Chicken and Steak

Last week, I roasted a beautiful chicken. I was really proud of how pretty it came out, but still ended up with a meltdown on the kitchen floor. Think Julie Powell in "Julie and Julia". Pathetic.

I really have such a tough time roasting a whole chicken. I don't know why. I've posted about this the past. For some reason, I can't get that thing to the dinner table in time, no matter how well I plan. And, even when I inserted my thermometer, once again, and it read 165 degrees F, I still had some pink when I carved into the wings. The meat was cooked, but the joints were a little, well, not done, I guess. I mean, I've bought a store chicken in the past and gotten something like this. But, why?

So, here's my bird, sitting on top of a sheet of sliced yukon gold potatoes.

I just seasoned the chicken with salt and pepper, put some aromatics into the cavity, trussed, and then let it sit in the fridge for about an hour (a tip from my friend, Jen, who said it'll help give it a crisper skin).

And it did..

The drippings from the chicken made the potatoes (which were tossed in extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper) oh so yummy.

The next day, I used the leftover meat to make chicken noodle soup, with broth made from the leftover carcass.

Now, the steak part of this posting...
Really simple. Just flat iron steak, seasoned with salt and smoked paprika, pan roasted and sliced. Served with roasted delicata squash, crimini mushrooms, arugula and balsamic vinegar, and plain, short grain brown rice.

One of the things I love about flat iron steak is that it seems to come out perfectly, temperature-wise, everytime. Not the mention its tenderness.