Roast Chicken with Summer Vegetables and Torn Croutons
Prep time:
20 minutes
Cook time:
85 minutes
Serves:
4-5
Ingredients
1.5kg Waitoa Free Range Whole Chicken
4 sprigs fresh thyme
1 small bunch fresh oregano
25g butter, softened
1 eggplant, cut into 2cm cubes
2 courgettes, cut into discs
1 red onion, cut into wedges
400g vine tomatoes
2 bulbs garlic, cut in half
½ cup kalamata olives
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp caster sugar
4 tbsp olive oil
½ sourdough or ciabatta loaf
Sea salt
Cracked pepper
Method
Heat oven to 190ºC bake.
Pat chicken dry with a paper towel and place in a roasting pan. Rub butter onto the skin of the
chicken and season with salt and pepper. Stuff fresh herbs into the cavity of the chicken and tie the legs together with cooking string.
Roast chicken for 50 minutes, then add the vegetables, garlic, olives, vinegar and caster sugar to the pan. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle over 2 tablespoons olive oil, use a spoon to toss to combine.
Return to the oven for a further 25minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
Remove the chicken from the roasting pan and set aside for 10 minutes to rest.
Tear the bread into bite sized chunks and scatter on top of the vegetables. Drizzle over remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil and grill for 5-10 minutes or until the bread is crunchy. Turn the bread over halfway through grilling.
Just before serving, toss the bread through the vegetables so they soak up all the lovely juices.
