Amy made this chicken this week, along with the same mashed potatoes. I’ve been craving roast chicken, so I thought I’d try it as well. I agree with Amy’s assessment – this is an excellent method of making chicken, equal to the Zuni method. The Zuni method required fewer steps (no butchering), but the brick method produces equally delicious results with a bit of work on the front end.
– I don’t especially enjoy butchering meat, but this wasn’t bad. The end result is a mostly boneless chicken, which means almost no carving after it’s cooked. The skin is golden, crispy and delicious. I couldn’t help myself and ate most of the skin off of the thigh. The chicken is supposed to marinate overnight, but I didn’t start it until 6 pm (we ate at 7:30). I used my instant marinater to speed the process along. This device is controversial, and I’m not positive that it works quite as advertised, but I like to use it for last-minute cooking. I bought a kosher chicken, which is well-seasoned off the shelf.
– Larry and I both liked these potatoes a lot. I love the combination of goat cheese and sage, and I like that the addition of goat cheese makes the dish a bit lighter (less butter).

• Chicken Under a Brick (Fine Cooking #36, December 1999, p. 35)
• Creamy Mashed Potatoes with Goat Cheese & Fresh Sage (Bon Appetit, November 2004)
• Baby Spinach Salad with Grape Tomatoes, Balsamic Vinegar and Olive Oil

WIne: 2001 Heritage Vineyard Zinfandel. This is a nice everyday Zinfandel. We were given two cases of it for our work with ZAP this year (we’re long-time volunteers). There’s a different winemaker on every release – this release was made by Joel Peterson of Ravenswood.