- 1 chicken, 3 to 3 ½ pounds
- 3 tablespoons California Olive Ranch extra virgin olive oil
- ½ cup fresh lemon juice
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- 8 or more cloves garlic
- 6 Belgian endives, ends trimmed and halved length-wise
- 1 pound small red potatoes, unpeeled, scrubbed
- 1 large fresh rosemary sprig
- 3 tablespoons salt-cured capers, rinsed and drained
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Rinse the chicken inside and out, pat dry, and place in a large roasting pan. Rub the chicken with the olive oil and drizzle with the lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. Scatter the garlic, endive, and potatoes around the bird. Put the rosemary sprig in the cavity.
Roast for 45 minutes. Scatter the capers around the chicken in the pan juices and continue to roast until a leg wiggles easily (or juices run clear when a thigh is pierced), about 15 minutes longer.
Transfer the chicken to a warmed serving platter. Using a slotted spoon, remove the vegetables from the pan and arrange around the chicken. Skim off and discard the fat from the pan juices. Pour the remaining juices, along with the capers, over the chicken. Carve and serve.
Recipe courtesy of Peggy Knickerbocker, Olive Oil: From Tree to Table (Chronicle Books, 2007)