The Alternative Roast

Roast Chicken

• 1 large whole chicken (1.8kg - 2kg)
• 1 lemon (halved)
• 2 cloves garlic (crushed - for rubbing on the chicken)
• Fresh mixed herbs roasting herbs (sage, thyme and rosemary - usually sold as a packet of roasting herbs)
• 2 tbsp butter (room tempertaure)
• Drizzle of olive oil
• salt and pepper

Vegetable Casserole

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic (crushed)
• 400 g new potatoes (washed and halved)
• 1/2 tbsp plain flour
• 2 medium leeks (washed and chopped into 2 inch chunks)
• 4 parsnips (washed, peeled and chopped into 3 inch chunks)
• 300 g Chantenay carrots (washed and halved)
• 250 g mushrooms (cleaned and quartered)
• 8 talks purple sprouting broccoli
• 225 ml white wine
• 1.5 litre chicken stock
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
• salt and pepper (I sometime use crushed / ground pink peppercorns as an alternative which gives a lovely note to the stew)

Dumplings

• 140 g chilled butter (chopped into small cubes)
• 250 g self-raising flour
• 1 -2 tbsps grated parmesan
• 125 ml water
• Chopped fresh parsley for the dumplings and garnish