Nothing beats a good free-range roast chicken for Sunday lunch and this recipe adds some great taste to this well-known dish. I recently met the Friendly Farmer in Athenry, who is passionate about the chickens and turkeys he raises. A very impressive producer.

For me, this chicken needs nothing more than a nice selection of fresh fruit for dessert.

Marinating the chicken in yogurt and spices makes the meat meltingly tender.

The bulgur wheat salad is a nice variation on a classic Middle Eastern dish. I often serve it on its own, as a summer lunchtime snack. If you don’t fancy bulgur wheat, couscous or quinoa make good alternatives.

Bulgur is a dried, cracked wheat, usually made from durum wheat, and it is one of those healthy supergrains that’s very quick to cook. It is lovely with pesto, goat’s cheese or root vegetables. Of course, you can vary this salad with any dried fruit that you enjoy.

Happy cooking.

Spicy roast chicken

Serves four

1.5kg (3lb) chicken

For the marinade:

1 whole garlic bulb

A little Donegal Rapeseed oil

5 tsp of caraway seeds

2 tsp of cumin seeds

1 tbsp of dried oregano

2 tsp of dried rosemary

1 tsp of turmeric

4 tbsp of harissa paste (from a jar)

250ml (9fl oz) of thick Greek yogurt

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Fresh coriander sprigs, to garnish

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F, gas mark six). For the marinade, halve the garlic bulb across the middle and place the two halves in a small roasting tin. Drizzle the cut sides with a little oil and roast for 40 minutes, or until golden and the garlic cloves inside are soft and squishy. Leave to cool, then squeeze the garlic out from the skin into a bowl.

2 Using a food processor, or a pestle and mortar, grind the caraway and cumin seeds until fine. Tip into the bowl with the roasted garlic, along with the oregano, rosemary, turmeric, harissa paste and Greek yogurt. Mix well and season to taste.

3 Rub the marinade over the chicken, both inside and out. Put the chicken in a large food bag, or leave it covered in a non-metallic dish, and let it marinate for at least three hours – up to 24 hours is best.

4 Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F, gas mark four). Cover the chicken loosely with foil and roast for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and return to the oven for another 30 minutes, until it’s deep golden and cooked through. Let the chicken rest for 10 minutes before you carve it, then arrange it on plates garnished with coriander sprigs and with the bulgur wheat salad.

Jewelled bulgur wheat salad

Serves four

300g (11oz) of bulgur wheat

1 lemon

2 tbsp of Donegal Rapeseed oil

50g (2oz) of toasted flaked almonds

75g (3oz) of ready-to-eat apricots, chopped

50g (2oz) of sultanas or raisins

3 spring onions, thinly sliced

Small bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped

Small bunch fresh coriander, roughly chopped

Handful fresh mint leaves, roughly chopped

3 large ripe tomatoes, seeded and diced

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 Soak the bulgur wheat in cold water for one and a half hours, or according to packet instructions, until it’s tender, then drain it using a sieve and squeeze dry.

2 Place the bulgur wheat in a large bowl. Grate in the rind of the lemon, then cut it in half and squeeze in the juice from one of the halves. Stir in the rapeseed oil and season with salt to taste.

3 Fold the almonds into the dressed bulgur wheat, along with the apricots, sultanas or raisins, spring onions, herbs and tomatoes. Season to taste and set aside for five minutes to allow the grains to swell – the bulgur wheat will soak up all the liquid. Spoon into a bowl and set aside at room temperature until it is ready to serve with the chicken (or on its own).