Philosophizing About Food With Francine: Roast Chicken

by Francine Black

Chicken getting ready to roast on a bed of vegetables and herbs. 

In 17th century France, KIng Henry IV was reputed to have wished that all of his peasants would enjoy “a chicken in their pots every Sunday.” 

Two centuries later, although Herbert Hoover actually never uttered that phrase, the Republican Party used it as a slogan in Hoover’s 1928 presidential campaign, promising a period of “Republican Prosperity."  You may remember that the stock market crashed in 1929 and although Hoover tried to make good on his chicken promise, history sadly doesn’t give him a very good report card. Tragically, chicken appeared in very few pots! 

Meanwhile, Henry IV known as”the Good” and “the Great,"  might have come through on his chicken promise to some extent, as he did improve the fate of Protestants and Catholics alike by invoking the Edict of Nantes, which ended the years of religious wars and strife. 

Back to our dinner…we’re blessed to be able to enjoy a delicious roast chicken after a couple of hours in the oven. Let’s not forget to be grateful. 

 Readers may be interested in trying this Ina Garden roast chicken recipe that is shared via the Food Network.  Click here.

High in the mountains above Bally, where the dense groves of treetops seem to touch the sky, is Francine Black, Boyertown’s own version of chef Julia Child. Her daily activities reflect the things she most values: family and friends, music, and lovingly prepared food.

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