And now that Christmas is over, and we all want something healthier, I have the perfect thing for you. This Rosemary and Garlic Roast Chicken Breasts and Potatoes is light, healthy, AMAZINGLY EASY, and super tasty. The chicken is juicy and delicious, and the potatoes come out crispy roasted on the outside and fluffy on the inside. And it uses only FOUR INGREDIENTS (besides EVOO and salt/pepper). It’s perfection.
Now. Speaking of healthy, I have a wee bit of an announcement to make. Come January 1, I, Elizabeth Lindemann, am going on a quest. I’m SUPER excited about it. I’m going to do a Whole30 challenge during the month of January!!! Well, I’m excited AND nervous. I’m not one to usually do any specific “diet” or healthy eating program. I usually just try and eat according to Michael Pollan’s famous words: eat (real) food, not too much, mostly plants. So the fact that I’m going to try something that is MUCH more restrictive than I’m used to is a bit scary. However, due to some recent health issues (that I won’t get into detail about now), I decided I wanted to give the Whole30 a shot. It certainly can’t hurt, and I’m very excited at the prospect of starting 2016 out in a very healthy way!
If you’re not familiar with it: the Whole30 program is an elimination diet. It’s based on the principle that if you are sick or unhealthy in any way, it probably has something to do with your diet (which I absolutely believe is the case with most ailments of modern society). It eliminates all the common foods that cause inflammation and sensitivities- grains, dairy, sugar, and legumes- for 30 days. After the 30 days, you add them back in one at a time to see if any of the food groups make you feel “off.” It’s very similar to the Paleo diet- all of the restricted food groups in Whole30 are also not allowed in Paleo. But unlike the Paleo diet, it’s not a lifestyle. It’s a 30-day commitment only, and it acknowledges that these food groups (besides sugar, of course) actually can be very healthy for you- if they don’t cause health problems. The Paleo diet, on the other hand, claims that humans haven’t evolved enough to handle eating these food groups, and recommends you never have them. Nope- that one’s not for me. So here I am, with three precious days remaining for breads and pasta and beans and cheese. And as a person who loves, LOVES food, it pains me to say goodbye to these things. I’m not promising I won’t be tragically crying on January first. But on the other hand, I’m a high school teacher. Nothing scares me! And it’s only for 30 days. And one thing is for sure- if I get to eat things like this roast chicken and potatoes every day in January, I will be one happy girl! This is some serious deliciousness right here.
Here’s the biggest trick to making this recipe perfect: roast the chicken and potatoes together for 30 minutes at 375 degrees (the chicken will be perfectly tender and juicy), and then put the potatoes back in and turn up the temperature to 500 degrees for another ten minutes or so. This will ensure the potatoes will be roasted to perfection without overcooking and drying out the chicken. I recommend a Nordic Ware Natural Aluminum Commercial Baker’s Half Sheet– they are inexpensive and the best, sturdiest all-purpose baking sheets out there. Here’s your Whole30 (and Paleo, gluten-free, dairy free, grain free) friendly Rosemary and Garlic Roast Chicken and Potatoes dinner. Recipe below, enjoy!
