TODAY’S RECIPE: Roast chicken and root veg

DELICIOUS, colourful supper. SERVES 4.

Ingredients

1.6kg/3lbwhole chicken

8oz Zest and juice

1 lemon

2 tbsp cold-pressed rapeseed oil

4-5 thyme sprigs, leaves roughly chopped

500g/1lb 2oz butternut squash, cut into chunks

300g/11oz carrots, cut into chunks

300g/11oz parsnips, peeled and cut into long batons

1 medium red onion, cut into thin wedges

1 garlic bulb, cloves separated

100g/4oz baby spinach leaves

Method

1 Heat oven to 200c/180c fan/gas 6. Put the chicken in a large roasting tin. Remove any trussing elastic and re-tie chicken’s legs with string. Rub the lemon juice into the chicken, then rub in 1 tbsp of the oil and sprinkle with the thyme and plenty of seasoning. Roast for 25 minutes.

2 Mix the squash, carrots, parsnips and onion in a bowl with the remaining oil, lemon zest and plenty of ground black pepper, and toss together well.

3 Take the chicken out of the oven and put on a plate. Scatter the vegetables into the tin, nestling the garlic cloves underneath, then put the chicken on top. Return to the oven for a further 45 minutes, turning the veg after 20 minutes until the chicken is cooked and the vegetables are tender and lightly browned.

4 Take the chicken out and place on a warmed platter. Cover with foil and leave to rest for ten minutes. Cook spinach in a saucepan with a drizzle of water and season with black pepper. Scatter vegetables around the chicken and serve with the spinach. Squeeze the garlic out of the skins and smear over the chicken, if you wish.