One pot chicken with beetroot and mascarpone

 

It's always a bit of a risk trying a completely new recipe for a dinner party, especially when you're a bit pushed for time, but that's exactly what I did a couple of weeks ago for a family get together. I will definitely try this again and probably enjoy it more when the pressure isn't on.  It was such a colourful meal, as you can tell from the photographs. It's the first time I have used fresh beetroot and I loved it. I used chicken breasts instead of a jointed chicken for ease. The recipe is from the Delicious magazine and website. It's a good one for feeding a crowd. 

Ingredients

Serves 4

150g mascarpone
1 garlic clove, crushed
grated zest 1 lemon, juice 3 lemons

2 tbsp wholegrain mustard

3 tbsp clear honey

100ml dry white wine

2kg free-range chicken, jointed

500g beetroot, peeled and cut 
into 2cm dice
400g sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 2cm dice

olive oil for drizzling
a bunch of fresh dill, roughly chopped
a bunch of fresh basil, leaves torn

Method
Heat the oven to 200°C. In a medium bowl, combine the mascarpone, garlic and lemon zest and season well. In a separate small bowl, mix the lemon juice with the mustard, honey and wine.
Make a small incision in the side 
of each chicken piece, stuff with the mascarpone filling, then put in a large roasting tray. Arrange the beetroot and sweet potatoes around the chicken pieces, then drizzle 
over the honey mixture and a glug 
of oil. Season with salt and pepper.
Roast for 30-35 minutes until the chicken is golden and cooked and the veg are tender-crisp. Scatter over the dill and basil, then serve with extra steamed green veg, if you like, with the pan juices poured over.