We bought a CSA share this year from a local organic farm. CSA stands for “community-supported agriculture.” You can learn more about CSA here, but basically, we invested money in the farm by purchasing a share and we get to pick up a portion of the harvest every week all summer long, into the fall.
We got some turnips the past two weeks that were from last year, so I decided to make roasted chicken with root vegetables.
I cut up turnips, sweet potatoes, carrots, and onions into pieces, and sliced some garlic. I tossed them in a bowl with a generous drizzle of olive oil, coarse sea salt, and black pepper.
Then I placed split chicken breast halves (with bones and skin) on to two sprayed baking sheets, spaced far apart. I sprinkled the chicken with coarse sea salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Then I brushed them with a mixture of olive oil that had a little melted butter mixed in.
I used this really nice Kitchen Aid brush with floppy bristles that my 13-year-old son bought me for Christmas. (My kids know me so well!) It’s great for brushing sauce on meat.
Even a small amount of butter makes a huge difference in flavor, so don’t omit it unless you absolutely have to.
Then, I arranged the veggies on the pans, around the chicken, and sprinkled everything with a little bit of thyme.
I baked it for 30 minutes in an oven pre-heated to 450-degrees, until the veggies were tender and the chicken’s juices ran clear (test internal temp for safety).
The vegetables were amazing! The chicken was good, too, but I am a veggie lover, so that was my favorite part. The vegetables were slightly caramelized on the bottom and they were so tender and sweet.
