First you take the chicken

So my co-worker said to me, "What is one thing you have always wanted to cook, but have been afraid to." Without hesitation I answered "Roasted chicken." We recruited another co-worker and made it happen, and it was one of the best meals I have had in a long time (our turkey burgers notwithstanding). One of those long slow dinners where you savor every bite, sip your wine, and have great conversation.

First we used, a version of Julia Child's Roasted Chicken Recipe which used..no surprise salt and lots of butter. We roasted parsnips and potatoes. We tried a fun trick with the potatoes. After par boiling, we drained the water out and then put them back in the pan. We then vigorously shook the pan until the potatoes looked fluffy. We put them in the oven along with the chicken. Apparently the fluffy factor makes them nice and crunchy. We also had a delicious green bean recipe with red onions, cherry tomatoes and mead (honey wine!). Incredible! We washed it all down with mead and Cabernet Sauvignon.


For dessert we made a very simple pear tart! Which leads me to a new food blog I learned about. It's called Smitten Kitchen. The tart recipe was adapted from here.

This website also offers some advice about photographing food!

A meal I won't soon forget!