roasted chicken with wood ear mushrooms and baby rosemary potatoes...

something I love to do every week is roast a couple of chickens. it's a dinner that presents itself as if i've done a ton of work...when really i throw some food in a pan and stuff it in the oven. and walllaa! a gorgeous dinner browns with such little efffort that i can return emails while it cooks! PLUS!!!! the best part is, when i roast two, even though i cook for a hungry family of five, i have lots of left overs which turns into an easy slow cooker dinner later in the week. (that recipe will come later!)

fixins:
2 chickens (approx 4-5 pounds each)
2 lbs of rinsed baby potatoes...or the littlest red potatoes you can find (or you can chunk some red or yukon gold potatoes if babies aren't available)
1 cup of re-hydrated wood ear mushrooms, chopped (or shiitakes if you can't find wood ear)
fresh rosemary, chopped finely (about 2 tablespoons full when all is said and done...can't have too much fresh herbage!)
extra virgin olive oil
4 lobes of garlic, crushed and roughly cut
2 shallots, crushed and thinly sliced with skin on (the skin makes the gravy we'll make later nice and brown!)
coarse sea salt
freshly ground pepper
water

prep:
1. heat the oven to 400 F. prepare the chickens by rinsing them, removing any guts that are inside and rubbing them with extra virgin olive oil. put them breast side up in a large roasting pan and sprinkle some sea salt and freshly ground pepper onto them.
2. in a large mixing bowl put potatoes, wood ear mushrooms, rosemary, and shallots...drizzle with extra virgin olive oil until coated...toss in some sea salt and and freshly ground pepper and about 2/3 of the garlic.
3. put the potato and mushroom mixture into the pans surrounding the chicken.
4. sprinkle the remiaing garlic onto the top of the chickens.
5. pour a little water into the pan to coat the bottom and stuff that baby in the oven.

cooking time will vary depending on the size of your chickens. you'll need a meat thermometer, because from experience, there is nothing worse than thinking the chicken is done when it isn't and having to have the kids wait while you shove it back in the oven. i cook chicken to about 160 F, measured in the breast.

for a nice, easy gravy, pour most of the drippings from the pan into a sauce pan and heat over medium low heat...add a little flour to the rest of the warm drippings and stir it in until it is dissolved...add this to the sauce pan and stir...it will get nice and thick...you can add salt or pepper to taste if necessary.

this is a great supper to pair with my favorite kale salad...i'll post it next!

(pssst...remember to wrap and save everything that is leftover for an easy chicken stew late in the week! potatoes, mushrooms, chicken! it's all going to get used!)