If you have ever grown lemon balm you know that it is a little herb that just keeps giving. Lisa planted some in the farm garden last year and now it is tiny bush!! I am a tea drinker, so that is what I typically use it for, but I wanted to learn if others had other ideas. After a quick Google search on my phone in the garden (what would we do without Google), I found a cute site called “Old Fashion Living” that has an article about growing and using lemon balm. This recipe by author Brenda Hyde was super easy!
Roasted Lemon Balm Chicken
Handful of fresh lemon balm leaves, stems removed
1/4 cup or so of fresh sage leaves
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened
Salt and pepper to taste
1 large roasting chicken (Zweber Farms, of course)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 tablespoons olive oil
Preheat oven to 400°. Trim herb leaves from stems; wash and pat dry. Set sprigs aside. Chop two-thirds of the leaves, and combine with the butter, salt, and pepper. Rinse chicken and pat dry. Loosen the skin in several places and insert the herb butter underneath. Rub chicken with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Insert the remaining herb sprigs into the cavity of the chicken. Place breast-side-down in a roasting pan.
Bake 30 minutes, then turn chicken over. Bake about 20 minutes longer.
Makes 4 to 6 servings.
Of course, we were so hungry when we came up from the barn I didn’t think to take a picture until after our plates were licked clean. I roasted mine in my roaster oven and didn’t turn it, since I was down at the barn while it was roasting. It turned out beautiful. The chicken was tender and had a light lemon flavor. Perfect for spring and summer. The next day, I took the left overs and made a simple chicken alfredo with grape tomatoes.
Simple alfredo:
- 1 cup grated Organic Valley Parmesan cheese
- 1 cup Organic Valley whipping cream or whole milk
- 4 tablespoons Organic Valley butter
- 8 oz noodles
Prepare pasta as directed. Melt butter in wide saucepan. 1/2 cup cream and boil until thickened. reduce heat to medium; add 1/2 pasta. Mix gently. Add 1/2 cheese and 1/4 cream. Mix gently. Add remaining pasta and cream. Salt and pepper to taste. I then added a couple cups chopped up lemon balm chicken and a couple cups sliced grape tomatoes. Even the boys ate this simple and delicious dish.
Link up to other Hunk of Meat Monday dishes this week:
The spices and herbs in this roasted chicken recipes are absolutely picked and combined. It enhances the chickens flavor which sooth in every part of the meat. Yummy chicken recipes.
Sounds great!
I just planted some this spring. Now I have a head start on a recipe. Thanks so much for sharing on Hunk of Meat Monday .
This sounds great! I recently got some Himalayan pink salt and organic peppercorns from Sustainable Sourcing https://secure.sustainablesourcing.com and I’ll have to try them out in these recipes. Thanks for sharing!