Roast Chicken stuffed with Feta, Parsley & Walnuts

Let’s set the scene… Winter, Wimbledon, Waiting for Baby. So it’s June, my Mom was in town and we we’re waiting for ‘Pip’ (now known as Sophie since her much anticipated arrival). And of course, everyone needs to eat. Especially on Wimbledon Sunday when it’s cold and rainy. Indulging her penchant for endlessly flipping through food magazines, my Mom decided to give this feta, parsley and walnut-stuffed roast chicken a go. And boy were we glad she did. I tried my own hand at it a couple of weeks ago, with chicken pieces instead of a whole chicken, and decided that the first round wasn’t a fluke. It’s uncomplicated, honest, charming AND it’s a one pot wonder. In short, this is one heck of a dinner dish. 

Serves 4-5 | Preparation time 15 minutes | Cooking time
WHAT YOU’LL NEED
1 whole roast chicken or the equivalent in chicken pieces (preferably free range)
100g crumbed feta (about 1.5 rounds)
100g roughly chopped walnuts
1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley
5 Tbsp olive oil
Mixed selection of winter vegetables, washed and peeled where necessary (I used carrots, leeks, turnips, onions and celery)
3-4 cloves garlic
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups chicken stock
Juice of 1 lemon

2-3 Tbsp cornflour to make gravy

WHAT TO DO
1. Pre-heat oven to 180C.
2. Mix together the feta, walnuts, parsley and 2 Tbsp olive oil with a sprinkle of black pepper. Gently stuff the mixture under the skin of the chicken thighs and drumsticks.
3. Heat remaining olive oil on the stovetop and brown the chicken on all sides (about 5 minutes) then set aside.
4. Place the vegetables in a large oven-proof casserole dish, lay the chicken pieces on top. Pour in the chicken stock, cover and cook for 45 minutes or until the chicken pieces and vegetables are tender.
5. Thicken the sauce in the casserole dish with 2-3 Tbsp cornflour mixed together with 2-3 tsp cold water which you then gently stir into the sauce.

* We served this with mashed sweet potato on the side over which we spooned lots of delicious gravy.
*We have the fabulous Woolworths TASTE Magazine to thank for the original recipe, from their July 2011 issue.