Nothing says traditional family dinner to me more than having chicken on the menu. My favorite memories growing up were having fried chicken at my grandmother’s house, along with her baked mac and cheese, fresh cherry pie and homemade ice cream. While I love fried chicken, to me roast chicken is pure comfort food.

Like my grandmother did, we raise our own chickens for both meat and eggs. The taste is beyond compare to what you can buy in the grocery stores. Kevin loves to barbecue chicken, but my favorite way to prepare the birds is through roasting. You can do any flavor profile you want, from Cajun to French or just plain salt and pepper. All you need is a pan large enough to hold the bird and a hot oven.

This recipe is super simple. Fresh herbs are best, but if you use dried herbs, just cut back a bit on the amounts. You can definitely eat the onions and the garlic after the dish is finished (Kevin and the boys did), but I primarily added these to flavor the sauce and flavor the bird from the inside out.

Roasted Chicken with Herb Butter, Onions and Garlic

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley plus 3 large sprigs
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme, plus 3 large sprigs
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary, plus 3 small sprigs
1/2 teaspoon sea salt or other coarse salt

1 roasting chicken, about 7 pounds, rinsed and patted dry
4 medium onions, peeled and quartered
14 garlic cloves, peeled

1 cup chicken stock or broth
1/2 cup white wine
1 1/2 teaspoons all-purpose flour

Mix the butter, chopped herbs and 1/2 teaspoon sea salt in a bowl, and blend well. If not using right away, refrigerate, but have the butter at room temperature when preparing the bird.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Sprinkle the cavity of the bird liberally with salt and pepper. Place half an onion, a couple garlic cloves and the herb sprigs inside the cavity of the chicken.

Place the chicken on a rack inside a large roasting pan. Spread about 2 tablespoons of the herbed butter underneath the skin of the chicken over the breast meat. Spread about 3 tablespoons of the herbed butter over the chicken skin, and truss the legs together. Sprinkle salt and pepper over the butter mixture. Scatter the remaining onions around the chicken.

Roast the chicken for 30 minutes. Scatter the remaining garlic cloves around the chicken, and brush the chicken, onions and garlic with some of the remaining herbed butter, reserving about 2 tablespoons for the sauce. Roast the chicken for another 60 minutes, occasionally basting with more of the herbed butter, until the internal temperature of the chicken thigh is 180 degrees Fahrenheit. The chicken should be golden brown at this point.

Remove the chicken to a serving platter, and tent with foil to keep warm.

Drain the drippings into a saucepan, including any browned bits at the bottom of the roasting pan. Add the chicken stock and white wine to the saucepan. Stir the 1 1/2 teaspoons of flour into the reserved 2 tablespoons of herbed butter to make a paste. Add the paste to the sauce, and whisk until combined. Simmer the sauce over medium heat until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Serve the sauce over the chicken.

We raised chickens this year, for the first time in a few, and after the poultry/avian flu problem earlier this year, boy am I glad we did. These are meat chickens, and we’ll be getting some laying hens in a few weeks so I can stop paying $4 for a dozen eggs – and have tastier eggs to boot.

Now that we have all these chickens in the freezer, I’ve been on the hunt for different recipes. We love fried chicken and barbecue chicken, but you can only eat those so many times without never wanting to see a chicken again! I found a recipe on Oh, Sweet Basil for honey-roasted chicken, and I think I’ve found a new favorite! Not only is the recipe easy, but the accompanying sauce is tasty and complements the honey very nicely. The guys said I can definitely make this again.

Honey Roasted Chicken

1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
2 whole chickens (3 1/2 to 4 pounds each), giblets discarded (or saved for another use)
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon water
1/2 cup honey
5 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 cup chicken broth
2 teaspoons dried thyme leaves
2 tablespoons butter

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit, and move the rack to the center position.

In a small bowl, combine the salt, pepper and paprika. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels, and rub the spice mixture under the skin and over the outside of each bird. Tuck the wings behind the back, and tie the legs together with kitchen twine to ensure even cooking.

Stir the cornstarch and 1 tablespoon water together in a small bowl until well combined. Set aside.

In a small saucepan, bring the honey and 4 tablespoons of the cider vinegar to a simmer over medium-high heat. Cook until the mixture is reduced to about 1/2 cup, about 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Slowly whisk the cornstarch mixture into the glaze. Return to a simmer, and cook for one minute. Set aside.

Arrange the chicken, breast side down, on a rack inside a roasting pan. Roast until the chicken is golden, about 35 minutes. Remove the roasting pan from the oven, and carefully flip the chicken so it is breast side up. Raise the oven temperature to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Pour 1 cup water and the chicken broth into the roasting pan. Return the pan to the oven, and roast until the thigh meat registers 165 to 170 degrees Fahrenheit, about 35 to 45 minutes. Brush the chicken evenly with a thick layer of the glaze, and continue to roast until the glaze is golden brown, about 10 minutes.

Transfer the chicken to a cutting board, and brush with the remaining glaze. Let rest for 15 minutes.

While the chicken is resting, pour pan juices into a saucepan, and skim off any fat. Stir in the thyme. Bring to a simmer, and cook until the sauce is slightly thickened and reduced to 1 cup, about 15 minutes. Off the heat, whisk in the butter and the remaining 1 tablespoon of cider vinegar. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Carve the chicken, and serve with the sauce.