Roast Chicken with Lemon and Artichokes

Ingredients

3 lemons, 1 halved, 2 sliced
4 artichokes
2 heads garlic, top 1/4-inch of stem end sliced off
4 tablespoons EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided
3 cups white wine, divided
Salt and ground black pepper
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
1 tablespoon onion powder
4 to 5 pound roasting chicken

1 small onion, quartered
2 tablespoons flour
1 1/2 cups chicken stock

Yields: 4 servings

Preparation

Preheat oven to 425ºF.

Fill a large bowl with cold water and squeeze the juice from the halved lemons into the water. Cut each of the artichokes into quarters, scrape out the inner choke and remove the tough outer leaves from each piece. Reserve the artichokes in the lemon water to keep them from turning too brown while you work.

When all of the artichokes are clean, arrange them in a roasting pan along with the sliced lemons and both heads of garlic. Drizzle everything with about 2 tablespoons EVOO, 2 cups white wine and season with salt and pepper.

In a small bowl, combine the fennel seeds, poultry seasoning, onion powder, some salt and pepper. Stuff the chicken with the onion pieces and tie up its legs. Rub the spice mixture on the outside of the bird and place the chicken into the roasting pan on top of the veggies. Drizzle the chicken with the remaining 2 tablespoons EVOO, transfer the pan to the oven and roast until the bird is cooked through, about 1 hour.

Remove the roasted chicken, veggies and garlic heads from the pan, and reserve warm on a platter. Place the roasting pan over medium heat and sprinkle the flour over the pan juices. Cook for about 1 minute. Add the remaining cup of wine to the pan, cook until reduced, about 30 seconds, and then whisk the stock in, stirring well to break up any lumps. Squeeze the cloves from the reserved heads of roasted garlic into the gravy and break them up with a wooden spoon or whisk. Simmer the gravy until thickened, about 2 minutes, and season with some salt and pepper.

Serve the chicken with the roasted artichokes and garlic and pan gravy alongside.