Party Chicken with Feta & Fennel

Elevate your home entertaining with the ultimate guide to hosting unforgettable dinner parties and celebrations.

When Katherine Lewin opened up her first store—a dinner party shop—she had one goal: to help everyone make their meals at home feel a little bit more special. A little bit more joyful. A little bit Bigger. In her debut book, Katherine channels her New York City–based brick-and-mortar’s irresistible energy into a treasure trove of tips, tricks, and hosting essentials for every kind of Big Night. Learn how to Stop Worrying About Everything Matching and Just Set the Table; the step-by-step formula for discovering your (and your guests’) Perfect Martini; and the Cheese Plate of Dreams math of how many ounces to plan per person.

On top of these helpful sidebars—and in addition to more than 80 recipes for snacks, apps, mains, desserts, and cocktails—you’ll find full menus for 12 Bigger Nights to take you through every occasion, all year long. The first hint of sun in March calls for An Almost-Spring Thing, where you’ll serve ricotta toast with English pea pesto; in the peak of summer, treat everyone to an Italian Vacation Without Leaving the House, starring clam and corn pasta followed by lemon granita; when the leaves have turned, confidently plan The Best Friendsgiving, complete with the ultimate stuffing; and in the dead of winter, lure your friends over with A Noodle Soup to Get People Excited. From date night for two to pull-out-all-the-stops dinner parties to low-key weeknight hangs (delivery pizza encouraged—just make A Big Chopped Salad to go with), this hosting cookbook will help you find all the inspiration you need—and confidence you want—to make any and every night a Big Night.

Discover the joy of hosting stylish yet effortless parties with this comprehensive guide to memorable holiday gatherings and festive event menus. The ultimate host gift for your favorite party planner, this dinner party cookbook shows you how to make any evening feel like a special occasion through creative presentation, delicious party food, and a celebratory atmosphere.

Big Night: Dinners, Parties, and Dinner Parties – A Cookbook by Katherine Lewin is available at Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk and Indigo.ca.

Serves 6 to 8, easily scaled up

Everything we’ve ever been told about roast chicken is a lie. Okay, maybe lie is a strong word—but it’s a myth, for sure. “Perfect for entertaining,” they say. “So simple and easy to make,” they say. “You may even have leftovers,” they say. No, no, and definitely not. For starters: One chicken is simply too small for a group. No matter how elegantly roasted, perfectly crispy-skinned, and positively juicy that bird is, a roast chicken can feed four people max—and that’s if everyone in the group has compatible chicken desires (what happens if three out of four only like dark meat?). If you’re cooking for five or more humans, you really need two chickens. And I, for one, do not have it in me to make two chickens.

The solution? Chicken pieces—not a whole chicken—which can easily be scaled and selected for your group’s size and meat preferences, and which cook on sheet pans for weeknight ease. But don’t let those sheet pans fool you. This chicken is a party, thanks to the mix-and-mingling of white beans for richness, roasted fennel for earthy crunch, olives for can’t-stop-eating-it brininess, peas for sweetness, and feta baked in the oven so it’s ready to slather all over the crusty bread you should definitely serve with it.

2 large or 3 small fennel bulbs, with stalks and fronds (about 1½ pounds total)

3½ to 4½ pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken parts, such as thighs, legs, and/or breasts (breasts halved crosswise, if using)

Kosher salt

½ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more as needed

2 (15.5-ounce) cans cannellini beans or chickpeas, drained, rinsed, and patted dry

8 scallions, cut into 1-inch pieces

2 tablespoons za’atar

3 teaspoons mild chile flakes, such as Aleppo pepper or gochugaru, plus more for serving

Freshly ground black pepper

2½ cups pitted Castelvetrano olives

1 (6- to 8-ounce) block feta cheese

2 cups fresh or frozen English peas (about 10 ounces)

1 lemon

Fresh mint leaves, for serving

Crusty bread or cooked rice, for serving

Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 425°F.

Trim off the bottoms of the fennel bulbs. Slice the stalks from the bulbs, then separate the fronds from the stalks. Halve the bulbs lengthwise, then thinly slice the halves. Thinly slice the stalks. Divide the sliced bulbs and stalks evenly between two baking sheets. Reserve the fronds.

Pat the chicken very dry with paper towels (the drier the chicken, the crispier the skin), season on all sides with salt, and divide evenly between the baking sheets. Drizzle the chicken and fennel with about 1 tablespoon of the olive oil per baking sheet, tossing to coat. Bake for 10 minutes.

After 10 minutes, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and remove the baking sheets from the oven. Divide the beans and scallions evenly between the baking sheets. Shower each baking sheet with 3 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 tablespoon of za’atar, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1½ teaspoons of chile flakes, and a few grinds of pepper. Carefully toss the vegetables, chicken, and seasoning together, then place the chicken on top of the vegetables before

returning to the oven. Roast, rotating the baking sheets between racks and from front to back halfway through cooking, until the chicken is mostly cooked through, 25 to 30 minutes.

While the chicken and vegetables roast, use the side of your knife to crush the olives. Cut the feta into 8 pieces.

Remove the baking sheets from the oven. Divide the peas, olives, and feta between the baking sheets, carefully tossing them with the rendered fat in the pans. Return the baking sheets to the oven, rotating their positions again, and roast for another 15 to 20 minutes, until the peas are tender and the chicken is cooked through.

Turn your oven to broil. Move one of the oven racks to the top rack, closest to the broiler. Remove one baking sheet from the oven and place the other under the broiler. Broil until the chicken skin is golden brown and crispy, and the feta is beginning to take on color at the edges, 2 to 4 minutes, checking every minute or so to make sure nothing burns. Remove from the oven and repeat with the other baking sheet. When the second pan is finished, let both rest, uncovered, for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, roughly chop about ½ cup of the reserved fennel fronds. Slice the lemon in half lengthwise and cut one half into wedges. Transfer the chicken to a serving plate, on top of the vegetables and feta. Squeeze the remaining lemon half over the dish, then top with the mint and the chopped fennel fronds. Serve with the lemon wedges and bread on the side.

NOTE: When buying your chicken, don’t forget to factor in leftovers for the next day—simply toss pulled meat with a little mayo and lemon or chili crisp, and you have a chicken salad lunch party.