Roasted Chicken and Sweet Mashed Potatoes

I had not cooked a chicken in a few long time. I got the urge to have my classic rosemary chicken and bought two chickens to cook.. since I am a Costco shopper. I admit, I did initially under cook the chicken because I was afraid of drying it out. Lesson learned. Here is how you cook the chicken without under cooking!

Shopping List:

• 1 whole chicken
• 1 tablespoon of cracked rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1/4 teaspoon of pepper
• 1 capful of oil
• 2 sweet potatoes (yams)
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1/4 cup of milk
• 1/4 cup of reserved cooking liquid.
• 2 tablespoons of light whipped butter

Rosemary Chicken:

1. Clean out the insides and discard, we don't need gravy for this recipe.
2. Clean the chicken by quickly running it under cold water and rubbing dry with paper towels.
3. Apply cap of light oil over the chicken

4. Combine spices into a small dish so you do not contaminate the bottles and shakers
5. Rub the rosemary concoction all over the bird inside and out.

6. Let sit in the fridge for an additional 30 minutes if you can afford the time.
7. Heat the oven to 350 and add with foil on top.
8. After 1 hr and 15 minutes remove the foil and let bake longer. I'd say a good half an hour longer. (picture of when I took off the foil for rest of cooking)

9. The key is, you want the legs to move freely and when poked with  a fork at the meatiest part the juices run clear.
10. Upon carving, if you notice the juices are pink, put the sucker back in for another 10-15 minutes with a watchful eye. (I don't have a good picture of the final cooked bird because I butchered it and then realized I needed to put it back in.) I will add a picture the next time I cook one.)

Sweet Mashed Potatoes:

1. Peel and dice the sweet potatoes
2. Add to salted boiling water until fork tender, about 15-20 minutes.

3. Strain potatoes reserving about 1/4 cup of cooking liquid.
4. Add 1/4 cup of heated milk and 2 tablespoons of butter, 1/2 teaspoon of salt.

5. Mash! Taste, adjust, Eat!

Notes:

- I love Savory's cracked rosemary, it is light and dusty without losing the rosemary texture and flavor. If you have regular rosemary I would recommend crushing it a bit so you don't get those long hard sticks of rosemary

-A lemon is a great addition to the chicken, but I don't love lemon over everything so I don't add it often.