Herbs de Provence Roast Chicken

From Chef Molly: While there are certain staples that are an absolute must on my weekly farmer’s market list (seasonal veggies, honey, eggs), it is meat has steadily been inching its way to the top of the list.

I know! I should always buy local meat. It is so important to understand where your food is coming from. But it is rather pricey and this New Yorker is on a budget.

However, I must practice what I preach! Yes, it’s more expensive than meat you would buy at the regular market, but it’s worth it. Whatever you buy will be more flavorful, juicier and just all-around tastier! And you’ll sleep soundly knowing that you are supporting local, humanely-raised meat.

Jamie, having just recently traveled to a lavender field in Texas, brought along her dried lavender as inspiration for this week’s shoot. We wanted to pair the lavender with some sort of local meat. We wandered through the farmer’s market until we came upon a vendor selling upstate-NY chicken. With our broiler in hand, we picked up some fresh herbs, flowers and veggies and it was into the kitchen to make a greenmarket feast!

Herbs de provence is a mixture of dried herbs which always pairs thyme and savory, and sometimes includes a variety of others such as rosemary, marjoram and lavender. With my dried herbs supplementing Jamie’s lavender, we had a lovely mixture of flavors for our Herbs de Provence chicken.

Roasted along with some red onions and fingerling potatoes- yum.

Herbs de Provence Roast Chicken

~1 4lb roasting chicken
~4 tablespoons butter
~3 tablespoons herbs de provence
~few springs of fresh herbs (thyme, rosemary, lavender)

~salt

Preheat the oven to 400.

Wash the chicken inside and out with cold water. Pat dry and place in a heavy bottomed roasting pan. Rub the chicken all over with butter. Sprinkle the herbs de provence evenly and season with salt. Place a few springs of fresh herbs in the cavity of the bird. Tie the drumsticks together with kitchen twine and place any veggies along the sides of the roasting pan.

Bake until the bird is cooked and juices run clear, about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Let sit for 5 minutes before carving.