Roasted Lemon Pepper Chicken

What's Up? Chicken Butt.

It's summertime here in Alabama, and if you know anything about Alabama, it's hot. As Hell. And it's not that beachy, breezy, summer heat here. No. It's like stifling. Like sticking your head in an oven. Between 1pm and 5pm you don't want to be outside. Sometimes not even in a pool. It's a can't breathe, want to die kind of hot here.

Thinking of that kicks my ADD into overdrive and brings me to another subject. Why on earth would anyone leave their pet in a vehicle in this? I was going to say "or child", but I realize that's not on purpose most of the time. So I'll stick with pet. You must be an idiot. Even with the windows down, it's still too hot. And I will bust your windows out to rescue your animal. Just saying. Here's my dog. He doesn't get left in vehicles.

Ok back to summer. I wanted to cook something healthy and light with a cool flavor for this particularly hot summer day. Roasted chicken is always a winner around here, and a nice lemon pepper chicken seems perfect for a summer dinner meal.

Now, don't be intimidated if you've never roasted a whole chicken before. It can seem daunting if you've never done it and to be honest, it scared me too. I thought I was going to have to dig all the "guts" out with my hand, but they put them in a nice little bag for me :). Now side note about me... I am not a raw chicken fan. I can't stand to look at it, touch it, or smell it. It grosses me out and freaks me out. I've had a habit in the past of overcooking chicken to the point of dryness, because the thought of it being undercooked scares the beegees out of me. So, I invested in a thermometer so I don't have to make everyone suffer dry meat. And because I started with a raw chicken and I don't think it looks appetizing, I'm only posting a photo of the finished product and not as it's being prepared. I figure you don't want to look at it either.

By the way, I served this with Corn Casserole and Mac and Cheese and for dessert; Apple Upside Down Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze.

Roasted Lemon Pepper Chicken:

Ingredients

1 whole chicken, rinsed and patted dry

1 stick salted butter, room temperature

1 tablespoon sea salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 lemons, quartered

2 tablespoons of lemon zest

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Place the chicken on the rack of roasting pan that has been filled with 1/2″ of water. Tuck the wings under the body of the chicken. Stuff the cavity with the lemon quarters. Now, I don't own a roasting pan, so I used a cookie cooling rack placed over a deep pan with 1/2" water. Works just the same. Just saying.
3. Mix the butter, salt, pepper and lemon zest together in a small bowl.  Gently slide your hand under the skin on each breast to create two pockets. Spread 1/3 of the butter mixture under the skin on one side, then smooth it out by rubbing the top of the skin. Repeat with the second side.
4. Spread the remaining butter mixture on top of the chicken. Drizzle with olive oil.
5. Roast the chicken for about 75 minutes, or until the skin is crispy and the juices run clear. Temperature with an instant-read thermometer should read about 165°F when taken deeply in the thigh.