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Cinnamon roasted chicken with spiced pears

During the winter months there is nothing more satisfying & fulfilling at the weekend than a lovely Sunday Lunch. In my family the star roast lunch is chicken, so to make it a bit more seasonal and festive I rubbed the skin with spiced butter and roasted some pears alongside it. This cinnamon roasted chicken with spiced pears turned out to be a fantastic dinner - it smelled really Christmassy and tasted delicious. Perfect for a laid-back family meal or even a festive dinner party! Serve it with roast potatoes and a couple of other side dishes of your choosing.
Print Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Resting Time 4 hours
Total Time 1 hour 40 minutes
Servings: 6 people
Cuisine: British
Calories: 1234
Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

  • 1 medium chicken approx. 1.5 kg
  • 3 Tbsp soft butter or dairy-free spread
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground ginger
  • Grated zest of 1 lemon
  • For the cavity: 1 inch piece of ginger 1 garlic clove, ½ onion
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 3 hard pears
  • 150 ml pear cider

Method
 

  1. Preheat the oven to 200°C.
  2. Mix the butter/spread with the cinnamon, ginger and lemon zest. Add salt & pepper to your liking. Rub ⅔ of this into the chicken skin all over and inside the cavity.
  3. Place the chicken in a baking dish. Put the whole ginger, garlic and onion in its cavity.
  4. Put the dish in oven and turn down the temperature to 180°C. Bake for 10 minutes.
  5. Pour the cider over the chicken and put it back into the oven. Cook for about and hour, basting a couple of times.
  6. Meanwhile, quarter & core the pears and put them in a bowl. Squeeze over the lemon juice.
  7. When the chicken is brown, take it out of the oven.
  8. Rub the pear pieces with the remaining butter and place them around the chicken.
  9. Cook for 20-30 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through (check with a skewer), and the pears are tender (they should not be too soft).
  10. Place the chicken in a large serving dish and put the pear pieces around it.
  11. Reduce the pan juices to a gravy, then strain it into a serving jug.
  12. Carve the chicken, then serve with the pear and gravy.