Lemon Herb Spatchcock Chicken Recipe

If you want the juiciest chicken with crispy skin and the most incredible flavor, then you have to make this lemon herb spatchcock chicken!

When I was pregnant with our second child I was not in any kind of position to cook, eat or even think about either thing. But it was like taking a surfer away from the ocean, I was determined to make better than ever meals when I had the baby. And spatchcock chicken was strangely at the top of my list. I have absolutely no idea why I hyper-fixated on chicken, but it ended up being a blessing. It gave me something to look forward to. To decide without ever deciding that I was going to not only survive, but thrive post traumatic pregnancy.

I’m not saying that anyone who is going through something hard should just think about chicken to fix things, because again, I WOULD NOT think about chicken during that time. But maybe there’s something about positive psychology that could take us from A-B that is found in the kitchen. So without telling you what I think… yet… what is the happiest memory you have around food?

Why does food more often attach itself to happiness than sadness?

I’ll move on, I know you just want the recipe, but it’s something to think about. Is there a secret about food and cooking that might make a difference in your happiness in the midst of your trial?

What is a Spatchcock Chicken?

A spatchcock chicken is the same thing as a butterflied chicken. It is a method for cooking chicken where you remove the backbone of a whole chicken and flatten it so that it lays flat and roasts more evenly. For some reason, this little bird’s legs curled up again at the end, but otherwise it will lay far more flat than this.

Why Do You Spatchcock a Chicken?

When you roast a whole chicken, the chicken breasts sit higher and cook first and dry out while the rest of the chicken comes to temperature.

With a spatchcock chicken, everything is at the same level and roasts evenly resulting in juicy chicken breasts, thighs, legs…the whole bird!

And the skin gets so crispy and delicious! I dare say that once you spatchcock, you’ll never go back to roasting a chicken any other way.

Do You Flip a Spatchcock When Cooking?

No, a spatchcock does not need to be flipped while cooking. You roast it with the meat side up and it will come to temperature just fine without flipping.

What Do I Need to Make Spatchcock Chicken?

All you need to do is grab a whole chicken and then hit the produce section for some fresh herbs and citrus. You’ll likely have everything else you need in the pantry already. BONUS…this recipe is so budget friendly! Here is what you will need:

• Whole Chicken: a 4-5 pound chicken works best, skin on<

Linguica or Kielbasa Sausage and Peppers Skillet

Sometimes the simplest recipe can taste the best! Linguica or kielbasa sausage and peppers only requires 5 ingredients and it doesn’t get any easier (or tastier) to get dinner on the table!

Cade spent 2 years serving as a missionary for our church, and he totally fell in love with the food there. I mean, how could you not, right?! It is SO good! I’m trying to add more delicious Brazilian dishes to our dinner rotation, and this linguica recipe is my latest! Cade says that it is spot on!

We used to visit a Brazilian restaurant every January here in Utah to celebrate Cade’s birthday but over the years it’s gone from delicious to downright terrible. So, I’ve started making more Brazilian recipes from home, kind of like our pao de queijo!

Linguica is so good but it can be a bit tricky to find so feel free to use any sausage like a kielbasa for example that you’d like! Just be sure to pair it with black beans and perfect white rice, or better yet, some feijoada!

Ingredients for Linguica Sausage and Peppers

Remember how 5 ingredients is all you need?! I am allllll about a recipe with minimal ingredient but still bold in flavor. Here is the list of things you will need:

• Linguica Sausage – a flavorful pork sausage that can be tricky to find sometimes, so you can substitute other sausages if you want – chorizo would be a good substitute or a kielbasa
• Mini Bell Peppers – I love how thin and sweet the mini bell peppers are, but you can totally use a full size bell pepper if you need to. I would do one yellow and one red.
• Green Bell Peppers – just remove the seeds and slice that baby nice and thin
• Red On

20 Minute Sausage and Peppers Gnocchi

Sausage and peppers in the same dish is such a stellar combo! Toss in some crispy gnocchi and a luscious sauce, and you’ll be adding this quick and easy dinner to your menu this week!

Our 20 minute sausage and peppers gnocchi is actually a meal of forgotten things. I found myself standing at the fridge years and years ago staring into a bunch of random ingredients and nothing to pull it all together; a little chicken broth, a chunk of onion and peppers from a taco night, and these random sausages a friend had given us. Not really enough of anything to make a full meal, or so I thought. 

I’ve seen sausage and peppers stuffed into hoagie rolls enough to know that I could probably do something similar but without bread or rolls in the house at the time I needed to get creative and as a newlywed that also required cheap. I did not have enough money to go buy a bunch of stuff but I did have a lone package of pasta. 

Over the years we’ve changed up this recipe a gazillion times until a little white cooking wine and the switch from pasta to gnocchi brought it all home. This crispy gnocchi with peppers and onions recipe only takes 20 minutes though the first time may be a little longer as you get the hang of it. Once you’ve done it once it’s a breeze. 

Cook this, plate it. 

Cook that, plate it. 

Crisp the gnocchi, plate it. 

Add the first two plates and sauce ingredients back in, simmer the sauce and then throw in the gnocchi, seasoning to taste. That’s it!

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How to Make the BEST BLT

I know you’re probably thinking that you don’t need a recipe for a BLT…the ingredients are in the name of the sandwich, right? I have a few tricks to take your average BLT and make it the BEST BLT ever!

Ok, so growing up my parents were garden people, and on top of the horror of having to weed the garden all the time as a kid, they also would eat raw tomatoes with a little salt like it was an apple. The horror!

And now here we are, once again the enemy called “time” has taught me that “yeah behold I know that I am nothing” (Alma 26:12) because sure enough, there’s nothing more incredible than a garden tomato. The grocery store might as well rename their tomatoes because they are not the same thing. My mom would practically salivate at the mention of a BLT and now I’m totally wiping my keyboard clean as I do the same.

Tips for the BEST BLT

We know there aren’t a ton of ingredients in a BLT sandwich so the ingredients need to be done right! Here are our tips for BLT success:

Bread

We prefer a good high quality sourdough bread sliced fairly thin — about 1/2 inch thick. If you aren’t a sour dough fan, then do a good sturdy white bread or french bread.

PRO TIP: Give up the toaster and grill each slice of bread in butter (not bacon fat!) on a cast iron skillet only on one side. This way, the inside remains tender. Don’t over toast the bread! You are looking for a nice light golden brown.

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Bourbon Chicken

This Bourbon Chicken is tender, moist, and full of flavor and so simple to prepare! I’ve been testing this recipe for 20 years exactly now, and it was time for a refresher on this recipe! It is my new fav thing!

One of the things that we absolutely love is that it’s so easy to spice it up or take it down a few notches depending on who you will be sharing your meal with. 

There was a great bourbon chicken, hold your breath, at the Washington Square Mall when I was in high school. I know, mall food. Can you even believe that I said that?! It’s completely ridiculous, and if I went back I’d probably be a bit disappointed now that my palate has evolved. Or, at least I hope that it has! And this sauce isn’t exactly like the one from the mall, it’s even better!

And I won’t even tell you about Hot Dog on a Stick. Or should I say…the cheese on a stick. I know, I know, it’s ridiculous. That one I’m still tempted to make a homemade version though…

Ingredients Needed for Bourbon Chicken

This chicken is sweet and sticky and made with tender and flavorful chicken thighs. You start by browning the chicken on the stove top with a simple dry rub and then it finishes cooking in the oven in the sauce. Here is what you will need:

Chicken

• Chicken Thighs – boneless and skinless thighs, you can also use chicken breasts if you prefer
• Salt – adds flavor
• Garlic Powder – adds flavor
• Onion Powder – adds flavor
• Pepper – chicken should just always be seasoned with salt and pepper
• Olive Oil – gives the chicken a good sear and keeps it from sticking to the pan

Sauce

• Garlic Powder – paired with the ginger, it is that essential Chinese food flavor combo
• Ground Ginger – it’s very fine and blends into the sauce beautifully
• Apple Cider – adds richness, tang and a fruitiness
• Water – thins out the sauce some
• Brown Sugar – adds the perfect sweetness to the sauce
• Rice Vinegar – gives the sauce a nice tang
• Soy Sauc