Baked Chicken with Apples and Chestnuts

The castañas, sweet potatoes, and apples, roasted with the chicken drippings, give the whole dish a very Christmas feel. Serve with a green salad on the side.

Serves 4  Prep Time 20 minutes  Cooking Time 45 minutes to 1 hour

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1 tablespoon mustard
4 cloves garlic, minced finely
1/4 cup butter, softened but not melted
1/2 to 1 teaspoon sea salt (depending on your taste)
1 apple, peeled and cubed
2 white onions, peeled and cubed
250 grams sweet potato, peeled and cubed
1/2 cup peeled chestnuts (castañas)
1 head garlic, cloves separated but unpeeled
olive oil
sea salt and cracked black pepper
4 chicken leg quarters, jointed

1  Preheat oven to 375ºF.

2 Thoroughly mix thyme, rosemary, mustard, minced garlic, butter, and salt in a bowl; set aside.

3  In a baking pan big enough to hold all the chicken pieces, place apples, cubed onions, sweet potatoes, chestnuts, and garlic cloves. Drizzle with a couple of glugs of olive oil, and season generously with salt and pepper. Toss together with your hands to make sure everything is coated, and then spread evenly on the bottom of the pan.

4  Place chicken pieces over vegetables. Rub them liberally with the herb butter, pushing little pockets of butter under the chicken’s skin. If you have any leftover, do it over chicken and vegetables. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper over chicken skin.

5  Place pan in oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until chicken is done. Test by pricking a meaty part and see if the juices run clear.

Christmas-y tip:  Add a few dashes of ground cinnamon to the vegetables to make this taste even more like Christmas. Feel free to use other parts of chicken—I use leg quarters because that's our favorite.

Photography by Patrick Martires | Paulynn Chang Afable