Roast chicken, garlic butter beans, herby crushed potatoes and asparagus.

An alternative to lamb this Easter. Sharing plates of fresh, wholesome goodness, made for alfresco dining.

Serves 4

Roast chicken

1 whole chicken, roughly 1.6kg

1 lemon

5 escallion shallots

1 large bulb garlic

Garlic butterbeans

3 sprigs thyme, leaves removed

200ml chicken stock

460g butter beans (2 x tins or 1 large jar), drained

30g butter

Herby crushed potatoes

500g new potatoes

1 handful basil, parsley and mint all roughly chopped

1 tbsp capers, roughly chopped

1 tsp red wine vinegar

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

250g asparagus, woody stalk ends removed

Olive oil

Sea salt

Pepper

Remove the chicken from the fridge an hour before cooking, salt the skin and set aside. Preheat the oven to 240C/220C fan/gas mark 9.

Slice the shallots lengthways, half the lemon and bulb of garlic. Finely slice one of half of the garlic and set aside.

Stuff the chicken with 1 sliced shallot, the remaining half garlic bulb followed by half the lemon. Rub olive oil into the salted skin. Add the remaining sliced shallots to a roasting tin and balance the chicken on top. Cook for 20-25 minutes until the skin is golden brown, reduce the heat to 160C/140C fan/gas mark 4. Cook for a further 25-35 minutes until the juices run clear, basting regularly.

Meanwhile, add a medium pan of water to a high heat, salt generously, add the new potatoes and cook for 15-20 minutes until soft. Drain and leave to steam dry.

Once the chicken is cooked, remove from the oven and place upside down on a plate covered in foil to rest while you prep the sides.

Reserve the jammy shallots and the roasting juices from the roasting tin, scraping off all of the golden goodness.

Increase the oven heat to 200C/180C fan/gas mark 6.

Heat a medium pan over a low heat, and add a glug of olive oil followed by the finely sliced garlic. Cook on low for 5-7 minutes, stirring regularly to ensuring the garlic doesn’t gain colour.

Stir in the thyme leaves, half the reserved shallots and butterbeans, and add a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Add the roasting tin juices followed by the chicken stock, bring to the boil and reduce to a simmer, cook on medium-low for 20-30 minutes until the sauce has thickened. Taste and adjust the seasoning if required. Turn off the heat and stir in the butter.

Line a large baking tray with baking paper. Add the cooled potatoes, use the bottom of a glass to crush gently. Add a drizzle of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 15 minutes, turn and add the asparagus to the tray, season and coat in the olive oil and cook for a further 15-20 minutes until golden.

In a small bowl, add the chopped mint, parsley, basil and capers, red wine vinegar and extra virgin olive oil. Mix well and season to taste. Toss with the crushed potatoes once cooked.

Heat a small frying pan over a high heat, add the remaining lemon half cut side down and cook until it begins to char.

Carve the chicken. On a large serving dish, layer the butterbeans, asparagus, chicken, remaining shallots and squeeze over the charred lemon. Serve with the herby crushed potato side. 

Lauren Wall is a London-based freelance recipe writer.