INGREDIENTS

• 1 3- to 4-lb chicken
• Sea salt
• Freshly cracked black pepper
• 1 lemon
• 1 1/2 tablespoons dried edible lavender
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon thyme honey, lavender honey, or acacia honey
• 1 tablespoons butter, left out of the fridge for 5 to 10 minutes so that it’s cold, but not rock solid

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F with the rack in the center.  Cut the backbone out of the chicken with kitchen shears.  Lay the the chicken breast-side-up in an enameled baking dish.  Press down on the breast bone to break, so that the chicken lies flat.  Season generously, front and back, with salt and pepper. In a bowl, mix together the zest of 1 lemon, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice (about half a lemon; reserve the other half lemon for later in the recipe), the lavender, the thyme, and the olive oil.  Stir to combine.  Add the butter, and using either a fork or an immersion blender to mash the mixture together, smash until the mixture is for the most part homogenous. Slather the lemon, lavender, and honey butter all over the top of the chicken, and any extra, spread lightly on the under side.  Roast for 45 minutes, until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 degrees F and the skin is golden and scorched.  10 to 15 minutes before the chicken is done, add the wedges from the remaining half lemon into the pan. Let the chicken rest for 10 minutes on a board, and then cut it in half.  Serve it with warm toasted slices of pain au levain, with the pan juices poured on top and the roasted lemon wedges scattered around the plate.print this recipe