This challenges my practical and creative muscles while eliminating food waste,  something that’s very important in a world that’s far too wasteful.

This Saturday, I was dealing with an acorn squash that was getting a little tired and a whole, uncooked chicken waiting in the refrigerator wings. I decided to cook the squash my favorite childhood way, halved and filled with butter, cinnamon, stock, and a little maple syrup. Normally, I would roast this in a roasting pan and cover it with foil, but I realized I was out of foil. My small Le Creuset Dutch oven happened to be out from a post-soup washing, so I used it as a great, hassle-free roasting vessel (complete with top cover) alternative. Meanwhile, aromas of butter and cinnamon wafting  seductively through the air, I decided to put my larger 5.5 Le Creuset to use for roasting the chicken. The enamel coated cast iron is such a great conduit for even cooking and is easier than dealing with a hard-to-clean rack.

Instead of placing the vegetable aromatics underneath the rack, I scattered them on the bottom of the Dutch oven along with some halved lemon and fresh rosemary sprigs. In the center, I arranged an upside down oven-proof ramekin as a throne for the bird that would encourage air flow for even cooking and browning.  I left the onion, garlic, and well-scrubbed carrot skins on, since they add to both nutrients, color, and flavor both for the chicken and the stock that will eventually make a soup. Rosemary is prolific in my garden this time of year and pairs well with chicken. In summer months,  or according to preference, tarragon, thyme, parsley, sage, oregano, basil, mustard, cumin, cinnamon, cloves, ancho chile, and many other herbs and seasonings work fabulously with the culinary juggernaut, multiple meal-maker otherwise known as a whole roasted chicken.

An upside-down, oven-proof ramekin in the center of a Dutch Oven is the perfect perch for an evenly and beautifully roasted whole chicken.

Getting the Chicken Oven-Ready

  • Remove the neck, gizzard, liver, wing tips and add to the aromatics at the bottom of the Dutch oven (or traditional roasting pan)
  • Pat the chicken dry with paper towels
  • Truss the chicken to facilitate a better appearance and more even cooking. The easiest way is to cut two feet of kitchen string. Place the chicken backside-down on your cutting board. Place the string, length evenly distributed between your two hands, underneath the rear of the back, just above the backbone tip. Bring it around to the front and around the legs. Make an “X” and cross the string here (as pictured below!) and guide it through the space on either side of the breasts. Stop near the wrings and wrap the string around them as you flip the bird to secure the string in a knot on the top of the back of the wing near the neck cavity. Cut off any excess.
  • Season the chicken liberally, both the cavity and all of the breast and bottom with salt and pepper and any additional desired seasonings.  Rub down with a few tablespoons of olive oil.
  • Start it in a hot oven (I begin at 475F) to form a gentle crust of the salt (this encourages tenderness and flavor), and after twenty minutes begin with a series of bastes using chicken stock.

Here’s what you’ll end up with!

Perfectly Golden Roasted Whole Chicken the Dutch oven way.

To Prepare:

One whole six pound chicken

Kosher or sea salt and ground pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion quartered, skin on

6 large cloves garlic, whole with skin on

1 lemon, rinsed and quartered

2 large carrots, scrubbed and cut into 2″-lengths

2 stalks celery, scrubbed and cut into 2″-lengths

5 branches fresh rosemary

Wing tips, chicken neck, gizzard, liver if provided with chicken

2 cups chicken stock for basting

Prep the chicken as described in “Getting the Chicken Oven-Ready,” above. Preheat oven to 475F. Place the chicken on top of the ramekin. Place the Dutch oven in the center rack of the oven. Cook for twenty minutes. Pour 1/2-cup of the stock evenly over the top of the chicken. Reduce heat t0 400F. Pour another 1/2-cup of the stock over the chicken. Cook another 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to 325F. Continue cooking another 1 1/4 hours (count on roughly 20 minutes per pound), basting with 1/2-cup increments of the stock every 30 minutes. The chicken is done when it reaches an internal temperature of  165F. Allow to rest at least 15 minutes before carving. Serve warm and enjoy the flavors and aromas!

To make a stock for next week’s soup, remove the rosemary and ramekin from the roasting pan. Chop the carved carcass into four or five large chunks, add to the roasting pan with roasting vegetables and lemon. Cover with water up to 1-inch of the top of the pot. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cook for an hour, skimming and removing any fat or foam from the top. Cool and refrigerate.

Next week – We’ll turn this chicken into a week-long feast of soup, sandwiches, and hearty casseroles. Talk about the meal that keeps on giving. In the meantime, please take a few minutes to look over the details of this fabulous cooking and cookbook writing retreat I’m hosting with my friend and colleague Beckie Carrico Hemmerling in March. Come join the learning and delicious fun! And, please share the details with interested friends who may want to come along, too.

Cracking the Cookbook Code. Writing, Cooking, Marketing, Photography + Wellness Retreat

Bon appetit!

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