Roast Chicken with Quinoa Stuffing

Happy New Year!!!  I'm still not used to saying 2013.  I usually get the hang of not writing down the wrong year sometime in the middle of January.

Oh yea, and this happened:

Piper

Asher

The white one is named Piper, and the black one is named Asher!  I have been thinking about adopting a kitten for awhile.  Someone suggested to me that getting two was better because they would keep each other company.  Best advice I have gotten so far this year!  They are super affectionate and playful.  

So I thought I would start this year off with something savoury, as I know that I did a lot of sweet, baking recipes toward the end of last year.  This recipe is so easy.  I know that the idea of roasting a chicken can be daunting, but once you get the hang of the basics there is so much you can do with it.  I decided to stuff this one, and because I was lazy and did not want to make bread stuffing, I made some quinoa stuffing!  Hope you guys like it.


Ingredients:

1 Chicken (You want it to fit in a roasting pan)
1 Cup Uncooked Quinoa (Once cooked it makes 4 cups)
1 Large Handful of Kale or Spinach
1 Red Onion
1/2 Yellow Onion
1 Large Carrot
1 Head of Garlic
1 TB Dried Cilantro
 Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper

1.  Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

2.  Cook your quinoa first, following the directions on the bag/box.  You want it to have time to cool before you stuff the chicken, otherwise it will burn your hands.  Once the quinoa is cooked add a sprinkle of olive oil, the cilantro, half of the garlic and half of the red onion, and all of spinach/kale.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Stir and let cool while you get your pan ready.

3.  Grease a roasting pan large enough for your chicken, with room around the chicken to put vegetables.  Rinse your chicken, inside and out.  This is optional.  I've always done it.  Just be careful to not cross-contaminate by getting it on your counter or clean dishes.

4.  Once the quinoa is cool take about half of it and put it on another bowl.  You will only need approximately half to stuff your chicken, depending on the size.  By putting a portion in another bowl you aren't risking it getting contaminated by raw chicken.  The extra quinoa can be served with dinner, or saved for another meal!

5.  Stuff your bird!  I used a small wooden spoon to scoop the quinoa in and stamp it down.  Stuff it as much as you can.  I then sewed the end of the chicken shut using some metal skewers.

6.  This is the tricky part.  Trussing!  You want to get some cooking-safe white string and truss your bird so that it cooks evenly.  Start by making a loop around one of the drumsticks, tighten the loop and wrap the string around the other drumstick.  Tighten the two drumsticks so that they ends are crossing slightly.  Lift the wings up as seen in the picture below and wrap the string around so that they stay.  Tie a knot and you are good to go!  It doesn't have to be pretty, don't stress.

7.  Sprinkle some olive oil in the bottom of the pan and place the chicken inside.  Cook for one hour, stopping halfway through and basting.  I use a brush to take the grease from the bottom of the pan and rub it all over the chicken.  This is going to help the skin on the outside crisp up, but not dry out.

First baste, after 30 minutes.

8.  Once the hour is up baste the chicken again.  Arrange your vegetables around the outside of the chicken and stir them around so they get the drippings from the chicken all over them.  Cook for an additional 45 minutes to an hour, stopping after 20 minutes to baste for the last time.  Do not baste again after this unless you use a clean brush, otherwise you are risking brushing raw chicken back onto your dinner.  If you notice at any point in this last 45 minutes that your chicken is getting too brown on the outside, place a foil tent over top.

Roasted veggies!  YUM!  (Someone took all of the carrots)

9.  Enjoy!  And keep in mind that you can use any roasting vegetables you prefer with this recipe.  You can also change up what goes in the quinoa, this is just what I had on hand.  So much can be done with this!  You can also use cous cous instead of quinoa!