Farm Girl Freak's Roast Chicken and Hearty Vegetables

Since moving to the farm, I have had much more time to cook, bake and make so many things from scratch.  I plan to share some of my favorite recipes on this blog and hope that you enjoy them as much as I do.

This chicken dish is one of my all time favorites and is so easy to make.  The majority of the time is spent on cutting the vegetables.  It takes about 1 hour from start to finish to prep and bake this tasty dish.

Easy Ingredients:

• 12 ounces potatoes (skin on) cut into slices
• 1 large onion cut in half and then into slivers
• 1 cup of baby or petite carrots
• 3 stalks of celery - each stalk cut into several pieces
• 1/2 cup sweet grape tomatoes
• 1 cup assorted color peppers (red, yellow, orange)
• Add greens - kale, collards if desired
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped coarsely
• 3 teaspoons chopped thyme
• 3 teaspoons chopped rosemary
• 1 pound bone-in and skin-on chicken pieces (thighs work best)
• salt and pepper to taste

Easy Preparation:

1. Add oil, thyme, rosemary, garlic, salt, pepper into a large bowl.  Wash vegetables and cut as described above. Toss with your hands or with a large spoon making certain to coat all vegetables with the oil/seasoning mixture.
2. Place vegetables in a single layer in a rectangular baking pan (easy clean up if you first line the pan with aluminum foil).
3. Place chicken in the same bowl in the remaining oil/seasoning mixture. Add more seasoning if needed. Press the chicken pieces skin side down into the mixture to get the oil/seasoning to adhere to the skin.
4. Place chicken pieces skin side up on top of  the vegetables.

Easy Baking:

1. Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees. Leave pan uncovered while baking.
2. Bake for about 45 minutes, rotating the pan once at 20 minutes of baking. Vegetables should be browned and chicken skin should be crispy.
3. Test chicken to assure it is fully baked and for temperature - 175 degrees for thighs or drumsticks, 160 degrees for breasts. 
4. Transfer the chicken to large platter and surround it with the roasted vegetables. 
5. Make 4 servings. (The picture above is 2 servings)
6. Serve and Enjoy!