Roast Chicken with Vegetables

I learned all I know about roasting a whole chicken from Ina Garten. She is truly the master of it. I have made her Perfect Roast Chicken time and time again.  I love to roast a whole chicken, I especially like the crunchy skin.  It is the quest for even more crunchy skin which prompted me to create this recipe.  The chicken is flipped over halfway through cooking to double the amount of crispy skin.  I first cooked a turkey breast side down years ago for Thanksgiving, the results were mixed, but it was an interesting way to roast poultry.  I love adding zucchini and mushrooms to the traditional potatoes and carrots that accompany a roast chicken.  This is a great way to clean out the fridge of whatever vegetables you have hand. From the picture, you can tell I really need to learn how to truss a chicken.

Roast Chicken and Vegetables

1 whole chicken, 3 to 5 pounds
1 zucchini, chopped
4 yukon gold potatoes, chopped
6 carrots, peeled and chopped
½ pound baby bella mushrooms, halved
½ onion, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons thyme, divided
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1 bulb of garlic, halved
1 lemon, quartered

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Allow the chicken to come to room temperature while the oven is preheating. Toss the zucchini, potatoes, carrots, mushrooms and onions with the olive oil, 1 teaspoon thyme, salt and pepper in a roasting pan. Rub the butter all over the skin of the chicken, sprinkle with remaining thyme, salt and pepper. Insert the halved garlic bulb and lemon quarters into the chicken’s cavity. Place the chicken on top of the vegetables, breast side down. Roast the chicken at 425 degrees, flipping over halfway through cooking. This should take 1 to 1 ½ hours, until the juices run clear. Remove the chicken and tent with foil, return the vegetables to the oven and roast for 15 minutes more. Carve the chicken after resting for 15 minutes and serve with the vegetables.

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