Bacon-Roast Chicken with Brown Gravy

Last night I tried a roast chicken I had not tried before - Bacon-Roast Chicken with Brown Gravy.  Here are the basic ingredients I used.

Here is the recipe

BACON-ROAST CHICKEN WITH BROWN GRAVY                                                            Serving Size: 4

1 3 pound whole chicken	3 slices bacon
1 tablespoon butter or margarine -- softened	Paprika
Salt and freshly ground pepper	1 cup beef broth
1 teaspoon dried thyme	2 tablespoons flour
1 carrot -- cut in half

Preheat oven to 450°F. Rub cavity of chicken with butter; season with salt and pepper and half the thyme. Place carrot inside and tie legs and wings to the body. Place in a shallow roasting pan. Lay bacon strips over the breast. Sprinkle with salt and paprika.

Roast 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F and baste chicken with beef broth. Roast for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until tender, basting every 15 minutes.

Remove chicken to a warm platter and remove ties and bacon. Skim off as much fat as possible from drippings in pan. Heat drippings over medium heat.

Dissolve flour in ¼ cup cold water and stir into drippings. Bring to a boil, scraping up brown bits from bottom of pan. Pour in any remaining broth and cook until thickened. If too thick, thin with water. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

NOTE: The bacon here is used as a "baster". But if you prefer, it can be chopped up after use and added to the gravy.

We like Boar's Head bacon. It has a nicer flavor.  It also seems to be less fatty. My chicken ended up being 4 lbs.

This recipe I have had since 2003 and I have no idea where I found it. The recipe is just that old but now can be said to be tried and true.

Let me be truthful, I put the bacon on the backside instead of on the breast and moved it later on during roasting. My chickens have always come out very juicy. The juices seem to flow to the bottom of the chicken. I added extra butter on the outside even though the recipe did not require it.

This was my first time really preparing a gravy.  I discovered more tools I need for my little kitchen.

After I finished cooking the chicken I added half of the bacon to the gravy, and while the chicken was cooking I prepared a stuffing and while I was preparing the gravy I cut up the crispified bacon and put half the bacon in the gravy and the other half into my stuffing which I prepared from scratch from my own recipe. I pay attention to my Mother in the kitchen and all those great chefs on television. The chicken was moist and the gravy had a nice rich flavor. My boyfriend loved it. Worth serving again.

Whip up new recipes and try new things.

Cassandra