Recipe: Roasted Chicken Stuffed with Sage

ROASTED CHICKEN STUFFED WITH SAGE

"The sage permeates the chicken during roasting and seasons it throughout. Pass Dijon mustard at the table, as is the custom in France."

1 chicken (about 3 pounds)
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 bunches fresh sage
4 cloves garlic, peeled but left whole

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Rinse the chicken inside and out and pat dry. Rub the chicken all over with the olive oil, salt and pepper.

Separate 4 large leaves from the sage bunches. Place the chicken in a roasting pan, breast side up. Using your fingertips, gently separate the skin from the breast meat and slip 2 of the sage leaves, about 1 inch apart, between the skin and the meat on each breast half. Fill the cavity with the remaining sage and the garlic cloves.

Roast, uncovered, basting with the pan juices every 10 to 15 minutes, until golden brown and the juices run clear when a knife is inserted deep into the thigh joint, 50 to 60 minutes.

Transfer to a platter and let stand for a few minutes, then carve and serve.

Servings: 4
Source: Herbes de Provence: Cooking with the Herbs of Southern France by Ethel Brennan