Crispy Skinned Chicken, Apple, Walnut and Kefir Cheese Stuffing, Herb and White Wine Gravy

Filippa and I are always looking for new ways to use the kefir cheese and this one works well. Its slightly sour flavour is a good balance for the sweet of the apple and the smoky sage. Roast chicken was always one of my favourite dinners as a child and is a favourite of my children as well.  The aroma of it cooking, the salty crunchy skin, interesting stuffing, roast veggies, lashings of gravy – it is easy to feel soothed here amongst family and friends and nourishing food.

Stuffing
1 slice sourdough rye bread
1 chopped onion
small handful of fresh sage
1 chopped apple
1/3 C roughly chopped walnuts
1/2 tspn lemon zest
Generous splash of white wine
Pinch sea salt
1 egg

Roughly chop bread, apple, walnuts, onion and sage.  Mix everything together – mush up with your hand.  Don’t process or blend the stuffing.  Course texture is great!

Rinse chicken and pat dry.  Push as much stuffing as you can fit into the chicken then wrap the remainder in foil – fold into a package.  Smear Ghee or softened butter onto the chicken skin then sprinkle with flour, sea salt and paprika.  We like it with organic spelt flour, but plain or gluten free works just as well.  A quick gluten free option if you have nothing else on hand is arrowroot.

Bake chicken and roast veggies until cooked to your satisfaction.  Put foil package of extra stuffing in baking pan 20 minutes before removing from the oven. Put chicken on a meat carving plate and allow to sit for 5 minutes before carving.  Keep the meat juices in the pan and add any that comes off the chicken during carving.

Herb and White Wine Gravy

Meat juices
1 Cup white wine
1 Tablespoon tomato paste
Splash Balsamic vinegar
Splash Tamari
1 1/2 Tablespoon flour of your choice
Handful chopped herbs of your choice – sage is great to include to pick up the flavour in the stuffing.

Heat meat juices and white wine on the stove.  Add tomato paste, balsamic, tamari and simmer for 2 minutes.  Put flour in a small bowl and add some of the gravy base, mix to a thick paste, then keep adding extra gravy base until the mix is runny enough to add into the pan. This is to avoid the flour going lumpy before you can mix it in. Stir in quickly, then keep stirring and simmering until the gravy thickens.  Use the same process to add more flour if the gravy isn’t thick enough.  Taste the gravy!  Flavour needs more depth? Add more balsamic.  Flavour needs more salt?  Add more tamari.  Needs to be more winey?  Add more wine! Add chopped fresh herbs and pour liberally over meat, stuffing and veggies.

Enjoy!!

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