Sunday - Roast chicken with all the trimmings

This afternoon we had the Fosters around for a bit of a play and a slap-up Sunday lunch with all the trimmings.  The Fosters have a little girl who is a bit older than R but they are of a similar enough age to get on and not scream when they both want a go on the scooter.

While Z and Mrs Foster played with the kiddies in the living room, Mr Foster and I busied ourselves in the kitchen (beer may have been involved).  The chicken was from our Swillington Farm meat box that was delivered on Thursday.  I would normally joint the chicken and freeze the portions until we needed them, but with guests coming we decided to keep it whole.  I covered it in bacon, put an onion and a lemon in the cavity and let it cook.

One of the good things about getting the chicken from Swillington is that the giblets are always with the bird.  I used these to make a stock that eventually turned into gravy.  Parboiled potatoes were roasted in goose fat alongside a tray of stuffing balls.  Carrots and broccoli were steamed and all that was left was to carve the bird.

Because we hadn't roasted one of Swillington's free range chickens before I was in for a treat.  I have never carved such a succulent, moist chicken.  It was also very tasty and we have a little left over for the rest of the week.  To round off the meal Z had cooked a rice pudding but that was eaten so fast that no photos were taken, which is a shame because it was great too.