RECIPE: Shana's Baked Chicken

I make this a lot.  It is cheap and easy, just have to have some time on your side.  The recipes varies greatly depending on my mood with spices, but the basic recipe is always the same.

1 defrosted whole chicken
olive oil
onion
garlic
seasoning (you decide)

Heat oven to 375 degrees.  Get out your roasting pan or your chicken roasting pan (you can find them at any Dollar General store for about 8 bux and it is worth getting, just does the job right, make sure to get the kind with the lid).  Spray with PAM.

Rinse off your chicken in the sink, clean out the cavity, remove the giblets if there are any.  Rub your chicken down with olive oil inside and out.  Place breast side down in your roasting pan.  Sprinkle your seasonings (like salt, pepper, garlic powder, whatever) in the cavity and stuff a cut up onion in there too.  Sprinkle the top of the chicken with the same seasonings.  COVER your chicken with either tinfoil or the chicken roasting pan lid and place in the oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes.  The total time of your chicken is typically 20 min per lb, but most of the ones you buy at the stores will take about 1 1/2-2 hrs of cooking time total.  After 1 hour and 15 minutes remove the tinfoil or lid and start basting the chicken for another 20-40 min of cook time.  During this time the chicken will brown on top, basting will help keep it moist and prevent burning, so baste at least every 10 minutes or so. 

Remove and test with thermometer (160 degrees is done) or just cut the side and make sure not pink in the breast.  Cut up and enjoy.

Some variations I do:  Lemon juice inside and out with pepper and rosemary, garlic cloves (about 10) sprinkled inside and out and under the skin with salt and pepper, cajun seasoning, mesquite seasoning, they all turn out great.