Roasted Chicken With Sumac, Lemon, Garlic and Thyme

Our shy and elusive spring made another welcome appearance last Saturday here in Pittsburgh. How to celebrate the sun's reemergence from what seemed like an eternity of cloud cover over the city? A trip to the Strip District, of course!

I'd been thinking of making a Middle Eastern inspired Sunday roast chicken for a couple of months now, but needed a few items from Labad's (or Penzey's) to actually bring the dish from idea to reality. Somehow, crappy weather seemed to stalk an endless string of Saturdays, which caused me to huddle at home instead of braving the cold and wind of Penn Avenue. Call me chicken. I can live with it.

It may have taken an inordinate amount of time to finally roast that bird, but I can tell you the wait was worth it. The siren smell wafting from my kitchen of roasting chicken, garlic, lemon, exotic spice and honey was alone worth the drive to the Strip. But, the juicy succulence and deep flavor of that bird all by itself would have been worth dodging any winds and snow the winter could have tossed my way...yes, it was THAT good.

Do yourself a favor, don't waste your time waiting for perfect weather to gather up whatever ingredients you might not have on hand. Make the trip to the Strip now! You'll thank me later.

Roasted Chicken With Sumac, 

Lemon, Garlic and Thyme

• a 5-6 pound roasting chicken (or thereabouts)

• 1 T Sumac (get it at Penzey's or Labad's in the Strip or order it online)
• 1 t thyme
• 1 T Kosher salt
• 5 cloves of garlic, peeled and pressed or minced finely
• 1 lemon, zested, then juiced - juice reserved
• 2 T olive oil
• 1 t freshly ground black pepper
• 1 T honey (helps to brown the bird beautifully!)

• the reserved juice from above
• 1/2 C water

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees - you read that right. This technique browns the bird quickly on the outside, yet keeps it juicy on the inside.

Combine sumac, thyme, salt, garlic, lemon zest, olive oil, pepper and honey to a paste. Loosen the skin on the breast of the chicken by gently running a couple of fingers between the skin and the flesh of the bird being careful not to tear the skin. Rub 1/3 of the spice paste between the skin and the flesh of the breast and rub the rest all over the outside of the bird including legs and wings. 

Place the chicken on a rack in a roasting pan and pour the lemon juice and water in the bottom of the pan.

Roast the chicken until the legs wiggle freely in the sockets, the juices run clear, and its perfectly browned. (Or until thermometer reads 165 degrees at the thickest part of the breast - AND is beautifully browned.)

Roasted carrots and sugar snap peas made quick and easy side dishes, too. Enjoy! (And enjoy this gorgeous spring weather...finally. We earned it!)

Red, Gold & Bleu Beets Ala Root 174

From haute cuisine to comfort food and even to country fair food, if you seek out the best of the best wherever it is, you just may be a foodie. For good or bad, the term denotes (to me at least) one who appreciates well-prepared, well thought out and presented, deliciously interesting foods. 
 
Which leads me to Root174. THIS is foodie paradise. The best part (well, except for the food!) is there are no pretensions whatsoever, just damned fine food prepared by damned fine people in a casual, comfortable and intimate space. If you haven't had the opportunity to get there yet, MAKE the time. Go. You will be dazzled.

Lured back for the crispy Brussels sprouts (that Chef and owner, Keith Fuller, cannot take off the menu for fear of a customer uprising), Mark and I grazed our way through a delightful meal. The menu tempted in so many directions, that I finally settled on a meal comprised of appetizers alone.  Well...and dessert.

We shared the heaping bowl of Brussels sprouts - the kitchen accommodated my gluten issues by using corn flour instead of wheat flour - with bacon. I don't know what else is in there, but the crispy leaves are simultaneously sweet and salty, crispy and soft and simply wonderful.

When Mark's hangar steak came, my other appetizers came, too. First was the chilled, smooth asparagus soup with a scoop of savory creme fraiche ice cream in the middle and garnished with crushed pink peppercorns. The color was gorgeous! The taste divine. Sweet and creamy fresh asparagus with the tang of creme fraiche and crunch and heat of the peppercorns was a beautiful start. Remember what I said about presentation and taste? No worries here.

Cream of Asparagus Soup with Creme Fraiche Ice Cream and Pink Peppercorns

 

Talk about presentation! The golden and red beet salad with honey cumin vinaigrette, bleu cheese crumbles and tiny watercress leaves was picture perfect and perfectly scrumptious. Although I'm not a vegetarian (bacon and I are BFF's), I could eat this as my main course any night of the week.

Beet Salad with Honey Cumin Dressing and Amish Bleu Cheese

 

Dessert? Yes, please. Although I looked at the flourless chocolate cake with beet ice cream longingly, I just couldn't tear myself away from the thought of an exotic sounding dessert with curry ice cream, coconut tapioca, roasted pineapple and crunchy cashews. That's exactly what I ordered because I knew I'd never have an opportunity to experience anything like it anywhere else. Am I ever glad I did! 

Curry Ice Cream, Coconut Tapioca, Roasted Pineapple and Cashews

 

Despite whatever you may be thinking, yes, curry most certainly DOES belong in ice cream! My tastebuds sang (and danced a bit, too, I'm sure) with the excitement of subtle, sweet spices and caramel-y sweet and tangy pineapple, smoothed by luscious coconut and made crunchy with cashews. If you see it on the menu, do not hesitate to order it...sublime.

I wish I could duplicate my dessert, but my skills are no match for the geniuses in the kitchen who came up with that one! However foolish, I did attempt to duplicate the beautiful beet salad. Here's the recipe for my version, but do yourself a foodie favor and get yourself over to Root 174 for the real thing. Oh! And don't miss one of Austin's awesome cocktails while you're at it!

 Red, Gold & Bleu Beets ala Root 174

•  4 beets, 2 red, 2 golden - greens removed (saved for beet greens!), lightly oiled, wrapped in foil & baked at 400 degrees until a knife inserted slides in smoothly. Cool, remove skins, cut into medium dice
• watercress, a few sprigs - tiny leaves removed for dish, larger pieces reserved for a salad
• 2 tablespoons bleu cheese, my fave is buttermilk bleu cheese - use what you like, crumbled (if you're highly gluten-sensitive, you may want to use a different cheese)

• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 1/3 cup honey, I used organic orange blossom honey
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Arrange the beets decoratively on a plate. Sprinkle with watercress leaves and bleu cheese. Set aside.
 
Mix honey, cumin, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, orange juice, salt and pepper with a whisk until well blended. Drizzle over salad. Serve.
 
NOTE: If you wish, feel free to just toss the ingredients together and forget the presentation.  It will taste just as wonderful!


NOTE 2: My apologies to Root 174 for the inferior photos of their beautiful food. The cellphone just didn't cut it. The first photo is of my version, caught with a real camera in good lighting.

Orange Roasted Chicken with Fall Veggies

Sundays should be slow and easy.  And so should Sunday dinners.  In that vein, here's a simple post for a simply delicious Sunday dinner.  Enjoy!

Orange Roasted Chicken with Fall Veggies

• a 6 pound roasting chicken, washed, dried, giblets removed - I threw them out...you do what you wish with them

• 3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 1 pound parsnips, peeled and cubed
• 6 cloves garlic, peeled and halved
• 1 large leek, cleaned carefully, dark ends removed (and reserved), root end removed and discarded, remaining piece cut into 3-4" pieces
• 2 small fennel bulbs, fronds removed, set aside; stalks removed, set aside; remaining bulbs cut lengthwise into wedges
• 1 orange, zested, then juiced, reserve what's left of the orange halves and cut into large pieces
• 3 sprigs thyme, large ones

• 2 tablespoons kosher salt
• fresh ground black pepper, lots

• orange juice, reserved from above
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, preferably white
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

Preheat oven to 350.
 
In the bottom of a roasting pan, scatter sweet potatoes, parsnips, leeks, garlic and fennel wedges
 
Mix the rub: orange zest, 2 tablespoons minced fennel fronds, leeks, 2 springs of thyme - leaves removed and minced, 2 T. Kosher salt and lots of freshly ground pepper.  Mix well.  

Gently run your fingers between the skin and the flesh of the breast creating a pocket.  Gently (again) rub 2/3 of the rub between the skin and the flesh.  Rub the rest of the mixture all over the outside of the bird.
 
Mix the leek ends, remains of the orange, rest of the thyme and the rest of the fennel fronds and stalks.  Cram them into the cavity of the chicken.  Settle the prepared chicken on top of the veggies in the pan.

What a pretty chicken all ready for roasting!

 
Roast the chicken until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast reads 180 degrees and the legs move loosely when wiggled. Remove from oven and let rest for 20 minutes before carving.

NOTE:  The carcass will be turned into a wild rice and fall veggie soup...the dark meat became a Shepherds Pie with a topping of half and half mashed potatoes and cauliflower.  You know how I love my leftovers!