Roast Chicken with Herbs
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The original eight herbs were:
Sweet basil
Oregano
Parsley
Sage
Rosemary
Thyme
Mint
Chives |
Saute any combination of onion, green onion, mushrooms, celery, zucchini,
and yellow squash in butter. Once you have chopped and added all the vegetables,
cover to retain moisture. Then cut off the heat and throw in a bunch of
torn up leftover bread (preferably whole wheat) and as many fresh herbs
as you like. I do not salt or pepper at this point. Rinse and stuff the
bird. For some reason, most cookbooks warn that you must stuff the bird
loosely. This may be because most stuffing recipes contain a lot of water.
I use no water and I stuff the bird tightly. This has never been a problem.
No exploding birds.
Generously salt and pepper the outside. A few dots of butter are optional.
Sprinkle with any remaining herbs, then sprinkle the whole thing with paprika
and bake. The recipe works equally well for a duck or a goose.
P.S. If you have a raw liver to work with, particularly the liver of
a duck or goose, the best thing to do is to chop the liver, fry it up
brown in butter, and (unless it is your dog's birthday) serve it as an
appetizer on toast with lots of brown mustard and black pepper.