best ever poppyseed chicken

Listen to me. I don't use the term "best ever" lightly when I'm titling recipes for fear that y'all might not believe me when I really mean it. So I reserve it for the best of the best. And this chicken poppyseed casserole is the best of the best OF THE BEST. First of all, who doesn't love the chicken poppyseed casserole of our youth featuring canned soup and buttery crackers? This casserole has all of that tender chicken and creaminess with the cracker-y crunch that we hold dear, but it's swimming in a homemade cream sauce that is as easy as can be! And the cracker-y topping is the best version of itself with seasoned crackers, grated parmesan cheese (because why on earth not?) and little extra butter. 

If you've been around here long, you know I toot the horn of making and sharing food. So this dish is one that is so simple to stir up, pour into an aluminum throw-away pan, and send to someone who could feel loved by it. When I'm sending this dish, I cover the creamy chicken mixture in the pan, and I send the crunched up crackers and the grated parmesan in little zip-top bags. Always include instructions for how to top the mixture and how long to bake it! Send it with a few cups of cooked white rice, a pretty grocery store salad, a pan of yummy dinner rolls, and something sweet! This Best Every Poppyseed Chicken will "Love Welcome Serve" with the best of them!

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BEST EVER POPPYSEED CHICKEN 

makes 4-6 servings

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

3 teaspoons salt

2 tablespoons butter

1 small yellow onion, chopped (about 1 cup)

1 tablespoon minced garlic

2 tablespoons flour

1 cup whole milk

1 cup chicken stock

8 ounces sour cream

4 ounces cream cheese, cubed and softened

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 tablespoon poppy seeds

3/4 cup frozen peas, optional

Butter to grease the dish

2-3 cups cooked white rice

-for the topping-

1 sleeve of round "Everything" flavored Ritz crackers, crushed 

4 tablespoons butter, melted

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

chopped parsley for garnish

Lay the chicken breasts in the bottom of a wide saucepan, cover with cold water by one inch, season water with 3 teaspoons of salt. Cover the pan with a tilted lid, turn the heat medium high, and bring to a boil. Allow chicken to boil for about 5 minutes; then reduce the heat to medium low and let the chicken simmer for at least 45 minutes to an hour. Remove the chicken from pan, and use two forks to shred the chicken. Cover and set aside.

Preheat oven to 375F. In a braiser or large saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons of butter and sauce the onion for 3-4 minutes or until tender. Reduce the heat to medium low, add the garlic, and stir for only a minute until fragrant. Be careful not to burn the garlic! Stir in the flour, coating the onions and garlic, making a clumpy mixture. Then whisk in the milk, stirring for 1-2 minutes. Whisk in the chicken stock. Stir until the mixture just begins to simmer. Then add in the sour cream and cream cheese, stirring until smooth. Remove pan from heat, and add salt, pepper, and poppy seeds. Stir in the chicken and add peas if desired. Butter a 2qt casserole and spread the mixture in the pan. Top with crushed crackers, drizzle with melted butter, and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Bake uncovered for 15-18 minutes or until crackers are golden and the filling is bubbly. Garnish with parsley and serve over rice!

Adapted recipe from Creme de la Crumb

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mexican corn and black bean skillet

Well, our undying devotion to Mexican food lives on with this Mexican Corn and Black Bean Skillet. It’s a simple nearly one-pot meal that is cheesy and loaded with flavor! (Nearly meaning only two pans!) And it throws together in no time with some store-bought shortcuts! Gosh, I love a quick weeknight meal, don’t you? Let this little number rest before you cut it, and it’ll serve up in the prettiest wedges. Delicious, easy Mexican food that’s pretty, too?! Count me in!

MEXICAN CORN AND BLACK BEAN SKILLET

3 chicken breasts, cut into 3 pieces

1 (16-ounce) jar salsa verde

1/4 cup water

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cumin

3 tablespoons heavy cream

2 cups frozen corn

1 (7-ounce) can chopped green chiles

1 (14-ounce) can black beans, rinsed/drained

4 cups shredded Monterey Jack

10 (6-inch) corn tortillas

Set the oven to 375F. Cook chicken pieces in salsa with water, covered, for 30 minutes or until tender.

Remove chicken, shred into bites, and cover until ready to use. Stir in heavy cream, cumin, and salt to the reserved sauce.

In an oven-safe cast iron skillet, cook corn undisturbed over medium high heat for several minutes to get a nice char on one side. Season with pinch of salt, stir, and let cook for another several minutes to get color. Transfer corn to a bowl.

In the skillet, spoon a little verde sauce in the bottom. Then lay five tortillas overlapping to cover the bottom. Then layer half the chicken, half the beans, half the corn, half the cheese. Then spoon more sauce over, and continue with tortillas, chicken, beans, corn, and cheese. Dollop chopped green chiles over the top, spoon remaining verde sauce on top. Bake uncovered for 25-30 minutes until bubbly and browning around the sides. Allow to rest for 5 minutes before cutting into wedges. Serve with sour cream, cilantro, and avocado slices.

Recipe inspired by What's Gaby Cooking

sticky oven-baked drummies

It has taken me years to enjoy chicken on the bone. And I confess that although I have come to a mature appreciation of the tender meat that accompanies any meat-on-the-bone, I still examine nearly every bite I take...UNLIKE the men in my house who chew whatever until they're holding a dry, nekked bone. My daughter Grace and I watch in fascination as we nibble and pick at our carefully-selected premium bites.

So when these sticky oven-baked drummies made all of the people in my household happy - picky eaters and non-picky eaters, males and females alike - I knew we had a winner on our hands! The tangy, sweet marinade becomes the glaze on these chicken drumsticks. And the oven works its magic on the sugar in the honey to make the charred, sticky, and delicious! Perfect for the big game! They are mouth-watering and finger-licking good!

STICKY OVEN-BAKED DRUMMIES

makes 12 drumsticks

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup soy sauce

2-3 cloves of garlic, mashed

1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes

pinch of salt

12 drumsticks

2 scallions, green parts chopped

In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, honey, brown sugar, soy sauce, mashed garlic, and pepper flakes. Place 12 chicken drumsticks in a glass or ceramic baking dish, nestling them down into a single layer as best you can. Pour the marinade over the drumsticks, cover, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, turning them over with tons at least once soaks in the marinade. They may marinate in the fridge for as long as 6 hours!

Set the oven to 450F. Line a metal sheet pan with a metal cooling rack that has been sprayed or brushed with oil. (You may want to put a sheet of foil on the pan underneath to help with cleanup!) Remove the chicken from the pan, line them up on the wire rack, and reserve the marinade. Season each chicken drummie with a little salt. Bake in the preheated oven for about 25-30 minutes or until the skin begins to crisp and caramelize.

While the chicken is in the oven, pour the marinade in a small pan. Bring just to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook and stir over low heat until it reduces and thickens, about 15-18 minutes.

Remove the drumsticks from the oven, spoon a little of the marinade on each piece of chicken, and return to the oven for a final 7-10 minutes.

To serve, arrange the chicken drummies on a large platter or serving board and sprinkle with chopped scallions. Serve with a good cool dip of your choice!

NOTE: The garlic is intended to flavor the marinade only. Mashing the cloves allows the garlic to release its good garlicky flavor. Let them float around in the marinade and simmer in the glaze, then discard. 

Steven's Special: mexican chicken and queso rice

At least once a week. 

That's how often my family goes out to our favorite Mexican restaurant just down the street. And what beckons us to frequent so often? What could possibly be so good that we have.to.have.it every few days? Steven's Special. An entree of creamy, queso rice with spicy strips of seasoned, grilled chicken stirred in. It's served with optional soft flour tortillas in the event that you get the itch to roll it into the tortilla and eat it. But most of us just eat it straight up. Every bite.

So I decided to make my own version at home to satisfy our regular (out-of-control) craving. And while my version is unique in its own right, it's awful good and mighty close to our cantina favorite! My Steven's Special rendition has lots of fresh ingredients and fixins too which we L-O-V-E. I'm telling ya. This recipe is sure to become a family favorite!

STEVEN'S SPECIAL

serves 4-6

-for the taco seasoning-

4 Tablespoons chili powder

4 teaspoons cumin

4 teaspoon salt

3 teaspoons black pepper

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

2 chicken breasts, halved lengthwise making 4 cutlets

2.5 cups water

2.5 cups 5-minute white rice

1 large shallot, minced

2 cups whole milk

Juice of one can Rotel tomatoes with green chiles (juice only)

1 Tablespoon garlic paste (or grated fresh garlic)

1lb queso blanco Velveeta, cubed

3 Tablespoons jarred chopped jalapenos with juice (or 4oz chopped jalapenos)

Garnish with sour cream, avocado, tomatoes, and cilantro.

Mix the taco seasoning together and season both sides of the chicken breasts. Allow to sit for 10 minutes so the seasoning will really flavor the meat. Work on the rice and the prep for the queso while the chicken marinates in the rub. Grill on a hot preheated grill for 3 minutes on both sides. Remove from grill, cover with foil, and allow to rest. 

In a saucepan, heat water until it boils. Stir in rice, cover, and allow to simmer on low heat until the water is absorbed. Remove from heat and set aside.

Meanwhile, in a heavy-bottomed saute pan with a lid, saute the shallot over medium-low heat in a little olive oil. Saute until just tender. Pour in whole milk and the juice from the Rotel tomatoes, and stir in the garlic paste. Allow to come just to a simmer, then add the cubes of queso blanco cheese. Cover with lid and allow to melt into the warm milk. Keep heat below medium and allow time to melt. Stir occasionally. Stir in chopped jalapenos with their juice. Taste and adjust. Keep covered on low heat.

When the chicken is grilled, the rice is cooked, and the queso is melted, stir the rice into the queso. Slice the chicken very thinly. Spoon a plate with cheesey rice, to with sliced chicken, and garnish with sour cream, sliced avocado, chopped tomatoes, and cilantro. Serve with warm tortillas if you choose.

green chili and lime chicken fajitas

When Sam and I were dating, we'd go out to eat and share Fajitas for Two at any restaurant that would offer it on the menu. We. Love. Fajitas. Mmmm, with yummy queso and guacamole! Ugh, we can eat ourselves sick on fajitas and queso! After we got married, we decided we wanted to learn how to make reallly good fajitas at home. So we worked on a recipe doing a little of this and a little of that. We tried different skillets, different marinades, different seasonings. And after a few years of trying a few variations, we've landed. I made us finally write it down so we'd know every time what we did that made them so good! Then I even had him as a guest on my cooking show so we could make these for y'all step by step! WATCH THE EPISODE HERE. They require a little bit of chopping, but very little skill. Worth every single second!

Two equipment notes real quick! In order to get a good caramelization on your veggies, you need a cast iron skillet. Go find one at a flea market, get your Grannie's, or run to Euna Mae's and get a double-handled big boy like I have here! It's dreamy, gang. And also, grill the chicken on an outdoor grill. We tried to do chicken inside, but the flavor from the grill and those charred grill marks is unbeatable! Spoon out the queso, and let's get going!

GREEN CHILI & LIME CHICKEN FAJITAS
Feeds about 6

3 chicken breasts, pounded and flattened a little on the thick end

For the marinade:
⅔ cup canola oil
¼ cup white vinegar
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon cumin
2 cloves garlic, mashed
Juice of 2 limes
2 small cans diced green chilies
 

For the rub/seasoning:
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon season salt
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon chili powder
1 tablespoon salt

1 yellow onion, sliced
1 red onion, sliced
1 yellow pepper, sliced into strips
1 red pepper, sliced into strips
1 green pepper, sliced into strips
Flour or corn tortillas
Shredded monterey jack cheese
Sour cream
Lime for squeezing over fajitas

In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the marinade. Put chicken in a zip top bag and pour marinade over. Massage into meat. Let marinate in the refrigerator for at least an hour or as long as four hours. Don’t marinate overnight or the lime juice in the marinade will break down the texture of the meat. Mix dry rub together in a small bowl. Remove chicken from marinade, allow marinade to drain off, and generously season both sides of chicken breasts with dry rub mix, reserving about a teaspoon for the vegetables. Grill for 7 minutes on each side. Remove from grill onto a rimmed baking sheet, and cover with foil. Covered chicken can stay warm in a 200 degree oven until time to slice and serve.

While chicken is grilling, preheat a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat with just a little oil drizzled in the bottom. Saute onions and peppers until tender with a little color. Season with 1 tsp of seasoning/rub mix plus a few good pinches of salt. As vegetables finish up, cut chicken into thin slices, and add to the skillet with the hot onions and pepper. Squeeze a lime over the skillet, and splash with a few tablespoons of water to get that restaurant sizzle! Serve with warmed tortillas, shredded cheese, sour cream, avocado, and cilantro.

grilled black bean and chicken burritos

If I know two things at all, I know these two things. 1) We are busy. 2) We love Mexican food. So combine those two things, and you've got a recipe for these grilled black bean and chicken burritos!  It's a quick weeknight recipe that is a crowd-pleaser. YAY! The hero of this dish is rotisserie chicken that can be picked up and pulled apart in a snap. Then these burritos are filled with gooey, melted cheese, a warm sweet-and-spicy black bean salsa, and super seasoned chicken. Load 'em up, grill 'em up, slice 'em and serve 'em! Your people are gonna love them! 

Watch the online episode HERE with step-by-step instructions and fun!

GRILLED BLACK BEAN AND CHICKEN BURRITOS

feeds about 6

1 family-sized or two small rotisserie chickens, meat pulled and shredded

¼ cup water

1 can of Rotel tomatoes with green chiles

Juice of 2 limes

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 scant teaspoon cumin

1 scant teaspoon garlic powder

Salt and pepper to taste

1 medium yellow onion

1 14oz can black beans, drained a little

½-1 cup frozen corn

Monterey Jack cheese, shredded

Package of soft taco-sized flour tortillas

Sliced avocado

Halved grape tomatoes

Sour cream

Cilantro

In a pot over medium-low heat, mix together and heat chicken, water, half of the juice from the Rotel can (keep the rest!), lime juice, chili, cumin, and garlic powder. Stir and taste for seasoning, adding more as you’d like.

Meanwhile, slice onion and saute in a little oil until tender and golden.

In another pot over medium heat, mix together black beans, corn, the rest of the Rotel can, plus salt and pepper to taste.

Down the center of one flour tortilla, layer chicken mixture, black bean mixture (use a slotted spoon to drain off liquid), then top with shredded monterey jack cheese. Fold each side in like a burrito and grill in a preheated non-stick skillet drizzled with a little oil. Weight the burrito with another skillet or heavy spatula while it cooks on both sides. Remove from skillet and repeat with remaining tortillas and fillings. Garnish with avocado, tomatoes, sour cream, and cilantro!

best-ever chicken pot pie

I know a lot of people title their recipes with "best-ever" so that you'll be tricked into trying the recipe. But I don't use the term "best-ever" lightly. I mean business with this chicken pot pie, y'all. Business.  

Chicken pot pie is my go-to care meal. It's what I make and send for folks when they have a baby, have a surgery, need a little lovin', or whenever else they have a need to be fed. This dish is C-O-M-F-O-R-T. It's creamy, hearty, and loaded with good stuff. And crust on top of anything naturally is something I love. A little surprise of parmesan cheese in the cream sauce plus a savory, salty crust make this pie a family favorite! Click HERE to watch the Cooking Today episode with step-by-step instructions on making this dish!

Chicken Pot Pie

{serves 6-8 people, depending on your people}

 

2 large breasts, boiled/torn

1 cup chicken stock

1 cup heavy cream

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

1 1/2 cups sliced carrots

2 cups frozen green beans

1 cup frozen peas

1/2 cup flour

14.5 oz. can new potatoes, cubed

1 teaspoon thyme, optional

heavy salt and pepper

1 box refrigerated pie crust

grated Parmesan {optional}

pats of butter

whipping cream or egg wash

 

Boil chicken breasts in well salted water. Combine chicken stock and cream in a small sauce pan with a tablespoon or two of butter. Saute carrots and onions together in olive oil and a little butter til tender. Add chopped garlic, and saute until garlic is fragrant. Stir in green beans and peas; stir vegetables together. Then, shake about a ½ cup of flour over all the vegetables and stir to coat. Slowly stir in the chicken stock/cream mixture; on low heat allow the mixture to simmer a little. Stir in new potatoes, thyme leaves, and shredded chicken. Salt and pepper heavily—taste for seasoning. The cream sauce should taste well salted.

 

Anchor Spoon into oven safe bowls or dishes. Grate fresh parmesan around the top, and add a pat of butter on top before placing your crust on top. Top with frozen biscuits, refrigerated pie crust, or homemade pie crust, with just a brush of whipping cream so it will bake golden brown. Add salt and pepper over the top of the crust. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes til the crust of your choice is golden brown and the mixture is thick and bubbling.

cream cheese chicken enchiladas

This recipe is my go-to. When in doubt, chicken enchiladas. 

Home group? Chicken enchiladas.
Sympathy meal? Chicken enchiladas.
The big game? Chicken enchiladas.
Thanksgiving eve? Chicken enchiladas.
Company comin? Chicken enchiladas.
Snow day? Chicken enchiladas.
Don't know what to make? Chicken enchiladas.

I've been making these forever. This is my original recipe for creamy chicken enchiladas that I've had since my first year of marriage in 1994. I had a season of my life where I strayed...I tried a different recipe that had cream of something soup and promised to be easier and better....but I've since returned to this recipe. It's a little more work, but it's by far the best. I frankly have no idea why I strayed in the first place!

Hmmmm. That'll preach.

These cream cheese chicken enchiladas are R-I-C-H. Dairy on the inside and dairy on the outside. And they have a lot of flavors from tender buttery onions and chopped green chiles to cumin, paprika, and jalapeno juice for a teeny bit of heat. Serve them with Nana's homemade salsa and you are all set for the crowd, sympathy meal, the big game, company, and snow! 

This recipe also makes a great Sharing Batch - making two small pans instead of one big!

CREAM CHEESE CHICKEN ENCHILADAS

{makes one 9x13 pan}

3 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded

1 larger can or 2 small cans of chopped green chiles

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 8oz block of cream cheese

2 cups freshly shredded cheddar + 2 cups freshly shredded monterey jack

-shred the cheese and combine them in a big bowl-

2 teaspoons cumin

1/2 teaspoon of salt

3 tablespoons of juice from jarred jalapenos

10 large flour tortillas

1 pint of heavy cream

A few shakes of paprika and chili powder

Cilantro

 Preheat oven for 350 degrees.

 In a large skillet or saucepan with some depth,* saute chopped onion in 1 teaspoon butter and 1 tablespoon oil until transparent. Add green chiles, and saute a minute or two. Turn down heat to medium-low; add block of cream cheese and stir until melted. Stir in shredded chicken. Stir in cumin, salt, and jalapeno juice. Taste for salt and seasoning; add more if needed. 

Remove from saucepan, and pour into a large mixing bowl. Allow to cool for a few minutes. Add in 3 cups of the cheese, reserving 1 cup of cheese for later. Stir well to combine.

Spread each tortilla with the chicken/cheese mixture, roll, and line them up in a greased 9x13 dish. You will need to cram them! Pour the heavy cream over the enchiladas, sprinkle with remaining 1 cup of cheese, and shake a little paprika and chili powder over the top. 

Bake covered with foil for 30 minutes; remove foil and bake another 20 minutes. Turn up heat to 375 and bake another 10 minutes or so to make them bubbly and begin to brown the cheese on top. Sprinkle the top with chopped cilantro. Serve with sour cream, salsa, and slices of avocado. 
*I use my Le Creuset 3.5qt braiser! Ask for one for your birthday or Christmas...you're life will never be the same.

Euna Mae's Boiled Chicken & Homemade Chicken Stock

So I heard from several of you that you're never gonna stick your hand inside the skin of a raw chicken like yesterday's oven-roasted chicken recipe requires. And I guessed I'd hear that from some of you! So here's an optional, delicious simmered chicken that yields the richest homemade stock that you can use for soups, stews, pastas, bakes and more! 

This method is the one I use the absolute most.  And you will looooove the way your kitchen smells all day long! This recipe requires no 'rubbing' your chicken, and it's very hands-off. I get kids off to school, and I drop everything in a pot around 10am. Then it cooks aaaallll day. You do not want to cook the chicken for anything less than 4 hours, but I just let it go til I'm ready to start makin' supper. 

Once you've pulled the chicken out of the pot and drain the stock, it leaves the most unbelievably flavorful stock that you can use or even freeze for later. Just this week, when I made this chicken, I kept the stock in the pot and made homemade dumplins. Mmmmm. I stirred in about half of the pulled chicken, and I stored the rest of the meat in the refrigerator for soup this coming weekend! In the past, I've cooked and pulled the chicken for enchiladas, and I froze the stock because I wasn't using it for that particular meal. 

So good. So fresh. So resourceful. And easy!

I'm giving y'all this recipe on a Friday so you have the weekend to make your stock and pull some chicken. Because over the next few weeks, we're using both to make some of my all-time favorite comfort dishes!

EUNA MAE'S BOILED CHICKEN & HOMEMADE CHICKEN STOCK

 -hands-on time approximately 10 minutes plus 4-7 hours cook-time-

* you may wish to double this recipe to shore up your stock inventory or if you need more chicken to feed a small army

*for one chicken, use a deep 7-8 qt. pot; for two chickens, use a 10-12 qt. stock pot.

*one 5lb. chicken yields enough pulled meat for a very hearty pan of chicken enchiladas OR it can be divided into two portions for soups or other dishes where the chicken isn't the starring role. 

 *the amount of stock varies depending on how big your pot is, how much of the liquid cooks down etc. 

 1- 5lb. whole chicken thawed

4 cloves of garlic

2 medium carrots, cut in half to fit inside the pot

2 yellow onions, quartered 

3 ribs of celery, cut in half to fit inside the pot

2 bay leaves

2 sprigs of fresh thyme (do not substitute with dried thyme. please.)

 1 Tbsp. whole peppercorns

1 tablespoon salt

Rinse the chicken and place in the bottom of a deep, 7-8 qt. heavy pot with a lid. Place the vegetables in the pot along with the thyme, peppercorns, and salt. It is not necessary to peel the vegetables - just drop em in! Fill the pot with water leaving about 2 inches to allow for boiling.

Over medium+ heat, bring uncovered pot just to a boil; reduce heat to a low simmer. Cover the pot with the lid, leaving a teeny crack to allow steam to escape. Then let it simmer on low for at least 3-4 hours. I let mine go as long as 6-7 hours if needed, either with the heat turned all the way down to its lowest OR turned off completely and just sitting there to cool for an hour.  The liquid/stock will cook down a bit and will turn a beautiful golden; it is okay if the stock cooks down exposing the top part of the chicken. You may also choose to add a little more water if you wish.

PICKING THE CHICKEN AND STRAINING THE STOCK

 -hands-on time approximately 30 minutes-

Using two large spoons, move the chicken to a cutting board with a juice moat. (I'll have heirloom farmhouse maple cutting boards with juice moats for sale at the Euna Mae's booth at the NWA Boutique Show November 8-9.)  Move the chicken to the cutting board the best way you know how. It WILL fall apart into all kinds of pieces, literally the meat separates from the bones. 
You should be so tickled about that! Yum.

With a fine mesh strainer over a big bowl, pour the stock through the strainer, allowing it to catch the vegetables and letting the strained stock pour into the bowl. I use a big bowl with a pour spout. (see picture) Discard the cooked vegetables.

While the stock is cooling down a little, pick the meat from the bones. You may pick the chicken into bites or leave the largest pieces for whatever your recipe requires. Nibble a few bites....trust me! Use or store the meat in the refrigerator. 

Going back to the bowl of stock that should've cooled a little, carefully use a non-slotted spoon or ladle to skim off as much fat from the top of the broth as you can. You may also lay a paper towel across the top of the broth to soak up the top layer of liquid where the fat floats. If you're using the stock immediately, return to the pot and continue with your recipe.

STORING HOMEMADE STOCK

 If you're storing the stock, allow to cool to room temperature. Pour into freezer-safe canning jars with lids, leaving an inch or so for expanding. Refrigerate the stock overnight, remove lids and carefully skim the fat that will have congealed at the top. Tightly replace lids. Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Store in the freezer for up to 2 months.

The picture below is a shows the yield from a doubled recipe using 2 chickens and a 12qt. stock pot.

   

Easy Oven-Roasted Chicken

Confession time. There was a time of great immaturity in my life when I couldn't bear to eat chicken on the bone, let alone touch a big whole chicken and cook it in my kitchen. But as my kitchenary skills have grown ("culinary" sounds entirely too fancy), so has my ability to man-handle a whole chicken. And let me tell you, this is some good chicken now. 

In my early 20s, I used to buy canned chicken. Yes, I said it. Canned. Chicken. Which, by the way, is so expensive that I never should've purchased it ever. Then I graduated to boiling chicken breasts in water...which seized up and were like flavorless rubber. After a cooking class in Savannah with Chef Darin Sehnert, I leaned that properly boiling a chicken breast meant actually not boiling it at all, but rather bringing it to a boil in deliciously flavored water, then reducing it quickly to a simmer and letting it cook slow and low until it fell apart trying to move it from the pot to a plate. Since then, I have put on my big-girl panties and worked with real whole birds. The meat is so tender and flavorful that y'all won't believe it. It's actually hard for me to do anything else with chicken now that I know differently.

So today I'm going to give you a roasted chicken how-to followed tomorrow by a simmered chicken how-to that actually yields not only tender, mouth-watering chicken, but also the richest, most flavorful homemade chicken stock that is the base for about a zillion soups and dishes.You can do this, folks. And believe me, once you've had good chicken and homemade stock, you will too have a hard time buying boxed stock and canned chicken. (insert the heebies)

A little DID YOU KNOW...Did you know that the average price of a boneless chicken breast is $3.60 per pound but the average price of a whole chicken is $1.10 per pound? And the average price for canned chunk chicken packed in water is $4.50 per pound!

THEEENNN, over the next several weeks, I'm going to share some of my favorite comfort foods that incorporate this yummy pulled chicken and the rich homemade stock including Chicken'n Dumplins, Chicken Pot Pie (two ways), Chicken Noodle Soup, and more.

So here we go with an oven-roasted whole chicken. Very little hands-on time. Very fresh with no preservatives or scary stuff. Such flavor! And you'll give yourself enormous kitchen kudos for having made it yourself.

EASY OVEN-ROASTED CHICKEN

{courtesy}

1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature for one hour

The zest and juice of 1 lemon

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 tsp. chopped fresh thyme

2 tsp. paprika

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

2,  4-to-5 pound chickens, rinsed and patted dry

1 cup dry white wine (I use a Pinot Grigio)

Mash the butter, zest, juice, garlic, thyme, paprika, 2 tsp salt and 1 tablespoon pepper together in a bowl and stir until combined.  Put the chickens on a rimmed baking sheet.  Loosen the skin on the breasts and legs by carefully running your hand between the skin and the meat, gently separating the fibrous thingies. Rub about 3/4 of the butter under the skin all over the breasts and inside the skin. Then rub the remaining butter mixture all over the outside of the chickens.  Refrigerate, uncovered, for 2 hours or up to 8 hours before roasting allowing the flavored butter mixture to marinate the meat and skin. If you skip this step, the chicken will not soak in the lemon, garlic, thyme and other flavors like it should!

Just before roasting in a preheated 400 degree oven, remove the chickens from the refrigerator and pour the cup of white wine in the bottom of the rimmed baking sheet all around the bottom of the chickens.  Carefully transfer to the oven and roast until the chicken are golden and crisp and a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 170 degrees - about 1 hour, 50 minutes.  You may tent with foil if the skin browns too quickly.

Let the chickens rest 10 minutes before either portioning into breasts, legs, wings, thighs and serving with traditional side items, salad and bread.  OR pull and shred the meat with two forks for soups, casseroles, enchiladas and more. Store pulled/shredded meat in an airtight container in the refrigerator.