A Middle Eastern-ish Roast Chicken Feast

I made a summer dinner party menu so you don't have to

I don’t know about you, but something about summer makes me want to party. And I don’t mean stand on a table, shake my butt, and do shots kind of party. (Who, may I ask, do you think I am?) I mean dinner party. 

Maybe it’s the rainbow of bountiful, peak-deliciousness produce that’s everywhere I look. Maybe it’s the fact that the days are loooong and yet I don’t want them to ever end. Maybe it’s the fact that summer still makes me think of summer vacation, despite the fact that that hasn’t been a thing for well over a decade. Whatever the reason, when the weather turns balmy, the sun lingers around well past its bedtime, and the air feels sticky hot, I find myself throwing on a light-as-air dress, pouring a glass of crispy cold wine, playing some jazz, calling up my friends, and cooking something yummy. 

And call me crazy, but that something that I’m wanting to cook is roast chicken. 

Roast chicken? In the summer? I know, I know – the ovens, the sheer heat of it all. But you see, I think of roast chicken as seasonless. Yes, it’s warm and comforting and totally wholesome in the colder months, but a roast chicken takes on a whole new persona come summer. She’s radiant! She’s the life of the party! She’s fun! The key? It’s all in the sides, baby. Save those luscious mashed potatoes, roasted roots, and unctuous gravies for months that end in -ber and feel like brrrr. Seasonal and fresh is the name of the game right now. 

In honor of the first official weekend of summer, I’m sharing a Middle Eastern-ish roast chicken feast with all the trimmings, plus a cocktail (make it a mock by holding the booze) and a super easy but very impressive dessert. There are salads, there are fries, there are dips galore (and lots of shortcuts if you’d like to take ‘em). It’s enough to feed a crowd, so I suggest you do. Make it for your family, make it for your friends, make it for someone you love. Or, make it just for you and you only. I might not know you, but I know that you deserve it.