This French chicken dinner is a winner

Depending on how my taste buds are feeling I sometimes think a Sunday roast needs a little something to liven it up.

I like to give it a boost even if it is just adding an element to the gravy, it could be mustard, redcurrant jam or a splash of booze.

This week I had a chicken planned for Sunday. We have just booked a caravan trip to France so I decided to go French with my recipe and call it poulet roti. I cooked potatoes with the chicken, a delicious cross between roast and fondant potatoes. This is what I did.

I cut a lemon into four, pushed the lemon into the cavity of the chicken then added sprigs of rosemary and four crushed garlic cloves. These flavour the meat and juices but are not eaten. Then I made a spice rub to smear over the chicken. I put about 40g of soft butter, juice of a lemon, a teaspoon of salt, a teaspoon of paprika and a teaspoon of cayenne into a little bowl and mixed it together.

I used my hands to rub the paste over the chicken, covered it with foil and roasted for about an hour, then added potatoes that had been par boiled for about five minutes. I dribbled olive oil over the potatoes and roasted the lot for another good hour with foil off. I removed the chicken and let it rest then prepared side dishes of carrots and cabbage.

Resting lets the chicken relax and all its juices settle. I ground sea salt over the potatoes and squeezed lemon juice over them, added a little cornflour from the juices to make a gravy and splashed in a little red wine. It was divine!

On Saturday I had a drive over to Manchester. The route took me over Woodhead Pass and the wonderful open moors. It was quite exhilarating. I was hosting my first post lockdown live Bake With a Legend event. I really enjoyed myself.

This week I am testing new bakes and it might be al fresco dining again! Have a great week and stay safe!