Roasted Chicken Breasts and Gravy

Ingredients

For the chicken breasts

• 8-10 large, meaty chicken breasts on bones with skin
• 4-6 tablespoons butter, very thinly sliced
• freshly ground sea salt and peppercorn blend

For the foolproof chicken gravy

• 1 14 1/2-ounce can chicken stock + 1 14 1/2-ounce can of water
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
• 1/2-3/4 teaspoon Gravy Master (optional)

Directions

1. Step 1. Place a roasting rack in the bottom of a large disposable aluminum roasting pan to which 1, 14 1/2-ounce can of chicken stock and 1 can of water (use the can from the stock to measure the water) has been added.
2. Arrange 8-10 large, meaty chicken breasts (breasts on bones with skin, NOT boneless, skinless chicken breasts), side by side, overlapping slightly if necessary, skin side up, on rack. Slice some butter, as thinly as possible, and place 3 pats on top of each chicken breast. Liberally season everything with freshly ground sea salt and peppercorn blend.
3. Step 2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
4. Roast the breasts, uncovered, on center rack of preheated oven exactly 1 1/2 hours.
5. Remove the breasts from the oven, transfer them to a large, warmed serving platter and allow them to rest, about 15 minutes, prior to serving.
6. While the breasts are resting, prepare the gravy according to the following directions:
7. Step 3. Pour all liquid from the pan into a 1-quart fat/lean separator. You will have about 4 cups of fat-free drippings/liquid.
8. If you don't own a fat/lean separator. This is an inexpensive kitchen gadget. They come in ovenproof glass or plastic.
9. What happens is that when you pour the drippings into the separator, all of the chicken fat floats to the top, leaving all the flavorful fat-free drippings/liquid to be poured out from the bottom.
10. Step 4. In a 3 1/2-quart chef's pan, melt 6 tablespoons of butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in 1/2 cup of all-purpose flour along with 1 1/2 teaspoons of poultry seasoning. Do not add any salt or pepper... your fat-free drippings are seasoned! Whisk constantly, until the mixture (referred to as roux) is thick and smooth. This process will only take about 1-2 minutes.
11. Step 5. Whisk in all of the fat-free liquid from the fat/lean separator and discard all of the fat. Adjust heat to medium-high and bring gravy to a gentle simmer. Continue to simmer, whisking constantly, until gravy has thickened to your liking and coats a spoon, 2-3 minutes. The longer you simmer the gravy, the thicker it will get.
12. Depending on the color of your fat-free liquid that day (and it does vary slightly in color everytime you make it), if you want your gravy to be a little darker in color, just stir in about 1/2-3/4 teaspoon of Gravy Master or Kitchen Bouquet.
13. These products are used to add a nice rich brown color to the gravy.