Citrus Chicken

Last night our friend Ann Marie came over to make Citrus Chicken. Below is the recipe:

Ingredients:
- 1 whole chicken
- 1 lemon, cut into pieces
- 1 orange, cut into pieces
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 1/2 cup lemon juice
- 1-2 cups chicken stock or broth
- 5 whole garlic cloves, peeled
- 3 cloves, minced
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Oregano to taste
- Cayenne pepper to taste (optional)
- white wine for deglazing the roasting pan

Pre-heat the oven to 400F. Wash and dry the chicken. Stuff the chicken with the cut up lemon, orange and 5 garlic cloves. Place the chicken on a rack in a roasting pan and season the top of the it with salt, pepper, oregano and cayenne pepper. Pour the chicken stock into the roasting pan. Place the chicken into the oven and cook until the internal temperature of the chicken is 170F.

In a mixing bowl, combine the lemon and orange juice and season to taste. After the chicken has been cooking for 45 minutes or so, baste the chicken with this liquid. Continue to baste the chicken every 15 minutes until done.

Once the chicken is done, remove it from the roasting pan, place it on a cutting board and loosely cover with aluminum foil and let it rest for 10-15 minutes. While the chicken is resting, place the roasting pan on a stove under low heat. Deglaze the pan with white wine and add some more chicken stock. Reduce the liquid for 5-10 minutes. Strain the liquid and place it in a gravy boat/dish.

Carve the chicken and serve, pouring the reduction over the meat.

Cook's Notes:
This was an incredibly easy dish to make and each bite of the chicken was tart and juicy. With the chicken, I served rice pilaf and steamed broccoli. We washed it all down with a bottle of 2004 Leewin Estates Prelude Vineyards Chardonnay. I will definitely make this dish again!