Juicy Roast Chicken

Preheat the oven to 425 F. Remove the giblets, rinse the chicken and pat it dry. Season the chicken liberally with salt and fresh ground pepper, both inside the cavity and out. Cut the lemon in half, stuff it in the cavity together with the celery rib (recipes often ask you to tie up the chicken but I was out of twine and it turned out OK). Chop up the carrots, potato, and the onion. Slice the asparagus spears in half and layer all vegetables on the bottom of a baking dish. Put the chicken on top of the vegetables (you can coat them with olive oil but I did not even bother), breast side up.

Roast the chicken in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 350 F and roast for another hour. (I made a pan of muffins at the same time.) After an hour, increase the temperature to 375 F and roast for 15 minutes to finish off. Remove from oven, allow it to sit for a few minutes before carving, then carve and serve.