i am a food blog

We’ve been on a hardcore Middle Eastern/Levantine food kick lately. Our favorite place for happy hour has these fries that are topped with parsley, lemons, and za’atar – they’re incredibly addictive. They also have halloumi fries. I mean, grilled halloumi is good but when you deep-fry it!? I’m going to have to make those guys soon because my halloumi habit is getting pricy. Although, we can’t quite figure out how they have it on their happy hour menu because halloumi is so expensive. They must have some sort of halloumi discount. I got to get in on that.

Anyway, this isn’t a post about halloumi, it’s a post about za’atar roast chicken. We decided to invite some friends over for a little chicken feast, with a bunch of mezze. It’s one of my favorite way to eat: lots of variety and different little bites. At first we were planning on just mezze but then I got kind of worried because I didn’t want us to run out of food. I shouldn’t have worried because we had too much. But, that’s always a good thing, if you like leftovers, like I do.

I thought the mezze would be the stars of the show, but the honor ended up going this za’atar roast chicken. It was tender, juicy, and just the right amount of tangy and rich. I loved how caramelized the onions and lemons got and the butter roasted pine nuts were little bursts of nutty goodness. It went so well with the tzatziki and fattoush. I loved how I was able to prepare everything beforehand so that this dish was just finishing off in the oven as people arrived. I think that might be the best part for me, throwing a mostly hands off dinner party so I can just relax and enjoy good friends and good food.

Happy roasting friends!
fried halloumi and crispy potatoes,
xoxo steph

Za’atar Roast Chicken Recipe
serves 6
prep time: 15 minutes
cook time: 1 hour
total time: 1 hour 15 minutes

• 4 lbs chicken, legs and thighs
• 2 medium red onions, thinly sliced
• 2 cloves garlic smashed
• 1 lemon, thinly sliced, seeds removed
• 1 tablespoon ground sumac
• 1½ teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• ¼ cup olive oil
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons za’atar
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• ¼ cup pine nuts

via Bon Appetit

In a deep baking sheet or casserole dish, toss the chicken with the onions, garlic, lemon, sumac, allspice, cinnamon, chicken broth, and oil. Chill for minimum 2 hours.

Heat the oven to 400°F.

Sprinkle the za’atar on the chicken and roast until brown and cooked through, 45-55 minutes.

When there’s 5 minutes left on the chicken, toast the pine nuts. On medium high heat, melt the butter in a small skillet. Add the pine nuts, stirring, until butter is foamy and brown. The pine nuts should be lightly golden. Season with salt.

Turn the broiler on high for 1-2 minutes, or until the chicken browns, slightly. Top the chicken with pine nuts and extra za’atar, if desired. Enjoy hot!

chickenlemonsmiddle easternpinenutsred onionsroastedza'atar