Slow Cooked Chicken in White Wine & Lemon

Christmas Eve in NYC! Unfortunately the space is limited so my aspirations for cooking for 30 on Thanksgiving have been put on hold. So I thought the next best thing. Slow cooking a chicken marinated in white win, garlic & lemon! As usual, my wife has this thing against herbs so had to leave those on the side...as far as she knows:)

Ingredients

1 Large whole Chicken

1/2 bottle of white wine (I used Savignon Blanc)

3 large lemons (zest first and put to the side)

1 head of garlic

Olive Oil

S&P

1 large onion

1 Slow Cooker or large pot to cook in oven

Take entire chicken and rinse in cold water. Pat Dry with paper towel. Take 2 tablespoons of olive oil and coat entire chicken including core with olive oil, salt & pepper. Stuff cavity of chicken with one whole large onion and half a lemon. Drop into slow cooker. Top off with 1/2 bottle of wine or enough until liquid just below covering the entire chicken. Squeeze 1-2 entire lemons into wine and drop lemon into cooker. Top off with 4-5 crushed garlic cloves, skin on.

Set timer to low heat for 7-8 hours. Go sit on the couch and watch 3 of your favorite Christmas movies. Christmas Vacation....Die Hard....??

8 hours later.....

Pull chicken from slow cooker and set on a plate. Cover to cool. Chicken will continue to cook so you'll need to work quickly to prevent chicken from drying out.

While chicken is cooling take the remainder of the liquid and pour gently into large saucepan. Bring to a boil. Once boiling reduce heat to medium low. Depending on level of thickness you may need to add some flour and or increase wine content. Strain and serve.

Using a sharp knife remove legs from chicken as well as breasts (white meat). Remove onion from inner cavity of chicken and slice into quarters. Once all the meat has been removed discard the remainder of the chicken. I also prefer discarding the skin since the slow cooker won't create any crispness.

Plate as seen below.

To complete the Christmas Eve dinner accompany chicken with Sauteed Brussel Sprouts

• 1 pack of Brussel Sprouts washed & trimmed
• 1 tablespoon of EVOO
• 1 tablspoon of Lemon zest
• 1 shallot thinly sliced
• 1 minced clove of garlic

Heat garlic & shallots in olive oil. Add in brussel sprouts & cook until golden brown. Add lemon zest and give one final toss. Season to your liking.

And Roasted Potatoes w/Rosemary & Garlic

Voila!!...

Roasted Potatoes & Garlic

As a current New Yorker, a lifelong Yankee, Rangers & Giant fan there is not much good I can say about Boston. I dread the Red Sox, the Boston winter & oh yes did I mention I can't stand the Red Sox. But my brother Craig & his family are current New Englanders, living in the burbs of Boston that many refer to as the J.P. So for the last few years my wife & I have been doing the dreaded Friday night drive, 3-5 hours North on 95 just to enjoy the ever enjoyable meal that my brother and I put on. I must admit he is a much better cook than I am (some would even call him a chef) but with him at the helm of the kitchen & me as the master of the grill we sure do know how to put on a unforgettable meal. Our last trip there we decided to brave the freezing temperatures and create what we midwesterners call a standard "M&P" home cooking meal. Now anyone can marinate & grill a steak but it's the potatoes that is what really makes the meal. So enough of me ranting..all I can say is this is the best & easiest roasted potatoes & garlic recipe there is.

Depending on the # of guests

Medley of roasting potatoes (red, purple, fingerling, black, yukon gold, etc.)

Good olive oil

Kosher Salt & Course Black Pepper

1 Head of Garlic

To Prepare:

• Slice all potatoes in half
• Toss in tin foil or on a roasting pan
• Break apart an entire head of garlic leave skin on.
• Eyeball a couple tablespoons of good olive oil
• Sprinkle with S&P
• Use your hands and mix all ingredients together
• Roast at 400 degrees in convection oven or grill for 45 minutes or until crispy

Serve immediately.