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This past Easter Sunday I made us a most delicious roast chicken! I decided to go for a completely traditional English Roast chicken, complete with homemade gravy and stuffing! 

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On the side, I made a dish of carrots and butternut which I smothered in butter, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. This side dish is such a favourite with the kids and it compliments the saltiness of the roast, just beautifully.

The roast chicken, I prepared on a bed of roughly chopped onions. I then stuffed the chicken with a traditional stuffing made with chicken liver, grated carrot, a generous amount of garlic, chopped onion, bread crumbs and an egg. This part is fun and the kids like to get involved because you have to get in there with your hands! I  always end up making too much stuffing, so I just bundle it up with some tin foil and put it in the roasting pan alongside the chicken.

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Next, I covered the chicken with herbs and chicken spice, and then topped that with generous amounts of butter and more garlic.

I then filled the dish up with Rose wine and let the whole thing roast at 180 degrees Celsius for about three hours. 

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When it comes to the browning stage, things get a little tricky, as you want to pour out almost all of the gorgeous juice at the bottom of the pan to make your gravy, but you don't want the chicken to dry out. My solution? After putting the temperature up to ensure the chicken browned nicely without drying out, I basted it with butter every 10 minutes. Once excess liquid built up at the bottom of the roasting dish, I'd just add it to the gravy! All you need is a little flour that you can mix into a paste and add to the gravy to thicken in a saucepan on the stove. Remember to keep stirring it though, otherwise, it will be lumpy.

The trick for perfect roast potatoes is to parboil them 1st. Sometimes I cheat and just deep fry wedges, but this time, I did it properly in a roasting tray, and in the oven with garlic, herbs, and spices. By parboiling them, you ensure your roast potatoes cook through and are gorgeously crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.

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I almost forgot to mention that @zakludick grew this butternut in our very own garden! There is something so delightful about harvesting from your own garden.

Because of the slow roasting process and all the extra butter, there wasn't a dry piece of chicken to be found!

It's not often we do it, but a lovely roast for the family is a wonderful way to celebrate a special occasion. The plates were licked clean by all!


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