A Labor Day Feast

The last 3 day weekend for a bit and I wanted to fix something homey; something that would make my apartment smell great while cooking. I think my table this week reflects the end of summer and it's lighter meals and the beginning of heavier autumn cooking.

Roasted Turmeric Chicken with Vegetables
Coleslaw with Berries
Ricotta Mousse with Berries

Turmeric is a spice related to ginger and is known as a powerful healer, specifically for arthritis. I made a paste of it with EVOO and rubbed the outside of a whole chicken. The chicken is placed on a vertical roasting device (sometimes a beer can, but not this time) Rosemary and lemon are placed inside to flavor the meat from the inside. The vertical chicken is placed in a roasting pan and surrounded by chunks of Yukon gold potatoes, chunks of sweet onion, and slices of red, yellow and orange peppers. My herbs have been very prolific this year and I snipped some sage and thyme to sprinkle over the vegetables along with salt and pepper. A bit of chicken broth is poured over the vegetables and inside the cavity. The pan is placed in the oven to roast until the skin is crispy and juices are clear. The aroma of the roasting chicken and vegetables is lovely. Since the weather was nice I had windows open and could smell the chicken when I went outside. The color of the broth was a bright gold from the turmeric as a bit off putting, but it tasted terrific.

Along with the chicken and vegetables I prepared a slaw. A bag of coleslaw mix with end of season strawberries and scallion slices is dressed with lemon yogurt, salt and pepper. Very pretty and the crunch of the slaw mix complimented the chicken dish.

I had visited Valentino Vineyard on Saturday and purchased a very nice white wine. It was excellent with the meal.

I'm not big on desserts, but this sounded light and yummy. I whipped low fat ricotta with a bit of orange zest and a couple of tablespoons of the juice. It is layered in a wine glass with crushed raspberries, blue berries and black berries. A tiny bit of sugar and more orange zest is added. I garnished the glass with the last of the bing cherries and some mint leaves.

We shall see what the farmers market holds next week. It's the beginning of soup season and I'm hoping for some nice ripe vegetables for a pot of minestrone. Have a good week everyone.