Chicken Comfort

For some reason, I think that roasting chicken is such a festive activity. There is something incredibly satisfying about combining butter, lemon, and fresh herbs, slathering them all over the chicken, and standing by a warm oven, waiting to baste the chicken with sweet and tangy honey,- lemon,- and olive oil mixture. I first tried this recipe six years ago preparing it for a dinner party with my in-laws. The dish was an instant hit and since then, we just never get tired of it. Original recipe calls for a whole chicken. I love roasting a whole chicken this way, but a few nights ago, I just had a few packages of chicken thighs in my fridge. I also had a wonderful wild honey sent to me by my pen pal in Pennsylvania (thank you K.!). I doubled the recipe, adjusted several preparation steps, and increased the amount of fresh herbs, but otherwise stayed true to The Gourmet version.

 Honey-Roasted Chicken Thighs with Lemon and Tarragon

Adapted from Gourmet Magazine, September 2003 via Epicurious

 Ingredients

• 7-8 Chicken Thighs, rinsed and patted dry
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 2 lemons, you will need zest from 2 lemons and about 4 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2-3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh tarragon or 1-2 tablespoon dry tarragon
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 7 chicken thighs, rinsed and patted dry
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 1/3 cup mild honey
• 2 tablespoon olive oil

To  Make 

1. Put oven rack in middle position and preheat to 425°F.
2. Finely grate enough zest from 2 lemons to measure 2 tablespoons, then squeeze enough juice from the lemons to measure 4 tablespoons.
3. Stir together butter, tarragon, zest, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ pepper, and minced garlic.
4. Put chicken, skin side up, in a roasting pan lined with aluminum foil. Work your fingers gently between skin and flesh of thigh to loosen skin all the way without tearing. Put half of tarragon butter mixture under skin of each thigh, then rub skin from outside to spread evenly.
5. Divide remaining tarragon butter among the thighs, rubbing skin from outside to spread evenly. Alternatively, you may want to arrange the remaining lemon wedges around the thighs.
6. Whisk together honey, lemon juice, oil, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Roast chicken 30 minutes, then brush pan juices and half of honey mixture over chicken and roast 10 minutes more. Brush chicken again with pan juices and remaining honey mixture and continue to roast until thermometer inserted in fleshy part of a thigh (do not touch bone) registers 170°F, about 15 minutes more. The chicken should turn golden brown and should be charred in spots. 
7. Remove the thighs out of the oven, skim fat from pan juices and serve juices and roasted lemon wedges chicken.  A light green salad would be a great accompaniment to this simple and easy dish.