ROASTED LEMON THYME CHICKEN

This is an oldie but goodie, chicken rubbed with garlic, lemon and thyme and then roasted in the oven until the meat becomes splendidly tender and moist, and the skin is perfectly crisped. It's a dish that warmly welcomes distant friends and family members back to familiarity, and lovingly conveys, 'it's been too long.

LEMON THYME CHICKEN
(adapted from Sherry Page)

Ingredients

• 2 chicken quarters (or thigh, drumstick, breast)
  
• 1 large garlic clove
• 1 lemon halved
  
• 5 fresh sprigs of thyme
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
  
• sea salt
• pepper
• paprika (optional)
  

Method

1. Take the garlic clove and cut it crosswise. Rub the chicken with the garlic halves, lemon and fresh thyme. Once you have rubbed the garlic onto the chicken, slice the cloves into thin coins, and stuff them under the skin. Place the chicken into a roasting pan along with the lemon halves. Brush or drizzle olive oil onto the chicken pieces, and salt and pepper generously. Sprinkle paprika to help the chicken brown beautifully.  
2. Bake in the oven at 425 F for an hour or as Sherry suggests, until the leg moves freely in the socket.  
3. Allow the chicken to rest for 15 minutes before serving. Squeeze the juice onto the chicken right before serving. 

Serve with mashed potatoes for a lasting memory of homemade comfort.

 Serves 2