ROAST CHICKEN AND DIPPING OIL

As promised a couple of simple but very good recipes using the Italian rub featured on Monday's post.

The first recipe is oh so easy and oh so good.  To make a quick olive oil dip for bread simply fill the well in a salad or dessert plate with good olive oil and then sprinkle with the Italian rub, give a few good twists of the pepper grinder for some cracked pepper and serve with some crusty bread. I like to make this and let it sit for awhile (10-15 minutes) for the flavor to meld into the oil.

I think that roast chicken is such a great dish and I love this version with the Italian rub.  I used to use skinless, boneless chicken breasts for everything but have stopped doing that because I think that the bone-in, skin on chicken is so much better - just don't eat the skin!  For this dish I purchase big chicken breasts, pull back the skin and brush the chicken with a combination of 1 tablespoon of melted butter combined with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Put the rub on the chicken, a couple of twists of pepper, cover with the skin and brush the top of the breasts with the remainder of the oil/butter mixture. Pre-heat your oven to 450° - bake for approximately 35-45 minutes depending on your oven and the size of the chicken breasts.

 

I put the chicken into a small, foil lined (helps with clean up) roasting pan and bake until the thermometer reaches 180° Remove from the pan and let the chicken rest for about five minutes and then carefully turn the breast over and pull away the bones. Slice the chicken - one big breast is enough for two people.

Serve with vegetables or whatever you like.  I had zucchini and yellow squash from the garden.

The only other thing that I served with the chicken and veggies was a simple Caprese salad with cherry tomatoes and small fresh mozzarella and chopped fresh basil.  For the dressing a little olive oil, some seasoned rice vinegar and a little sugar or sweetener and a little diced shallots.

Simple summer dinner with items from the garden, good chicken and some fresh fruit for dessert - starch not missed!

We have used the rub on steaks, chops and hamburgers, it's is just a good thing to have in your pantry.

Will use the leftover chicken breast to make chicken Alfredo  using a low-cal recipe for the sauce and serving on zoodles - noodles made from zucchini.

Resource

Small roaster pan, Crate & Barrel
Black plates, Living Colors
Black and white salad plates, 10 Strawberry Street
Meat thermometer, Sunbeam

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