• This baked lemon chicken on ricotta and pea purée will become your new favourite dish to make!

    Baked lemon chicken on ricotta and pea purée

    Serves: 4 - 6
    Cooking Time: 4 hrs

    Ingredients

    • 1 onion, quartered
    • 4 garlic cloves
    • 15ml fennel seeds
    • 3 fresh bay leaves, finely sliced
    • 1 lemon thyme sprig, chopped
    • 1 rosemary sprig, chopped
    • bunch of parsley, chopped
    • zest and juice of 1 lemon
    • 6 chicken drumsticks and 6 thighs
    • 2 lemons, thickly sliced
    • salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
    • 30ml olive oil
    • RICOTTA AND PEA PURÉE

    • 1 garlic bulb, roasted
    • 500ml frozen or fresh peas, blanched
    • 200g ricotta
    • salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

    Instructions

    1

    Toss the onion, garlic, fennel seeds, herbs, lemon zest and juice together in a blender and blitz until smooth.

    2

    Marinate the chicken in the paste for about 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 180°C.

    3

    Place the lemon slices in the bottom of a roasting tray and top with the marinated chicken pieces. Season, drizzle with the olive oil and bake for about 2 hours. If the paste looks like it is browning too quickly, place a little foil loosely over the chicken pieces and continue cooking.

    4

    To make the purée, wrap the garlic bulb in a little foil and roast until it is fragrant and soft, about 30 – 45 minutes. Squeeze the roasted garlic out of the bulb and place the garlic in a blender with the peas and ricotta. Blitz until smooth, and season.

    5

    Place the purée in an ovenproof dish and warm it through in the oven.

    6

    Serve the chicken pieces with a dollop of purée and a drizzle of the pan juices.

    Made this baked lemon chicken on ricotta and pea purée recipe? Tag us @foodandhomesa #CookingWithFH on Instagram!

    ALSO SEE: Chicken Venezia

    Chicken Venezia

    Imka Webb
    Author

    Imka Webb is a freelance digital marketing expert and the digital editor of Food & Home Entertaining magazine.  www.imkawebb.com