Herb Roasted Chicken, Lemon Butter Gravy and Smashed Broccoli... OH MY!

This hands down is my favorite chicken recipe! I made this one for my Dad awhile back and he told me "This is restaurant quality food right here!" To me this is the perfect comfort food dish. Just make sure you have a bit of time to do the marinade, it's soooo worth it!

Herb Roasted Chicken with Lemon Butter Gravy and Smashed Broccoli

Serves 2, a slightly adapted Tyler Florence recipe

INGREDIENTS

CHICKEN

1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Zest of 1 lemon, peeled in big strips. - Meyer lemons work really nicely here
4 garlic cloves, smashed
4 fresh thyme sprigs
2 fresh rosemary sprigs
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh chives
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh tarragon
1 lemon, sliced in paper-thin circles
2 bone-in chicken breasts, 8 ounces each, skin on (I used boneless/no skin chicken breasts instead)
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

BROCCOLI

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Pinch of red pepper flakes
5 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
1 bunch broccoli, about 1 pound, including stems, coarsely chopped
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup greek yogurt
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS

1.

• Start by marinating the chicken because it will take the longest. To infuse the oil with flavor and create a base for the marinade, combine the olive oil with the lemon zest, garlic, thyme, rosemary, and bay leaves in a small pot and place over very low heat. You don’t want to fry the herbs, just steep them like you’re making tea. When the oil begins to simmer (small bubbles start to appear), shut off the heat and let it stand for 10 minutes. Pour the fragrant oil, solid pieces and all, into a bowl and put it in the refrigerator to cool.

2.

• Combine the chopped chives, parsley, and tarragon in a small bowl. (*Note - I only had fresh parsley on hand, I don't think you really need all 3 of these items here.) Stuff 2 lemon slices under the skin of each chicken breast, along with half of the mixed chopped herbs. Put the chicken in a food storage container and pour in the cool herb oil, coating the chicken really well. Toss in the remaining half of the chopped herbs, close the container, and refrigerate at least 5 hours or as long as all day. At about the 2.5 hour mark, turn your chicken over and evenly coat the breasts in the marinade and put it back in the fridge.

3.

• Remove the chicken from the refrigerator about 15 minutes before cooking so it won’t be too cold when it goes into the pan; cold chicken takes longer to cook. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Put a cast-iron (or regular ovenproof) skillet over medium heat. Drizzle the bottom of the pan with a 2-count of olive oil from the marinade and heat until almost smoking; this will keep the chicken from sticking. Season the chicken with a fair amount of salt and pepper and put it in the pan, skin side down. Cook for 5 minutes or until the skin begins to set and crisp. Flip the chicken and brown another 5 minutes. Flip it yet again, so the skin side is down, and transfer the entire pan to the oven. You want the chicken to render its fat and the skin to crisp up. Roast the chicken for 20 to 25 minutes or until cooked through. While that’s in the oven, move on to the broccoli.

4.

• Heat the olive oil in a medium pot; add the red pepper flakes and garlic. Throw in the broccoli and toss to coat in the garlic and oil. Pour in the chicken broth, cover, and let the broccoli steam for 10 minutes. When it is quite soft, pulse the broccoli with most of the chicken stock from the pan, a few times in a food processor, or better yet, use a handheld blender if you have one. The broccoli should be partly smooth and partly chunky. Stir in the greek yogurt to give the broccoli some body and season with salt and pepper to taste.

5.

• Transfer the chicken to a platter and keep it warm while preparing the pan sauce. Pour out all but 1 tablespoon of the rendered chicken fat and return the skillet to the stovetop. Add the chicken broth and lemon juice and cook over medium heat, scraping up the flavors with a wooden spoon. Cook the liquid down to a syrup, about 5 minutes. Stir in the butter to smooth out the sauce and turn off the heat.

6. Spoon the smashed broccoli onto 2 plates, lay the chicken on top, and drizzle with the pan sauce. BON APPETIT :)!