Coping with Change

Welcome back allergy sufferers,

This season is one of the worst in history when it comes to allergies. People who usually don't suffer from allergies are suffering this year so those who have always have had are miserable. Mold spores are high, pine is high, birch is high, oak is high need I say more. How are you coping with it? Are you taking medication? Are you seeing an allergist and getting shots? Have you seen an allergist? Are you seeing a Chiropractor? Yes believe it or not they can help because it is part of keeping the body in alignment. Allergies can be debilitating only if you let them take control of them do not let them take control of you. Having 47 different allergies I struggle every day to live a normal life one way or another something gets to me especially the moment I leave my house. I get my 7 shots every week and I take all my medications to balance each day. I keep on going I do not go to other persons home especially if they have animals. It is about knowing your poison and protecting yourself from it.

Changing your diet is important as well, eating healthy and on a timely fashion will make all the difference in the world. Making sure you have plenty of liquids is a sure bet to keep you hydrated and you esophagus moist at all times. Not only it will help keep your throat and voice from getting horse for those who suffer from chronic hoarseness due to the amount of pollen out there. All in all people we need to take care of our bodies in general no matter the circumstances. Yes allergies are horrible and they can knock you to the ground but we can make a difference in our own lives by being proactive. Take control and do right for yourself and you will feel amazingly better.... Till Next Time Enjoy This Recipe readers.

Kellers Roasted Chicken

The chicken must be at room temperature before it goes in the oven, or the chicken will not cook evenly. What Keller recommends (and what we do) is leave the chicken in the refrigerator, uncovered (on a plate and not touching anything else in the fridge), for 1-2 days after buying it, so that the skin gets a bit dried out. It will roast up crispier this way. Then 1 1/2 to 2 hours before it goes in the oven, we put it on a plate on the kitchen counter to come to room temp (about 70 degrees). Remove the neck and giblets from the cavity of the chicken before you set it out to come to room temp. (Save for stock.) Note that Keller's original recipe calls for a leek (to be cooked with the root vegetables), which we skip in our adaptation.
Ingredients

One 4 to 4 1/2 pound chicken
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled (smash with the side of a chef's knife, makes it easier to peel)
6 thyme sprigs
3 medium-sized rutabagas (also called "swedes"), ends cut and discarded, rutabagas peeled, and any outer tough layer discarded, then rutabagas cut into 3/4-inch wedges
2 medium-sized turnips, prepared the same way as the rutabagas
4 medium-sized carrots, peeled and cut in 2-inch segments
1 small yellow onion, peeled, roots cut off but core kept intact (see the photos for Frenching onions), other end cut off and discarded, the onion then cut into quarters
8 small red-skinned new potatoes
About 1/3 cup olive oil or grapeseed oil (Keller uses canola oil, we prefer olive or grapeseed oil)
4 Tbsp Earth Balance Soy Free buttery spread, room temperature (spreadable)

A large (11-inch if you have it) cast-iron frying pan
Kitchen string

Method

1 Preheat oven to 475°F.

2 Use a paring knife to cut away the wishbone from the neck/breast area of the chicken. You will probably have to use your fingers to feel around for it. This is a little bit tricky, but if you can remove the wishbone first, it will make the chicken easier to carve after it is cooked. (This ease of future carving is the only reason to take the bone out, so you can leave it in if you want.)

3 Generously season the cavity of the chicken with salt and pepper. Add three of the garlic cloves and 5 sprigs of the thyme to the cavity, using your hands to rub the thyme and garlic all around the cavity.


4 Truss the chicken with kitchen string. To do so, start by cutting a 3-foot section of cotton kitchen string. Place the chicken so that it is breast up, and the legs pointing toward you. Tuck the wing tips under the chicken. Wrap the string under the neck end of the bird, pulling the string ends up over the breast, toward you, plumping up the breast. Then cross the string under the breast (above the cavity and between the legs). Wrap each end around the closest leg end, and tie tightly so that the legs come together.

5 Place the vegetables, onions, garlic, and remaining thyme sprig into a bowl. Add 1/4 cup of olive oil (or grapeseed or canola oil) and toss with your hands until well coated. Season generously with salt and pepper.

7 Create a bed of the root vegetables in a large cast iron pan (or use a regular roasting pan if you don't have a cast iron pan.) My father likes to leave out the potatoes at this stage and arrange them around the chicken. Place the chicken on the bed of vegetables. Slather the top of the chicken breasts with butter. (Note that we added some extra sprigs of thyme to the top, probably because my dad forgot to add them to the vegetables! But it still worked.)

8 Place the pan in the oven and roast the chicken for 25 minutes at 475°F. Then reduce the heat to 400°F and roast for an additional 45 minutes, or until the thickest part of the thigh registers 160°F on a meat thermometer and the juices run clear.

9 Transfer the chicken to a cutting board, cover with aluminum foil and let rest for 20 minutes before carving to serve. You can keep the vegetables warm by keeping them in the now-turned-off oven while the chicken is resting. Stir to coat the vegetables with the cooking juices before serving

10 Cut the chicken into serving pieces. Place vegetables on a serving platter with the chicken pieces arranged on top.


Till Next time and remember enjoy life because life enjoys you.