Roast Chicken with Apple and Herb Stuffing

I was passing through Bridgehampton yesterday and stopped at the Halsey family farmstand -- The Milk Pail -- for apples and delicious cider.   I just had to stuff a chicken with apples for dinner!

Ingredients

For Chicken:
5 sprigs of parsley
4 sprigs of thyme
1 4-lb white broiler or 3 1/2 lb red broiler
1/2 lemon
1/2 onion, quartered

Preheat oven to 375. Put the sprigs of parsley & thyme, the lemon and onion into chicken cavity. Season with pepper.

For Stuffing:
2 Tablespoons butter
1 small onion, finely diced
1 large apple, grated
1 cup of frsh breadcrumbs (I recommend Blue Duck cranberry-walnut bread)
1 small egg, beaten
1 Tablespoon parsley, chopped
1 Tablespoon thyme, chopped
Zest of 1 lemon
salt and black pepper

To make the stuffing:  soften the diced onion in the butter for a few minutes.  Remove from heat and add apple, bread crumbs, parlsey, thyme, lemon zest, egg, salt and pepper.

Spoon the stuffing into the neck-end of the chicken. If you leave the neck attached, just cut an opening.  Close up the skin over the stuffing and secure with a wooden skewer. Put the leftover stuffing into an oven proof dish and cook for the last 40 minutes with the chicken.

Rub a little oil or butter, salt and pepper onto the chicken and cook breast-side down in a roasting pan until brown.  Once brown, flip over and cook for approx 1 1/2 hours. Allow to rest for at least 10 minutes before carving.

French Chicken with Dijon Mustard and Grilled Tomatoes

Make sure to pick up your organic chickens from us at the farmers' market tomorrow along with beautiful, heirloom tomatoes from Sang Lee Farms for this inspired recipe for the grill.  Perfect for the cooler nights at the end of summer!

Serves 8.

2 whole chickens, 3-4 pounds each
Olive oil for brushing, plus 1/4 cup
Kosher salt
Ground black pepper
2 tablespoons white wine
1/3 cup strong Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon dried thyme
Pinch of cayenne pepper
3 scallions, chopped
1 cup of panko, or fresh white bread crumbs, plus extra for tomatoes
4 tomatoes, halved

Heat the grill and prepare it for indirect cooking over medium heat.

Rinse and dry chickens.  Using poultry shears, or a very sharp knife, cut down the length of each backbone (on each side) and remove. Turn chickens breast side up and break the breastbone by striking it with a blunt object (such as a can of beans). 

Spread chickens open and lay flat.  Tuck wing tips under the upper wings, then brush all over with olive oil. 

Season with salt and pepper, and place in center of grill, skin side up.  Cover the grill and cook for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, assemble the mustard sauce.  Whisk together the white wine and mustard, then slowly drizzle the 1/4 cup of olive oil and the butter into the mixture.  Add the thyme, cayenne and scallions and combine.  Reserve 8 teaspoons for the tomatoes. 

After cooking chickens for 20 minutes, turn them over and spread mustard sauce on backs of chickens.  Grill, covered, for 10 minutes.  Turn breast-side up and spread mustard sauce on the skin. Grill another 10 minutes, covered.  Sprinkle with breadcrumbs and grill, covered, 10 - 15 minutes more or until juices run clear. 

Remove from heat and allow chickens to rest for 10 minutes.  Spread each tomato with reserved mustard sauce, sprinkle with breadcrumbs and grill while the chicken is resting.  Serve hot.