Honey-Roasted Chicken with Lemon and Tarragon
- 2 lemons
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh tarragon
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 (3 1/2-lb) chicken, rinsed and patted dry
- 1 head garlic, left unpeeled and halved horizontally
- 1/4 cup mild honey
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Special equipment: kitchen string; an instant-read thermometer
- Put oven rack in middle position and preheat to 425F.
- Finely grate enough zest from 1 lemon to measure 1 tablespoon, then squeeze enough juice from same lemon to measure 2 tablespoons.
- Stir together butter, tarragon, zest, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper.
- Put chicken, breast side up, in a small roasting pan.
- Starting from neck cavity, work your fingers gently between skin and flesh of breast to loosen skin all the way to thighs without tearing.
- Put one fourth of tarragon butter under skin of each breast, then rub skin from outside to spread evenly.
- Starting from large cavity, loosen skin on both sides of cavity with a paring knife (to provide access to thighs), then work your fingers gently between skin and flesh of thighs and drumsticks.
- Divide remaining tarragon butter among thighs and drumsticks, rubbing skin from outside to spread evenly.
- Season cavity and skin with salt and pepper, then halve remaining lemon and put inside cavity along with garlic.
- Tie drumsticks together with kitchen string.
- Whisk together honey, lemon juice, oil, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt.
- Roast chicken 30 minutes, then brush pan juices and half of honey mixture over chicken and roast 10 minutes more.
- Brush chicken again with pan juices and remaining honey mixture and continue to roast until thermometer inserted in fleshy part of a thigh (do not touch bone) registers 170F, about 20 minutes more.
- Transfer chicken to a cutting board and let stand 10 to 15 minutes before carving.
- Skim fat from pan juices and serve juices with chicken.
lemons, unsalted butter, tarragon, salt, black pepper, chicken, garlic, honey, olive oil, kitchen string
Taken from www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/honey-roasted-chicken-with-lemon-and-tarragon-108489 (may not work)