Madhouse Family Reviews: Globe-cooking recipe : Rosemary-stuffed chicken with roasted Mediterranean veg (France)

Yesterday, for the first Sunday in ages, the weather was forecast as wet and windy so our semi-traditional summer Sunday lunchtime barbecue was off the menu. We opted for a roast chicken, but rather than going for the usual roast potatoes, carrots and parsnips, I decided to go for a lighter, Mediterranean-inspired version, using some of the rosemary that is happily growing in a pot on the patio. This nicely ties in with the French-theme for today's World Cup Challenge post - hopefully it might bring Les Bleus some extra luck for tonight's game !

Rosemary-stuffed chicken with roasted Mediterranean veg

1 free-range chicken

3 tomatoes

5 mushrooms

2 red peppers

1 leek

2 onions

several sprigs of fresh rosemary

freshly ground black pepper and sea salt

olive oil

Chop the vegetables into large chunks and put them in a large roasting tray. This is what I had in the fridge that needed using up but you could also add aubergines, courgettes, baby potatoes, olives, or whatever else takes your fancy.

Push sprigs of rosemary into the cavity of the chicken and lay one under each leg. Throw a couple more on top of the vegetables.

Place the chicken on top of the vegetables. Drizzle with olive oil and grind black pepper and sea salt over the top.

Put in the oven at 180° for 1 hour until the juices run clear. Serve with rice and/or salad.

I added some gravy granules to the juices from the roasting tin which created a beautiful rosemary-infused gravy. We also used the leftover carcass, gravy and rosemary sprigs to make a lovely chicken soup for the evening meal. It made a lovely change to the classic Sunday roast.