Roasted Chicken with Onions, Potatoes and Gravy

This recipe is from Cooking Light, with a few of my own variations

1 (4 lbs) roasting chicken

1 1/4 tsp. salt

3/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1 tbs. extra virgin olive oil 

**the original recipe does not call for this

1 garlic clove, minced 

**the original recipe does not call for this

1 lemon, quartered

Cooking spray

2 tbs. butter, melted 

**I used Smart Balance 50/50 butter sticks, and it tasted great!

2 lbs. medium yellow onion, peeled, and each cut into 8 wedges 

2 lbs. small red potatoes, cut into 1" wedges

1/4 C all-purpose flour

1 (14 oz.) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

Fresh rosemary 

**the original recipe calls for oregano sprigs

Lemon wedges 

Preheat oven to 425°.

Remove and discard giblets and neck from chicken. Starting at the neck cavity, loosen the skin from breast and drumsticks by inserting fingers, gently pushing between skin and meat. Combine salt, freshly ground black pepper, extra virgin olive oil and garlic; rub under loosened skins. Place rosemary sprig and quartered lemon pieces into body cavity. Lift wing tips up and over back; tuck under chicken. Tie legs together with string. Place chicken, breast side up, on the rack of a broiler pan coated with cooking spray.

Arrange onions and potatoes around chicken. Drizzle melted butter on top, and season with salt and pepper. Place rack in pan. Bake at 425° for 20 minutes. After baking for 20 minutes, I poured a little chicken broth on the chicken to keep it moist. Reduce oven temperature to 325° (do not remove pan from oven); bake an additional 1 hour and 10 minutes or until onions and potatoes are tender and a thermometer inserted into meaty part of chicken thigh registers 165°. Check the chicken periodically, and baste as necessary with the juices in the pan. Set chicken, onions, and potatoes aside; cover and keep warm.

Place a zip-top plastic bag inside a 2-cup glass measure. Pour pan drippings into bag; let stand 10 minutes (fat will rise to the top). Seal bag; carefully snip off 1 bottom corner of bag (make a small snip, as the drippings will drain fairly quickly). Drain drippings into a small saucepan, stopping before fat layer reaches opening; discard fat. 

Combine 1/4 teaspoon salt, flour, and the remaining chicken broth in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add flour mixture to saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium; cook 5 minutes or until gravy thickens, stirring frequently with a whisk. I found that the gravy was a little bland, so next time I plan on adding a few sprigs of rosemary and maybe a little cream to the mixture. 

Carve chicken; serve with gravy and onion mixture. Garnish with lemon wedges and rosemary sprigs, if desired.

This was delicious! I would definitely recommend using the lemon, rosemary and garlic combination. Also, the bird came out nice and moist, mostly because I basted it using the pan drippings every 15 minutes or so. I hope that you enjoy this dish as much as I did!