My husband works on Sundays, which is a bummer for him and a bummer for me. We both feel like we’re robbed of a weekend day – he has to go in to the office, and I’m busy chasing the kids, running errands, tidying the house, and preparing foods for the week ahead. I’m looking forward to the time in our life when we get two days in a row to spend together as a family.

To welcome him home after his long extra day of work, I always make a meal that smells really good so he knows he is in for a treat the moment he opens the door. Nothing like a roast chicken to do just that! We buy all our chicken from trusted, local farmers who respect the animals and the humans who will eventually be eating the birds. I feel better knowing the chickens lived a healthy and happy life!

Roast chicken is really easy to riff on. I love the classic version with nothing more than some lemon, herbs, and olive oil. I am particularly proud of my Mexican style roast chicken that I always serve with homemade salsas and pico de gallo. Last night, I went in a different direction, and it turned out really good.

My Greek Chicken

1 3-5 pound whole chicken
3 tablespoons butter, melted
2-3 tablespoons dried oregano
4 lemons
4-6 cloves garlic
Kosher salt
Olive oil

Potatoes, sliced into wedges
Roma tomatoes, cut in half
Zucchini, cut into rounds
Green pepper, thickly sliced
Garlic
Salt
Olive oil

Heat oven to 425 degrees.

Rinse chicken and pat dry. Set chicken on a roasting rack in a large, wide baking dish.

Mix oregano and a tablespoon of salt into the melted butter. Using your hands, rub the butter mixture onto the bird – getting under the skin, too. Chop the garlic, and put it under the skin, too. Squeeze lemon juice inside and outside the bird. Put squeezed lemons into the bird cavity. Sprinkle more salt and oregano on the outside of the bird, and drizzle generously with olive oil. Put into the oven.

In a medium bowl, add potatoes, some chopped garlic, oregano, salt and olive oil. Toss to coat. When chicken is about 35 minutes from being done (after appx 60 minutes) drop in potatoes.

Put tomatoes, zucchini, and green pepper into the bowl and coat well with olive oil. 15 minutes after potatoes were added to chicken, scatter zucchini, tomatoes, and green pepper into the pan, too. Chicken is done when it reaches an internal temperature of 180 degrees. Veggies should be tender.

Remove pan from oven and allow everything to rest for at least 10 minutes. Slice and serve to people you love!

I served the chicken and vegetables with sliced feta cheese and a quick and easy homemade tzatziki (yogurt and cucumber sauce). Mix one container of plain Greek yogurt with a grated garlic clove, juice from 1/2 a lemon , salt, and some grated English cucumber that has been squeezed to remove excess moisture. It is a cool and refreshing accompaniment to the salty and lemony chicken!