For those of us living in the newly
renamed Arctic Northeast nothing fights back the nastiness of the frigid outdoors  more than a warm and inviting home
with the aroma of chicken wafting from the kitchen.  As the snow AGAIN piles up outside bake a chicken in your
oven...either traditional roast chicken, or baked chicken with potatoes, bacon, celery and onions.  This dish gives
you time to wind down from your miserable commute (or not), prep the ingredients, turn on the oven, and let time
and heat create a comforting meal for the evening.  So, in the picture above, is one chicken, cut into eight pieces.
Add them to a bowl and liberally sprinkle them with salt, good paprika, like a sweet Hungarian or Spanish brand,
salt, pepper, fresh thyme and oregano.  Add some olive oil, 3 1/2 cloves of garlic which you will rub over the chicken
pieces.  Let this sit for 15 minutes.  Pre heat the oven to 375 degrees.  Wash and scrub 15 red skin potatoes, the
small one with a nice round shape.  Slice them in half.  Chop 4 slices of bacon into thirds.  Dice one yellow onion.
Slice 2 stalks of celery and 2 peeled carrots.  Place a bay leaf into the bowl and add 1/8 cup dry white wine.
Toss all of the ingredients together in the bowl, adding a little more olive oil, salt and pepper.  Add them to a baking
dish and cook uncovered for 1 hr.  Check the chicken for doneness and test a potato.  It should be crisp outside and
creamy on the inside. 
  This will surely make you forget about the
malestrom of bad weather outside your door.  It is a classic combo of ingredients that are shared by many cultures.  The
flavors blend so harmoniously.  At a client dinner last night at THE BRESLIN (http://thebreslin.com/  ), a fairly new hotel
restaurant in NYC, my dining partner and I ordered the Vinegared Poussin.  Fancy little chicken roasted with herbs, oil,
and a vinegar sauce.  Simple, elegant, full of flavor and perfectly cooked.  This winter I find myself ordering some type
of roast or baked chicken whenever I'm out.  You would think with all of the choices one can make I would choose something
more exotic.  Cold weather, blustery or snowy days, roast chicken is the antidote.
   Let's perk up the meal with a healthy and
bright salad of butter lettuce, vine ripened tomatoes, kalamata olives, oregano, lemon juice, minced red onions, small diced
cucumber, and tart salty feta. olive oil, and a shot of red wine vinegar.  These flavors perk up your taste buds and are a great accompaniment to the chicken.  Serve
with garlic croutons....NO, not the little jaw-breaker squares of processed seasoned bread in the box...a real crouton (let's
get French here..) a crust of bread, or a toasted slice of bread.  Buy a good baguette and slice on the bias.  Pour some
Olive Oil over each one and toast on a baking sheet in the oven while the chicken is cooking.  This takes about 8 minutes,
keep checking so you don't burn them. When they are browned and crisp, remove them from the oven and rub each
crouton down with a cut clove of garlic.  Serve with the salad.



Now, once you've eaten this mid-week meal, kick back, watch the snow fall, watch a good show on
TV and let the warmth of your home blanket you with good feelings....