Oh my goodness! Oh my goodness! Oh my goodness, Clementine! You are lovely and delicious, oh my goodness, Clementine!
Announcing Clementine, our new arrival in the tasting room and we’re so pleased to have her! If you enjoy a chilled, sweet wine with a lovely hint of citrus, you’ll love our new addition! Come on in and give her a whirl, you won’t be disappointed!
Summer has come back with a vengeance this weekend (yes, we’ve been in the low 100’s) and sipping a glass of chilled Clementine was the perfect way to spend Saturday afternoon at the winery. As lovely as this wine is on its own, I thought the chicken below might have found the perfect partner. You make the call.
Believe it or not, I found this recipe for Never-Dry Roasted Clementine Chicken on The Red Kitchen Project, a food blog I follow. Thanks, Gracie! Check out her entire blog, she’s got some excellent recipes!
Enjoy!!! If you roast this bird on the barbecue, you won’t have to heat up the kitchen!
Never-Dry Roasted Clementine Chicken
Ingredients:
-About 6-8 small (Clementine) tangerines, peeled at room temperature
-1 3.5 to 4.5-lb whole roaster chicken
-1-1/2 tsp salt
-1 tsp onion powder
-1 tsp paprika
-1 tsp cinnamon
-2 to 3 tablespoons butter or margarine
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Peel several small room temperature clementines (or a few regular tangerines) and leave each intact as a sphere. You will need enough to fill the bird plus one extra. I used six for my 3.5-lb chicken, so plan accordingly.
Take a sharp knife and gouge slits about 1/4″ deep and 1″ long, perpendicular to vertical segment divisions, across each fruit in several places. Remove a 3.5 – 4lb. chicken from packaging, being sure to remove any gizzards or bag inside and empty excess liquid into sink or receptacle. Place in casserole dish or roaster pan.
One by one, begin pushing the whole clementines inside the chicken. Apply just enough “smush” pressure to fit several in tightly without any large open areas inside. Again, I was able to fit five whole, peeled Clemies comfortably inside my small roaster.
Take the last remaining clementine and squeeze juice over the entire outside of the chicken, rubbing juice into chicken where possible.
Sprinkle meat with 1-1/2 teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1 teaspoon paprika and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Rub spices into meat only if desired.
Place uncovered chicken in 375-degree oven for half of the cooking time (poultry cooks at 20 minutes per pound). Remove from oven at this point and rub/glaze chicken with 2-3 tablespoons butter or margarine and baste with any broth that has already formed in bottom of pan.
Cover at this point with lid or aluminum foil and replace in oven for duration of cook time. Remove when meat thermometer reads 170 degrees and juices run clear.
Garnish with parsley or additional citrus wedges if desired. Carve and serve immediately; refrigerate or freeze any leftover meat.
Serve with a delicious, tossed green salad and a glass of Clementine for a perfect summer (or anytime) meal!
Cheers! Leslie
The Days of Wiens and Roses Blog 
Clementine wine–be still, my heart! Your wine sounds so delicious, Leslie! I bet it is wonderful with a handful (or four) of shortbread cookies, too. Mmmmmmm.
–Gracie 🙂
Shortbread cookies, yyyuuuuummmmmm!! If there’s a shortbread recipe on The Red Kitchen Project I’ll check it out!
Sounds like a wonderful roast chicken. I love it when you do recipes! Clementine wine sounds mighty fine too.
Penny, I can’t begin to tell you how delicious the Clementine is!!! It’s so refreshing when icy cold! I couldn’t believe I found this recipe to be such a compliment to the wine. Let me know how you like it if you decide to make the chicken.
Cheers! Leslie