Apple Roasted Chicken

We love roast chicken, especially on those chilly fall evenings when all you crave is a hearty dish. This recipe imbues a fall-twist on the classic roast chicken with its apple ingredients. Your kids will like the sweet flavor of the chicken and you’ll love that the prep work is minimal and you’ll surely have a few leftovers if you end up roasting an entire chicken.

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken, cut into pieces
1/2 cup apple cider
1/2 cup apple butter, no sugar added
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons coconut sugar (You can substitute honey if you don’t have coconut sugar)
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped
1 tablespoon fresh sage, finely chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher or sea salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 375 F.

2. Combine the cider, apple butter, vinegar and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat; reduce heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until reduced by half, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.

3. Pat the chicken pieces dry with a paper towel and arrange on a foil-lined, shallow, rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle evenly with the salt, pepper, rosemary and sage. Place in the oven and roast for 15 minutes.

4. Baste the chicken with half the cider mixture. Return to the oven and roast for another 15 minutes. Baste the chicken with the remaining cider mixture, return to the oven and roast for a final 15 minutes.

5. Baste the chicken a final time with the accumulated pan juices, and allow it to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Thanks to our friend Jan at Jan’s Sushi Bar for this great recipe