Mediterranean Herb-Roasted Chicken

Since I had planned on having whole legs leftover from chopping up a chicken for the spice-rubbed boobs, I needed a recipe to use those legs and selected this one. Even though it's been crazy hot, I chose to follow through with this recipe, which required the oven to be on for damn near 2 hours. You don't have to tell me, I know I'm crazy.

Mediterranean Herb-Roasted Chicken

5 tsp chopped fresh rosemary

4 tsp chopped garlic
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp pepper
3 medium red potatoes, cut into 8 wedges each
1 medium onion, cut into 1-inch wedges
4 whole chicken legs
1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch wedges
1 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise, cut into 2-inch pieces

Heat oven to 375°F. Finely chop rosemary, garlic and salt together; place in small bowl. Stir in lemon juice, oil, thyme, oregano and pepper.
 

Spray bottom of wide shallow roasting pan with cooking spray.

Scatter potatoes and onions in pan; add chicken. Spoon 2 tablespoons of the herb mixture over chicken and vegetables in pan; toss to coat.

Place chicken on top of potatoes and onion.

Bake 45 minutes. Remove from oven; baste with accumulated juices. Scatter peppers and zucchini around chicken; spoon remaining herb mixture over chicken and all vegetables.

Bake 20 to 30 minutes or until chicken is browned and no longer pink in center.

Rodney said it was "fair to middlin', better than mediocre, but not tell-all-your-friends about it". And that nails it right on the head. Rodney had two whole legs and I had one, which is just as I'd expected for a decent recipe.

If it was exceptional, we'd have split the last whole leg and then groaned about how we shouldn't have afterwards. If it was on the not-too-good side, Rodney would've had one whole leg and I'd have a drum. The rest would sit in the fridge (except the potatoes, I'd pick them out as snack items) until it went bad. As it is, I have lunch for tomorrow.

This recipe was essentially painless. Time-consuming, yes, but not difficult. The biggest pain was getting the rosemary and garlic ready for chopping. The chicken was slightly overcooked even though I went with the least amount of recommended cooking time, the zucchini came out perfectly and the potatoes were still a little too firm.

Next time, I'll cut the cooking time, make the zucchini pieces slightly larger and cut the potatoes into smaller wedges.

Since there is no dairy involved whatsoever, a definite win for me as Rodney's body will not be exuding it's displeasure over the course of tonight and tomorrow.

Cost:

• legs: eh, about $5
• rosemary: $1.29 (with tons leftover)
• potatoes: $0.60
• onion: let's say $0.50
• red pepper: $1.29
• zucchini: $0.41

Total: $9.09 for 1 Rodney and 2 Cook servings or approximately $3.03 a serving.

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