Roasted Garlic and Rosemary Chicken

Although the calendar may read September, many of the herbs in our garden are still flourishing, even better than they did at the height of the summer growing season. I am always searching for ways to use my fragrant gatherings, and when I was given this recipe that was created by Rachael Ray, I knew I had to give it a try. The beauty of this recipe is that it is fairly quick and easy to prepare, which is necessary for many families now that the school year and activities are getting back into full swing. An added bonus is that it will make your kitchen smell divine as it cooks. One of the beauties of fall is having your home feel warm, cozy and inviting as everyone returns from a long day at work or school. This dinner does just that, as it delights the senses and graces your table with a delicious meal for the family to share as they chat about the day's events.  My family gave it rave reviews when I served it last evening, but when I woke up this morning and the kitchen still smelled amazing, I knew I wanted to share it. The original recipe calls for 2 1/2 pounds of chicken, but I was preparing more than that. To be honest, I didn't do exact calculated increases in the seasonings and other ingredients to account for the extra meat. I just added a little extra of everything, didn't do any precise measuring and it turned out just fine and tasted delicious.

Ingredients


-2 1/2 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into large pieces
-6 cloves of garlic, crushed with the back of a spoon
-3 tablespoons of fresh rosemary leaves stripped from the stems
-3 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil
-1 tablespoon of Montreal Chicken Grill Mates Seasoning (I was lucky enough to have this in my spice cabinet but you can substitute coarse salt, black pepper, and some onion powder)
-1/2 cup dry white wine or chicken broth

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees

Place the chicken in a 9 by 13 inch baking dish. Add the garlic, rosemary, olive oil, lemon zest and seasoning. Toss to coat the chicken pieces with all of the ingredients.

Place in the oven and roast for 20 minutes.

Add the white wine or chicken broth and the lemon juice to the pan, combining with the pan juices, and return the baking dish to the hot oven. Turn the oven off at this point, but leave the pan in to roast for another 5 minutes before removing from the oven.

Spoon the juices over the chicken pieces when serving.

Having a loaf of  warm crisp bread to serve with this meal is a nice addition, as the remaining juices are wonderful to dip the bread in.

Enjoy

Wishing you and your family a cozy start to the new fall season!

Linking with:
A Delightsome Life
Lehman Lane