Roast Chicken with Curried Lentil Soup, Israeli Cous Cous and Pumpkin Cheesecake

Our friend Melissa was kind enough to pick me up from the airport after my trip to Oregon with Mike (and by "kind enough," I mean she was a saint for waiting until 12:30AM), so we invited her and a couple of friends over for dinner and a board game to thank her. Roast chicken is one of my go-to dinner entrees for guests, since it's universally appealing (unless you're vegetarian - but there are plenty of other meatless options for those occasions) and relatively simple to prepare. The Israeli couscous is a recipe we obtained from Mike's mom while we were visiting Portland - we prepared it for a cookout they planned in honor of Mike's visit, and it was so good we couldn't wait to make it again.

The pumpkin cheesecake dessert is Mike's favorite to make, and it's so delicious that I can almost never refuse a slice of it.

Overall, the dinner and game night was quite a success. I can't wait to do it again!

Roast Chicken
(adapted from My Favorite Simple Roast Chicken from Epicurious.com )

1 whole chicken
salt and pepper to taste
1 long piece of butcher's twine
a meat thermometer

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Using two small bowls, pour salt into one and cracked black pepper into the other. Set aside.

Rinse the chicken under cold water, then pat it dry with paper towels - it is very important that the chicken is as dry as possible, inside and out, to ensure a crisp skin.

Salt and pepper the inner cavity of the chicken, then truss it using the butcher's twine. When I was learning how to truss a chicken, I used the below video from Chow.com. You will notice there are comments about this being the "wrong" way to truss a chicken, but I don't care - it's easy and secures the chicken and turns out perfectly.

How to truss a chicken

Once the chicken is trussed, set it in a 9x13 baking dish, legs pointing upward. I love the way the original recipe describes salting and peppering the chicken, so I'll repeat it here: Rain the salt over the skin, being sure to get some granules on all of the appendages - this is key to extracting all the flavor of the chicken and to crisping the skin. Then, repeat the technique with the black pepper.

Stick the meat thermometer in between the leg and the breast - you want to make sure it's deep in the meat of the bird so you get an accurate temperature reading. Place the chicken in the oven. You want to meat to reach 165 degrees. I usually set a timer for 45 - 50 minutes, check on the thermometer, and set it for another 10-15 minutes. I try to remove the bird from the oven when the thermometer registers 163-164 degrees - it will continue to cook for a few minutes before it starts to cool.

Remove the chicken from the oven and let it rest 15-20 minutes before serving.

Curried Lentil Soup
(Originally posted on Epicurious.com)
Serves 4-6

Olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, chopped and divided
2 tbsp (or more) curry powder
1 cup green lentils

4 1/4 cups water, divided
1 15-16 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp butter
2 green onions, thinly sliced
1 lemon, cut into wedges

Heat a tbsp of olive oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Saute the onion and carrot and sprinkle with some salt and pepper. Once translucent, add half of the garlic and cook until the veggies are soft. Stir in 2 tbsp of curry powder and cook an additional minute. Add the lentils and 4 cups of water. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, increase heat until the soup boils, reduce to medium and simmer for 30 minutes or until the lentils are cooked through.

Meanwhile, puree the chickpeas, lemon juice, 1/4 cup water, remaining garlic, and 2 tbsp of olive oil. Once the lentils are done, stir in the chickpea puree and butter. Season with salt, pepper, and additional curry powder to taste. Serve with green onions and lemon wedges.


Israeli Couscous with Asparagus, Peas, and Sugar Snaps

serves a lot

4 tbsp lemon olive oil, divided (if you don't have lemon olive oil you can add the lemon juice to the oil when it's shimmering hot)
4 garlic cloves, minced and divided
1/2 tsp grated lemon peel
1 1/2 cups (6-7 oz) Israeli couscous
1 3/4 cups vegetable broth
14 oz (2.5 cups) asparagus, trimmed and cut into 3/4 inch pieces
8 oz (2.5 cups) sugar snap peas, trimmed and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 cup green peas
1/2 cup chives, chopped
1/2 cup parmesan cheese

Whisk 2 tbsp olive oil, half the garlic, and lemon peel in a small bowl and set aside.
Heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add the couscous, sprinkle with salt, and saute until most of it is golden brown. Add 1 3/4 cups broth, bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the couscous is done in about 10 minutes. More broth can be added if it is all absorbed before the couscous is fully cooked and tender.
Meanwhile, heat remaining 1 tbsp olive oil in a large skillet. Cook asparagus, snap peas, green peas, and remaining garlic. Season with salt and pepper and saute for a few minutes until crisp-tender. Mix the vegetables with the couscous and dressing in a large bowl. Add the chives and cheese and toss together. Season with salt and pepper to taste.


Pumpkin Cheesecake
by Mike!

Crust:
1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
5 tbsp butter, melted
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp nutmeg

Filling:
3 packages (24 oz total) cream cheese
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
4 eggs
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin (Try to avoid the pre-flavored cans. It doesn't turn out as well)
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves

Preheat oven to 350 F. Mix all of the ingredients for the crust in a medium sized bowl. Press the mixture into the bottom of a 10 inch springform pan and set aside. Do not bake! I know a lot of pie recipes involve the pre-cooking of the crust, but do not bake!
To make the filling, beat the cream cheese and sugars in a large bowl on medium speed until fluffy.
Brit's amazing grandparents recently bought her a Kitchen-Aid, so I no longer have to do this with a ridiculously old electric mixer that smells like it's burning up every time I use it. (Thanks for giving it to me mom! At least I had one, right?!)
Add the eggs, one at a time, while mixing on low, until each egg is just blended. Add in the remaining ingredients and mix until smooth. I would occasionally stop and scrape down any bit of the filling that had gotten stuck near the top of the bowl and wasn't properly incorporated.
Pour the filling into crust and bake for 70-75 minutes when the top is lightly browned. Run a small knife around the rim of the pan to loosen the cheesecake and cool to room temperature. Refrigerate the cake for at least four hours before serving. NOMS!