DAY 31 RECIPE: SAGE AND ORANGE ROASTED CHICKEN

I can't believe it! It is the last day of my first month of "blogging"! Has gone quickly! Hubby is happy, kids are happy. LOTS of food kicking around here now! I made this "nice" dinner in celebration of this mini landmark day! Incidently, I also made some delicious cupcakes this afternoon in celebration as well! When you look at the recipe foir this chicken it will probably seem like a pain in the ass, but honestly, it's not that difficult and the results are SO worth it.
I just discovered "brining" a few years back, and oh, what a difference it makes! Try it out, hopefully you will enjoy!

DAY 31 RECIPE:

SAGE AND ORANGE ROASTED CHICKEN

A beautiful, ultra moist chicken, picking up subtle, tasty flavours from the oranges and sage. Nice to have for a family dinner or a dinner party!

INGREDIENTS:
1 3- 5lb Whole Chicken
2 large Onions, quartered
2 Stalks of Celery, coarsely chopped
10-12 Baby Carrots
6 large Garlic cloves, crushed
3 Medium sized navel Oranges, quartered
½ cup Table Salt
¼ cup Brown Sugar
2 Tbsp Dried Sage leaves
2 Dried Bay Leaves
2 Tbsp Peppercorns; or
2 tsp Ground Pepper
2 Sprigs of fresh Sage
2 Tbsp Butter
* 2 cups of hot water plus about a gallon of cold water

DIRECTIONS:
Remove gizzards and neck from cavity of chicken.
Rinse chicken inside and out. Pat dry with paper towel.
In a large stock pot or a clean bucket, mix 2 cups of hot water with salt and sugar until dissolved.
Add enough cold water to have your container about ½ full. Add 1 onion, 1 stalk of celery, 3 cloves of garlic, 2 of the oranges (8 quarter pieces), sage, bay leaves and peppercorns. Mix it all up and add the chicken.
Make sure the chicken is entirely covered with the brining solution, if it is not, add more cold water.
Cover the container and place in the fridge, let it sit untouched for about an hour a pound. Never leave it sit longer than that, as your chicken will become much too salty. It can be taken out sooner, if you don’t have time, making sure to leave it for a minimum of 2 hours.
About 20 Minutes before you are going to take the chicken out of the fridge pre heat the oven to 350 Degrees.
When the brining is done, remove the chicken from the solution, rinse and pat dry.
Put the butter, a few slices of the onion, the remaining oranges and garlic cloves , and the sage sprigs into the cavity of the chicken.
In your roasting pan put the rest of the onions, celery and carrots on the bottom.
Add about 1 & ½ to 2 cups of water.
Place chicken on top of vegetables. Brush chicken with a bit of vegetable oil.
Placein oven. After the first hour or so of cooking, baste every 20 to 30 minutes. If chicken is browning too fast cover loosely with foil and return to oven to continue roasting.Roast for about 30 minutes per pound. Internal temperature should read 175 degrees when it is done.