If you’ve had dinner at my house in the past couple of weeks, you’ve eaten roast chicken. It’s the perfect easy meal amid the holiday rush, and I’m on a quest to perfect this simple dish, with the help of Judy Rodgers and Thomas Keller — okay, okay, with the help of Rodger’s Zuni Café Cookbook and Keller’s Bouchon.

And these recipes — and Griggstown Quail Farm’s chickens — are producing delicious crispy skinned birds. Now, if only I could justify buying one of the Staub cast-iron pans Nineteen chef Marc Plessis uses to roast and present his infinitely more-elegant roasted bluefoot chickens. The pan holds the bird, which has already been brined for 24 hours, upright while it is steamed and then roasted at a high heat. Plessis surrounds the bird with substantial roasted carrots, onions, brussels sprouts and bluefoot mushrooms. Sounds like I’ve got another method to try.

Image, photos.com

While wandering the new Marketplace at East Falls, a “work in progress” Ardmore Farmers Market imitator that recently opened on Ridge Avenue, I stumbled upon Pappardelle’s. The Denver-based artisanal pasta shop wasn’t even completely unpacked yet, but I couldn’t resist the long loops of dried pasta in vibrant colors and flavors displayed in wooden crates.

Hearty four-peppercorn fettuccine, with its lingering citrus flavors, will be a staple in my pantry, but I’m not so sure about the dark chocolate linguine. I had to buy the deep-brown pasta, and I’ve nibbled a piece of it dry — definitely, surprisingly, chocolate — but I don’t know what to do with it yet.

The clerk behind the counter suggested some whipped cream and graham cracker concoctions, but I’m craving a more savory preparation. Perhaps a rich duck ragu with orange zest, a twist on James’ duck tagliatelle with grated chocolate. Or a combination of venison and quince, a la Vetri … I’m taking all suggestions.

Image, Pappardelles.com

Sure, there’s nothing like a home-cooked meal, but Monday through Friday I just need to get the damned dinner on the table. My latest tastes-homemade quick-fix obsession? Basil pesto from local producer Ellen Rose.

Almost 80-year-old Ellen Rose starting selling her salad dressings more than 10 years ago at her now-defunct namesake Germantown restaurant after dishing the creamy Caesar dressing into Styrofoam coffee cups for customers who wanted it to go just wasn’t cutting it anymore.

Now, the Ellen Rose line — still produced by Ellen Rose, with some help, out of a small kitchen in Cheltenham — consists of five dressings (including a low-fat orange-ginger that the diet-conscious order by the case) and pesto variations like basil, sun-dried tomato and artichoke. They are everything that we love right now: local, preservative-free and delish.

I toss the basil pesto with fresh, cooked pasta or use it to snazzy up green salads. Or try it instead of red sauce on a shrimp pizza. Look for more from Ellen Rose in the future: more low-fat dressings and pesto mixed with cream cheese for dips and bruschetta.

Find Ellen Rose products at Wegman’s in Downingtown and Warrington, Genuardi’s on the Main Line and Great Scot’s Rittenhouse Market.

Photo, Jenni Oberlag