Spatchcock - the easy roast

I have been a bit sad today. You see I finally took down the Christmas tree. I know it's a bit late but I'm only just back from holidays. Why is it that packing the tree up in its little box brings the complete opposite feelings of unpacking it? One whole year before it's ham and turkey and presents and sweets (now I'm starting to remember where my new stomach came from!).

I am going somewhere with this I promise. This is a nice and easy alternative to a big Christmas roast you might be dreaming of. You still get the crispy skin and meaty goodness but with hardly any prep and only 40 minutes in the oven. Spatchcock is a great roast chicken alternative.

Here they are all marinated and ready for the chop. How cute are their little crossed legs?! You can get spatchcock from most butchers and if you're very nice they'll even cut them up and de-bone them for you (I'm not keen on doing that part myself). The marinade used on these was parsley, garlic and oil but you can use anything you like - rosemary and garlic, honey and soy, sage butter... whatever takes your fancy

Here they've been separated into wing and leg portions ready to be roasted. They take about 40 minutes in a 180C fan-forced oven. Place them flat on a baking-paper lined tray and pat dry (this ensures the skin gets nice and crispy and brown).

Leave them to rest for 5 minutes after roasting then serve them up and enjoy!

I would recommend ¼ spatchcock per moderately hungry person or ½ per hungry person.