Chicken, chorizo and lemon bake

When I was little, roast chicken was the Sunday lunch staple: the side dishes would change sometimes - potatoes, pasta, rice, salad - but the chicken was the king of the most important Sunday meal. My mom loved it, my granny loved and I did, too - still do.

After my mom got sick my father would bring a rotisserie chicken for lunch, but it was good anyway. Those days were happy days - I miss them. And when I'm feeling nostalgic I usually make things my mom used to cook, and roast chicken is one of them.

I like to use different recipes now and then and this one, from Donna Hay mag, was elected by the hubby as the most delicious roast chicken I've ever made, and he went crazy with the crunchy chorizo bits and the sweet and mellow roast garlic. We like our chicken very golden and crisp on the outside - hence the long oven time - but you can play around the recipe accordingly to your taste.

Chicken, chorizo and lemon bake
slightly adapted from the always delicious and foolproof Donna Hay Magazine

4 large pieces of chicken – I used 2 thighs and 2 drumsticks

For marinating the chicken:
2 garlic cloves, bashed in a mortar and pestle until puréed
juice of 1 large lemon
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper

For roasting the chicken:
1 lemon, sliced in 6 pieces lengthwise
1 chorizo, sliced
6 cloves of garlic, unpeeled
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
6-8 sprigs fresh thyme
1/3 cup black olives

Place the chicken pieces in a plastic bag or in a shallow bowl. Add the garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper and mix to coat the chicken pieces. Close the bag (or cover the bowl with plastic wrap) and marinate in the fridge for 3 hours or overnight.
Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F. Remove the chicken from the marinade and place it in a shallow heatproof dish (if you line the dish with a double layer of foil washing up will be easier). Drizzle with some of the marinate and roast for about 40 minutes. Remove from the oven, add lemon, chorizo, garlic and thyme, drizzle with the butter and roast for another 40-50 minutes or until chicken is deeply golden brown and cooked through – in the final 10 minutes, add the olives.

Serves 2