Garlic roasted chicken with cauliflower puree
With South Africa being thrust quite violently into Summer, I never had a chance to transition from cooking warm, comforting meals and am now forced to drag myself to the kitchen where I throw a few salad ingredients into a bowl and hope my family will be happy with it. But then, THEN we had a few chilly days and I pretty much sprinted to the shops where I picked up a few comfort food favourites. I knew I wanted to cook roast chicken of sorts and saw these beautiful leg portions which in my opinion is the perfect quick-roast option. I am often craving roast chicken but can’t be bothered cooking a whole one but with these leg portions, you get all the flavour with half the fuss.
Because I’m trying to limit the amount of carbs we eat at night, I picked up a few cauliflower heads and turned them into the smoothest, most buttery puree which was the perfect accompaniment to the juicy, delicious chicken. And the garlic! Oh, the garlic. You guys, I could probably live off roasted garlic. I roasted 6 (SIX!!) heads along with the chicken and ate 4 of them. FOUR! I ate four WHOLE garlic heads. I just couldn’t stop. When roasted, the garlic becomes sweet and subtle and sucking them out of their papery skins is seriously the most fun you can have with your pants on. Except if you like to eat with your pants off, in which case… *judgy eyes*
Anyway, so yes, this is the meal I bid winter adieu with. I am not happy about this by the way. Yes, I love Spring (a lot) and I love that the garden is bursting with colourful blooms, the scent of Jasmine wafting through my office window and the fact that we’ll be spending some much needed time on the beach soon but still. I am such a winter person. So, my dear winter, farewell. I will see you soon but till then, I will make roast chickens and long for the day where I can do that without standing in a puddle of my own sweat. Lovely.
Ingredients
for the roast chicken
- 4-6 fresh chicken leg portions drumstick attached to thigh
- 2 tablespoons butter
- salt & pepper to taste
- 10 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 6 heads of garlic tops cut off
- salt & pepper to taste
for the cauliflower purée
- 1 large/2 medium heads of cauliflower cut into florets
- 1-2 tablespoons butter
- salt & pepper to taste
to serve
- steamed vegetables of your choice
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 180°c.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper then place in an oven-proof dish.
- Add the herbs and garlic and dot a piece of butter on each piece of chicken.
- Place in the oven and allow to roast for 20-30 minutes until the chicken is almost cooked through and the garlic is soft. Turn the heat up to 220°c. Allow to roast for another 10 minutes until the chicken is golden brown then remove and allow to rest for 5 minutes.
- In the meanwhile, steam the cauliflower until soft then purée with the butter, salt and pepper.
- Serve the roast chicken with the cauliflower purée, roasted garlic and vegetables of your choice.
