Bacon Herb Roasted Chicken

Total Time: 2 hrs 5 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 1 hr 45 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 4 slices bacon
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh rosemary
• 4 lbs whole chickens
• kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 1 lb baby carrots, with tops (trimmed)
• 1 lb fingerling potato
• 3 -4 cups baby spinach
• 1 (15 ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

Recipe

• 1 fry the bacon until crisp, then drain on paper toweling; chop half the bacon and combine with chopped thyme and chopped rosemary, reserving the other half of bacon.
• 2 preheat oven to 350 degrees f; thoroughly rinse off the chicken inside and out.
• 3 place chicken on a cutting board and use kitchen shears to remove the backbone; turn chicken breast up and gently press to flatten somewhat.
• 4 gently ease the skin from the breast and season inside the pocket with salt pepper and 1/4 of the bacon herb seasoning and smooth skin back over the breast; season the entire outside with more salt, pepper, and 1/4 of the seasoning.
• 5 roast the chicken, on a rack, breast side up, placed over a baking dish for 45 minutes.
• 6 remove the rack and place the partially cooked chicken into the baking dish; surround with the carrots and potatoes.
• 7 roast until the chicken is done, internal temperature of 165 degrees f, and the vegetables are tender, about an hour; sprinkle with the remainder of the bacon herb seasoning and tent with foil about 10 minutes.
• 8 push the vegetables and chicken to one side in the pan; place beans and spinach into the other side of the pan and toss gently with chicken juices.
• 9 sprinkle spinach with reserved bacon, broken into pieces.
• 10 cut chicken into 4 pieces and serve with roasted vegetables and warm spinach salad.