Union Square Café’s Herb Roasted Chicken

The Union Square Cafe is one of my favorite restaurants in NYC. Before we had our son, my husband worked his is company out of an office on 42nd Street. We spent a lot of weekends in the city since we had access to a company apartment 5 blocks from Times Square.Although I never had the chicken when I was at the restaurant, I do not think they could ever make something that is bad even if they tried. I have both cookbooks published by  restaurant and this recipe is directly from Union Square Cafe Cookbook by Danny Meyer and Michael Romano

Union Square Café’s Herb Roasted Chicken

Marinade:

1 cup fresh rosemary leaves

1/4 cup fresh thyme leaves

1 cup packed flat-leaf parsley leaves

12 sage leaves

2 cloves garlic

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon coarse salt

Freshly ground pepper

1/2 cup dry white wine

Chicken:

1 four- to five-pound chicken

Extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 cup carrots, sliced

1/2 cup celery, sliced

1/2 cup onion, sliced

2 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade

To marinate the chicken:

Place all marinade ingredients in the bowl of a food processor, and pulse until a coarse green paste forms. Rub the chicken inside and out with the marinade. Place chicken in a shallow dish. Cover, and refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight.

To roast the chicken:

Heat oven to 425. Remove the excess marinade from the chicken with a spatula; re­serve. Truss the chicken, tying its legs togeth­er tightly with kitchen twine. Gently brush chicken with olive oil. Place chicken, breast-side down, on a roasting rack set in a roast­ing pan. Roast chicken 30 minutes.

Remove pan from oven. Lift rack with chicken out of pan. Place carrots, celery, and onion in pan. Turn over chicken on rack. Roast until skin has browned, juices run clear when pierced with a fork, and a meat thermometer registers 170 when inserted into thickest part of thigh, 35 to 40 minutes. Transfer chicken to a platter.

Remove rack from roasting pan. Pour off the fat, reserving vegetables and herbs. Place pan over medium-high heat, and add the chicken stock, reserved marinade, and any juices that have accumulated on the platter.

Bring liquid to a simmer, and cook 5 minutes, scraping up any brown bits with a wooden spoon. Strain pan juices through a fine sieve set over a bowl. Carve the chick­en, and serve with the juices.