Roasted Chicken with Fig Butter

Uhhhhh yeah. That would be fig butter all over this thing.

But before we begin, is it bad form to want to offer a hurricane a drink? Isaac is going to be here shortly and I’m so excited I’m putting on dang mascara.

Fig butter. Doesn’t it sound so Downton Abbey or something? “Me Lady, let me fetch me a carafe of soothing fig butter whilst you have your gown pressed for the grand gala this crisp, starry evening.”

A whole entire carafe: ew or yay?

OR WAIT. Dude what if it’s in the new Downton Abbey COOKBOOK. I’d be so ticked. Probably not though.

I’m getting off track. This is what rain named ISAAC does to me. And I really want that cookbook.

 

I didn’t take any pictures of the actual spreading of the fig butter because my camera was all, “nuh uh, bia. you betta not even think about getting that salmo-shiz all over my sniz.” And I was like, “chill your cheelah, cam.”

I honestly just typed all of that out, didn’t I?

So basically, what we have here is the juiciest, most tender roasted cherub of a chicken deliciously and melodramatically (you do know me, right?) massaged with the subtle sweetness of figs and herbs. And butter. A whole entire carafe of it, ME LADY.

She looks like she’s saluting you, doesn’t she? “Roasted and ready for command, sir!”

And I’m quite positive we landed on yay.

I’d pretty much let fig butter live on my tongue forever, rent free.

Roasted Chicken with Fig Butter:

What it took for 2:

* 1 stick butter, at room temp
* 1/2 cup black mission figs, ends trimmed and sliced in half
* 4 sage leaves
* 4 thyme sprigs, 2 of them stripped of leaves
* 1 (3.5 pound) chicken, preferably organic
* 1 lemon, halved
* 3 cloves garlic
* coarse salt and pepper
* vegetables of choice (I used carrots, parsnips and beets)
* olive oil

Preheat oven to 425.

In a small food processor, blitz the butter, figs, sage, stripped thyme leaves, and a small pinch of salt and pepper until smooth.

Rinse the bird and remove any giblets or innards or giblards or innets; discard. Take your fingers and run them under the skin, loosening it away from the flesh. Do this over the legs too. Then, take the butter and smear it between the skin and the flesh, all over the bird. It’s going to get a lil’ messy, so go ahead and rub it all over the outside of the bird too. Mmmm, fig butter.

Then lick your fingers. I’m just kidding!

Salt and pepper the cavity of the bird, then stick the lemon halves inside, along with the garlic. Shoot, if you have any leftover fig butter, smear some up in there too.

Lightly salt and pepper the bird all over the outside and place in a roasting pan. Truss the chicken with some kitchen twine (Don’t eeeeven ask me how. It’s always a total fluke for me.) Sprinkle with remaining thyme sprigs.

Now, for the veggies, what I SHOULD have done was sliced them lengthwise before roasting them. I roasted them whole. Bad Bev. (They took longer than the bird.) So yes, slice them, toss them with a little oil, salt and pepper and loosely arrange them around the bird in the pan.

Roast for an hour to an hour an a half, until the juices run clear and you’ve reached at least 160 degrees in the thigh.

*Since there’s butter on the outside of the bird, it will start to brown quickly, and you don’t want it to burn. So I’d tent it every other 20 minutes, to keep from burning. Just something to keep in mind. If you want to keep the butter on the inside and simply oil the outside, toootally fine. Because I ended up brushing mine with a little oil too.*

Let the chicken rest for 15 minutes, slice and serve!

p.s. Here’s an Instagram of what my vegetables looked like AFTER I sliced them and roasted them for a smidge longer. Lawdy be.

By the way, I bought a new eyebrow brush yesterday and I can NOT stop brushing my brows. I . . . just thought you needed to know.

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24 Responses to Roasted Chicken with Fig Butter

  1. jenna August 31, 2012 at 8:05 am #
    this looks so perfect for a cool fall evening! love the flavor combo.
    • Nurse Frugal September 1, 2012 at 11:53 am #
      Looks incredible!!!!!! The fig butter sounds really interesting too ;) This is a nice segway into fall for sure! Nice to meet your delicious blog!
  2. Villy @ For the love of Feeding August 31, 2012 at 8:07 am #
    What a wonderful roast!! Fig butter, wow!!
  3. Ashley - BakerbyNature August 31, 2012 at 8:24 am #
    I've always been terrified to roast a whole chicken... but you're making it look so so good. AND fig butter?! UGH. I need to buck up and do this!
  4. marla August 31, 2012 at 8:32 am #
    Looks like the perfect chicken Miss Bev.
  5. Alyssa | Queen of Quinoa August 31, 2012 at 8:36 am #
    Yum!!!!!!! Figs and chicken make a perfect pair :)
  6. Cathy @ Noble Pig August 31, 2012 at 8:43 am #
    It sounds awesome. Lokks awesome. It must be awesome.
  7. Laurie {Simply Scratch} August 31, 2012 at 9:27 am #
    A thing of beauty Bev... truly. :)
  8. Angie August 31, 2012 at 11:03 am #
    Looks gorgeous, I'm always trying to find new ways to roast a chicken, this is a great idea!
  9. Averie @ Averie Cooks August 31, 2012 at 11:09 am #
    Fig butter - every year I buy a jar of it from TJs and then never quite know what to do with it other than insert spoon. Great idea on this!
  10. abbe101 August 31, 2012 at 11:11 am #
    This looks absolutely GAWJUS - I love figs, in any guise. They don't love me though!
  11. Erin August 31, 2012 at 12:18 pm #
    You are killing me with these amazing recipes! Fig butter? I could die! Erin -ekcantcook.blogspot.com
  12. Cassie August 31, 2012 at 1:13 pm #
    This is stunning, Bev! I love the combo of veggies you chose!
  13. Sues August 31, 2012 at 2:17 pm #
    This is one of the most beautiful roast chickens I've ever seen! And I can only imagine what fig butter tastes like. YUM!
  14. Katie August 31, 2012 at 2:50 pm #
    I want to give this chicken a hug.
  15. Stephanie @ Eat. Drink. Love. August 31, 2012 at 8:55 pm #
    Fig butta?! Hellz yes.
  16. Stephie @ Eat Your Heart Out August 31, 2012 at 9:26 pm #
    I'm super obsessed w figs at the moment. I JUST posted a fig butter (except in my case, the apple-butter relative) and panini recipe using it on my blog last week. I'm OBSESSED. figs figs figs. Figs and chicken? YES PLEASE
  17. jenbeans August 31, 2012 at 10:45 pm #
    Eyebrow brushes are awesome!!!!!! Love the recipe.
  18. Maura @ My Healthy 'Ohana August 31, 2012 at 10:51 pm #
    Wow, there's nothing like a golden roasted chicken. I love the fig butter idea! Downton Abbey...LOVE! I haven't seen the second season yet, must get on that :)
  19. JulieD September 2, 2012 at 5:48 pm #
    Your chicken is gorgeous and I can imagine it's so good with that fig butter!!
  20. Lisa | With Style and Grace September 13, 2012 at 2:48 pm #
    I never thought I'd be describing a chicken as gorgeous, but hot damn, this is one GORGEOUS piece of meat.
  21. Lizzy June 1, 2013 at 9:50 am #
    I just tasted fig butter on my toast this morning and had a very similar reaction (eg, Downton Abbey, that dratted cookbook...) followed by a need to put the spread on something other than my breakfast. I can't wait to try your chicken recipe - thanks for the entertainment, lovely photos, and brilliant idea. Cheers !
  22. Ana October 6, 2013 at 8:50 pm #
    This is my go-to recipe for roasted chicken! It is so delicious and comes out perfect every time. Thanks so much for sharing it.

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  1. Loaded Greek Salad with Chicken and Crispy Chickpeas | Bev Cooks - August 13, 2019 […] red onion, cherry tomatoes, crumbly feta, leftover shredded chick- oh! The chicken. What I did was roast one the night before (you can skip the fig butter – this recipe is SO OLD – I actually need […]

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