Provençal Roast Chicken

I feel like lately I've been obsessed with Rosemary!  I know, I know, Herbes De Provence has Rosemary in it, but it's a wonderful blend of other spices as well!  Come fall, I will make a Rosemary Roast Chicken, when Butternut Squash is in season!  I decided on a Provençal Roast Chicken from Betty Crocker's:  The Big Book of Slow Cooker, Casseroles & More this time around because I had left over Red Potatoes and we all know how I LOVE zucchini!  I was a little skeptical about having the vegetables roast in the same pan due to the chicken grease, but they came out magnificent!  The aroma of the Herbes De Provence is glorious!  And I love the touch of the lemon, it really makes the dish all that more refreshing!  This time, I didn't save the carcass to make chicken stock out of, because as of right now, I have plenty of chicken stock.  But again, come fall, I will be making my own chicken stock, and will have a stockpile of that in my freezer for soups and stews.  You can increase the ingredients if you are having a dinner party.  The way the chicken and vegetables are arranged in the roasting pan is truly picture perfect!  The perfect way to impress your guests!  :)

Isn't it beautiful?

Yields 6 Servings

Ingredients:

• 1 whole chicken (3 to 3 1/2 lb)
• 1 lemon
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon dried herbes de Provence
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 8 small red potatoes, cut into fourths
• 2 medium zucchini, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes with basil. garlic and oregano, drained (I only had a 28 oz can, so I used that)
• 1/2 cup chopped putted kalamata olives

Directions:

• Heat oven to 400.  In ungreased shallow roasting pan, place chicken, breast side up.
• Grate peel from lemon; squeeze juice.  In small bowl, mix lemon peel, lemon juice and oil.  Drizzle half of lemon mixture over chicken; pat herbes de Provence and pepper on skin of chicken.  Place squeezed lemon halves inside chicken cavity.

• In large bowl, toss potatoes, zucchini, tomatoes, olives and remaining lemon mixture.  Arrange vegetables around chicken in roasting pan.  Insert ovenproof meat thermometer into chicken so tip is in thickest part of inside thigh and does not touch bone.

• Bake 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours or until thermometer reads 180 degrees, legs move easily when lifted or twisted, and vegetables are tender.

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