Roast Chicken with Root Vegetables & Cider

Chop veggies, scatter around a roasting pan. Set a chicken, slathered with butter, in the center, season with salt & pepper, pour in two cups of cider and shove it in a 400 degree oven. And it comes out just yummy.

I made a few changes -- I used some fennel I had left over from another dish and skipped the cauliflower the recipe called for -- just didn't sound good to me. Also, I didn't really scatter the veggies "without crowding them" as the recipe directs, as I used a pot rather than a pan -- so my veggies were more braised than roasted. Still delicious.

Once the pan comes out of the oven, you have to remove the chicken and veggies, and reduce the remaining cider to a thickened sauce. Tasty.

Although the whole chicken makes a pretty presentation, next time I'll go ahead and use a cut-up chicken. Easier for a weeknight. But I will use a kosher chicken -- I used my first-ever kosher chicken for this recipe and it was delectable.