Recipes

Lemon Green Beans with Rosemary Chicken

Lemon is the new butter – try it on your green beans and a gorgeous roast chicken to see for yourself!

By Catherine RBarr /

Credit: Catherine Roscoe Barr

Lemon is the new butter in this rosemary chicken and green beans dish

One of my girlfriends introduced me to lemony green beans and I was so excited that beans could taste that good without butter that I’ve never gone back

I was so impressed with lemon’s versatility (who knew it was good for anything other than enhancing vodka and soda water) that I thought I’d extend its reach to my repertoire of roast chicken dinners (there are a lot of chicken dinners in rotation in my kitchen, including chicken cacciatore and chicken curry).

The result? Amazingly moist and flavourful chicken with beautiful, golden crispy skin. Yum-oh!

This is another really easy meal to prepare (I don’t like to make life complicated but I do require a healthy, homemade meal most nights) but the cooking time is 90 minutes, so when I make this dish during the week (and want there to be food in my belly shortly after arriving home) I use my large slow cooker so it can bake all day and then all there is to do when I get home is prepare the beans.

Ingredients

  • 1 whole chicken
  • 4 medium potatoes, cut into two-bite pieces
  • 1 1/2 lemons, washed
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp dried rosemary
  • 1/4 tsp coarse sea salt
  • 1/4 tsp coarse ground pepper
  • 3 big handfuls of fresh green beans, ends snapped off

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350F (or assemble things in slow cooker).
  2. Place chicken in centre of large roasting pan. Toss potatoes with oil in a large bowl and arrange around chicken. Using your hand, rub chicken with remaining oil from bowl.
  3. Squeeze lemons over chicken and potatoes, reserving about one tablespoon for the beans. Toss the lemon rinds in the pan.
  4. Sprinkle rosemary, salt and pepper over chicken and roast, covered, for 90 minutes.
  5. When chicken is ready, steam beans for a minute or two, so they’re still nice and crunchy, and toss with lemon juice.
  6. Enjoy!

”””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””’

Catherine Roscoe Barr, BSc Neuroscience, is a Vancouver-based freelance writer, editor, and fitness professional. Before settling on the west coast she lived in Sydney, Toronto, Oregon, Montana, and practically everywhere in Alberta. She can be found jogging with her adorable dog, dining with her fabulous husband or voraciously reading anywhere comfy.