Lumpy Chicken

Don't be alarmed - this chicken started out as a very nice, fresh, young, free-range chicken. The fact that it ended up reminding us of an aging and lumpy slattern who had seen better days didn't detract at all from the wonderful taste.

It's all the fault of the green garlic I found at this week's farmer's market. Trying to think of something different to do with our weekly roast chicken, I hatched the idea of sliding quarters of green garlic under the skin of the breast and thighs to flavor the meat as it roasted; it made the chicken look comically lumpy. I also olive oiled the skin, sprinkled it with lemon juice and tucked the rest of the lemon into the cavity along with a handful of fresh dill. Sprinkled some of the dill over the skin, too, and slid the whole thing into a 375 degree oven for about an hour.

As the bird roasted, the green garlic softened and spread divinely over the whole breast in little pockets of crisp skin over meltingly soft garlic underneath. The flavor was milder than "adult" garlic but still wonderfully savory and lingering. The lemon wafted up to keep the meat moist and lent its own little tang.

My Beloved and I have been trying to control our portion sizes recently - after all, we have a family wedding coming up out in the future and we want to look our best - but we failed miserably with this chicken. We went back without compunction for seconds and were still picking little pieces off the platter as we washed the dishes. Pretty is as pretty does - it can be as lumpy as it wants when it tastes this good.