Herb Roasted Whole Chicken

Mmmm! Chicken! Served with green beans, butter and garlic pasta, and salad. Delicious!

Herb Roasted Whole Chicken 

1 Whole Chicken
3 T Rosemary Infused Olive Oil
2 sprigs fresh oregano
2 springs fresh thyme
1 small onion
1 small lemon
5 garlic cloves
Salt
Pepper
Handful of cilantro

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Rub rosemary infused olive oil between flesh and skin. Stuff, onion, lemon, and garlic inside of the chicken cavity. Sprinkle chicken with oregano, thyme, salt, pepper, and cilantro. Bake for 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 165 degrees.

Chicken right before he oven-bathed :)

Buffalo Sweat Roast

First off, I would like to thank Tallgrass Brewing Co. for having amazing beers to not only drink, but to also cook with.  Ironically, I was browsing their website today, and noticed that Tallgrass even has a section called Cooking with Tallgrass Beer.  Buffalo Sweat Roast is not from their website (there is a roast recipe on the site), but something I made up.  Because it's been a couple of weeks since I actually cooked this baby, the recipe below might not be completely accurate.  I can't remember what size of roast I used, but if I had to guess I would say somewhere between 2 and 5 lbs.  The roasting pot I used is one of my favorite kitchen purchases because it can be used on top of the stove or in the oven!

Buffalo Sweat Roast

• 2 T Olive Oil
• 4 or 5 Sprigs of Fresh Rosemary
• 3 or 4 Sprigs of Thyme
• 1 Beef Roast
• About 20 Baby Carrots
• 2 Russet Potatoes
• 1 Medium Onion
• 6 to 8 Cloves of Garlic
• 1 Bottle of Tallgrass Buffalo Sweat Stout
• Pepper
• Sea Salt 

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Heat olive oil, two sprigs of rosemary, and two sprigs of thyme in a roasting pan on the stove (medium heat).  Once oil is hot, place raw roast in pan.  Sear for about 5 minutes on all sides.  Remove from heat.  Add the rest of the rosemary and thyme, carrots, potatoes, onion, garlic, pepper, and Buffalo Sweat to pan.  Add salt, if desired (we didn't add any because I flat out forgot to put it in).  Cook for 3 to 5 hours, or until meat thermometer reads 165 degrees.  Immediately take roast out of juices and sprinkle with sea salt.  Also take out the onions, carrots and potatoes.  Strain juices and make into a gravy, if desired (if you didn't add salt before, you will definitely need to add some to the gravy).

Rosemary Red Sauce on Pasta

The following recipe was created by H.  He made me edit it.  Sadly, I forgot to take a picture of my plate before gobbling it up, so all I got was a picture of the next day's lunch.  Sorry, it's not as presentable as I'd like, but at least you can kind of see what it looked like.  Vicky (aka - the reason this blog exists) recently informed me that she is a visual person and really likes the pictures, so I'm trying a bit harder.  :)  Please pretend this meal is on a silver platter with rosemary springs decorating the edges...or something pretty like that.

Rosemary Red Sauce on Pasta:

• 1 to 2 T Olive Oil
• 1/4 Onion (any variety), chopped
• 1/2 Red Bell Pepper, chopped
• about 1.5 sprigs of fresh rosemary, chopped. (equivalent to 1.5 tablespoons)
• 1 can Diced Tomatoes
• 2 or 3 Garlic Cloves
• 1 t Fresh Ginger, minced (optional)
• 1 T Red Pepper Flakes (use less if you don't like spicy food)
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 1 Zucchini, sliced
• 1 T Sun-dried Tomatos in olive oil
• Whole Wheat Pasta, try Penne Rigate or Rotini, prepared
• Fresh Parmesan

Heat 1 or 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large nonstick pan on medium-low heat.  While oil is heating, chop the onion, red pepper, and rosemary.  Sauté for a couple of minutes.  Add the garlic and ginger. Sauté for 30 seconds to 1 minute.  Add the diced tomatoes and stir.  Crank up the heat to medium.

Add some salt and pepper. Somebody once said it was a good idea to season at each stage of cooking. Also, add the red pepper flakes if you like it spicy.  

Let the sauce cook for 3-5 minutes.  While the sauce is cooking, slice the zucchini.  Place all your zucchini slices on top of the tomato mixture. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Let them cook/steam for about 2 minutes, then flip them over.  Sprinkle this side lightly with salt and pepper.  They'll need to cook for an additional 1-2 minutes, or until tender.  

Once the zucchini is done, you're finished.  Serve on the pasta; add a little Parmesan.  Enjoy!

Sauteed Chicken Breasts with Rosemary Sauce

The other night my wonderful boyfriend made us this recipe for dinner. It was delicious! Wish I had pictures of it; it also looked amazing.

Sauteed Chicken Breasts with Rosemary Sauce

• 2 chicken breasts, split in half
• 1 c dry white wine
• 1 c heavy whipping cream
• 2 T minced fresh Rosemary (about 2 sprigs)
• 4 T butter
• Salt and Pepper
• Cooked whole wheat pasta
• Cooked broccoli or other vegetables
  

To make:
Season chicken with salt and pepper. Melt 1 T of butter in a medium to large skillet. Cook chicken breasts over medium heat, 4-5 minutes on each side, or until done. Set chicken aside and tent with foil to keep warm. Pour the wine into the warm skillet. Cook for a couple of minutes stirring occasionally. Add cream and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer until slightly thickened, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Stir in remaining butter and rosemary. After butter is melted, add salt and pepper to taste. Serve sauce over chicken and pasta. Top with veggies.