The Roastess with the Mostest

This is my FAVOURITE roasted chicken recipe and it comes from my FAVOURITE cookbook, Eat, Shrink & Be Merry!  The lemon-herb paste is rubbed under the skin so you get lots of flavour right on the meat.

Lemon and herb roasted whole chicken

1 whole roasting chicken (about 4lbs/1.8kg)
1 tbsp Dijon Mustard
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp minced fresh rosemary/or 1tsp dried
1 tbsp minced fresh thyme/ or 1tsp dried
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp each salt and freshly ground black pepper
Grated zest and juice of half a lemon

Move oven rack to bottom third of oven.  Preheat oven to 425 deg. F.  Place a small rack inside a roasting pan.  Pour 1 cup water in pan.  Rinse chicken inside and out, and pat dry with paper towels. 

In a small bowl, mix together mustard, brown sugar, rosemary, thyme, garlic, oil, salt, and pepper to make a paste.  Add lemon zest and mix again.  Set aside.

Squeeze juice from lemon inside cavity of chicken, then tuck the used lemon half right inside it.  Tie legs together with kitchen string.  Rub reserved paste over surface of chicken and, using your fingers, carefully rub paste between skin and meat on breast and thighs. 

Place chicken on rack breast-side down.  Roast, uncovered, for 30 minutes.  Remove chicken from oven and flip over.  Add a bit more water to pan if it has evaporated.  Return to oven and roast for 35 to 40 more minutes, depending on size of bird.  If chicken browns too quickly, cover it loosely with foil.  When cooked, legs should move easily in sockets and thigh juices should be clear (not pink) when pierced with a small knife.  A meat thermometer inserted in thigh (away from bone) should read 170 deg. F.

Remove chicken from oven and let rest for 10 minutes before carving. 

Makes 4 servings

(Eat, Shrink & Be Merry : great-tasting food that won't go from your lips to your hips! / Janet and Greta Podleski, copyright 2005, isbn: 0968063136, pg. 83)

**5 weightwatchers points per serving

Recipe Websites I LOVE!!

Looking for low-fat/low-calorie but extremely tasty recipes?  Check out the links below!! 

http://www.eatshrinkandbemerry.com/

 

http://www.laaloosh.com/

"The Benefit of the Dough"

Quick-rising, whole wheat and ground flax pizza dough.  We topped OUR pizza with turkey pepperoni, red pepper, parmesan and light mozzarella cheese

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

2 tbsp flax meal or ground flaxseed

1 envelope (8g or 2 1/4 tsp) Fleishmann's quick-rising yeast

1/2 tsp salt

2/3 cup very warm water

2 tsp olive oil

2 tsp liquid honey

Olive oil cooking spray

1 tbsp cornmeal

In a medium bowl, combine both flours, flax meal, yeast, and salt.  Mix well.

Measure warm water in measuring cup, then stir in olive oil and honey.  Pour mixture over dry ingredients and mix using a wooden spoon to form a ball.  Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface.  Knead for 2 minutes.  Spray another medium bowl with olive oil spray and place dough inside.  Cover with plastic wrap.  Let rise in a warm place until double in size, about 20 minutes.  Meanwhile, spray a 12-inch pizza pan with olive oil spray and dust with cornmeal.

When dough has risen, turn out onto a lightly floured surface and, using a rolling pin, roll dough into a 12-inch circle.  Transfer dough to prepared pizza pan.  You can top it with your favorite toppings at this point and bake in a 425 degree F oven for about 15 min.  Or, prick crust in several places with a fork and bake untopped for 6 minutes.  Remove crust from oven, top with your favorite sauce and toppings, then slide pizza directly onto middle oven rack and bake for an additional 8 to 10 minutes.

Makes 1 12-inch pizza crust

2 WeightWatchers Points per serving (1/8 crust)-calories: 122/total fat: 2.8 g/saturated fat: 0.3 g/protein: 4 g/carbohydrate: 21 g/fiber: 2.6 g/cholesterol: 0 mg/sodium: 148 mg

(Eat, Shrink & Be Merry: great-tasting food that won't go from your lips to your hips! / Janet & Greta Podleski, 2005. ISBN: 0968063136. pg. 181)