Apple Mint Roasted Chicken

This roasted chicken is so juicy. The meat is so tender and succulent, more so when you cut up the chicken and let it sit in the pan juices before serving it. I almost hesitate calling it a roasted chicken because the skin is so soft but if you want more of a crispy skin, just don't baste it as much. This is a nice meal to share among four people, pair the chicken with a good multi-grain bread, to dunk in the buttery sweet pan juices. A wild rice dish served on the side, along with a Waldorf salad to start and an apple pie for dessert would complete this meal. Enjoy!

• 1 4-pound chicken
• 1 small apple, like a Gala, cut in half
• about 10 mint leaves, 2 left whole, the rest roughly chopped
• 6 oz. apple juice
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1 tablespoon amaretto *optional
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter,cut into small pieces
• sea salt
• freshly ground pepper

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. With a sharp knife, cut your chicken down the breast side, along the back. Please be careful when doing this and using a sharp knife makes it easier, along with slightly pressing down on the knife. You can cut down the other side and remove the back bone and save it for stock or just include it in the baking pan. I'm sure you can always ask the butcher to do it for you, if you're hesitant. Salt and pepper the inside of the chicken and place 2 mint leaves inside the chicken cavity, around the breast area works best. Take your apple halves and place them cut side down in the roasting pan, eyeing where they will fit easily inside the chicken once you place the chicken over them. Or as I did, I fit the apples, round side in, and cut side out, in the chicken and then placed it in the pan. It sounds more complicated than it really is. You basically want the apple halves to roast inside the open chicken. One of my favorite ways to roast chicken is to put an apple inside but at the same time, I  enjoy roasting the chicken with it cut open because all of the skin gets to caramelize and brown. In a small bowl whisk the apple juice, honey and amaretto. Pour over the chicken. Into the apple juice mixture sprinkle half the mint leaves. Season your chicken with sea salt and ground pepper and top with the unsalted butter. Roast your chicken for an hour and fifteen minutes and up to an hour and a half. After about 30 minutes, baste your chicken with the juices about every 15 minutes. Try not to let any mint leaves on the skin when done basting because they will just burn. Once your chicken is done, let it rest for 10 to 15 minutes. If you are using the pan juices, remove the apple and serve along side the chicken, it's really good. Strain the juices with a fine mesh sieve and pour them back into the pan and put your chicken back in or serve the juices on the side. Sprinkle with mint leaves and serve.