Cinnamon Curry Roasted Chicken

The best roasted chicken you'll ever roast.

Ingredients
1 (4-pound) roasting chicken
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds
3 green cardamom pods
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 head garlic cloves separated and unpeeled, plus 6 cloves, peeled
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 shallots, unpeeled and quartered
3 sticks cinnamon
1 cup chicken broth

Directions
Preheat oven to 450°. Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Place on a rack in a small roasting pan or baking dish. Set aside.

In a small frying pan over medium heat, combine cumin seeds, black peppercorns, coriander seeds and cardamom pods. Swirl until lightly toasted and fragrant, 2 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and cool slightly; grind using a mortar and pestle. (To save time, or if you don't have equipment, use preground spices and toast in pan 45 seconds.) Mix with curry powder, cinnamon and red pepper flakes.

Finely chop peeled garlic cloves and combine with olive oil in a small bowl. Rub mixture over entire chicken. Sprinkle with salt. Use your fingers to slightly loosen the chicken skin and rub some of the olive oil and salt directly onto the meat. Then rub the spice mixture onto the meat under the skin. Don't pull the skin completely off the chicken! You should be able to slip the spices underneath and then put skin back in place. Next, place unpeeled garlic, shallots and cinnamon sticks inside chicken cavity. Tie legs together with kitchen string. Roast (breast side up) for 30 minutes before basting with 1/2 cup chicken broth. Roast 20 minutes more, then baste with remaining 1/2 cup broth. The basting is very important to keep chicken moist. Continue cooking until juices run clear when chicken is pierced with a knife and meat is no longer pink, about 1 hour and 15 minutes total. Remove from oven and cool slightly. Serve with rice or naan and plain yogurt.