INGREDIENTS

- Potatoes

- Red pepper

- Courgettes

- Carrots

- Garlic

- Olive oil (optional)

- Herbs and seasoning (optional)

- Chicken thighs (optional)

The first of the ingredients are obviously the potatoes. I tend to pick medium to small sized ones since they’ll take less time to cook; if you decide to go for larger potatoes I recommend cutting them in half.

For the vegetables, here I am using red pepper, courgette and carrots. And garlic, I adore roasted garlic. But you can have whatever you like, or what you have left in the fridge that needs using. Most vegetables roast easily.

As an option, you can get chicken thighs to add some protein.

INSTRUCTIONS OVERVIEW

1. Pre-heat the oven at 200°C

2. Gently scrub the potatoes and pierce each one a few times with a knife

3. Place in a lined oven tray

4. Peel the garlic cloves

5. Slice the peppers, carrots and courgettes

6. Place in a oven tray and season to taste

7. Place in an oven tray the chicken thighs and season to taste (optional)

8. Cook in the oven for 30 minutes

9. Check everything is cooked through - take out of the oven and serve

First of all, we are going to preheat the oven at 200°C. In the meantime, prepare your trays. I have selected mine so the three trays fit in the oven at the same time, saving time and energy. You can also add the chicken in the same tray as the vegetables, I’m separating them to highlight the “optional” tag to the chicken.

Scrub the potatoes, then pierce each potato with a sharp knife 3-4 times, and place them on an oven tray.

Wash/scrub the vegetables as needed, then cut them in small pieces and place them in an oven tray. If you feel like adding a bit extra to your veggies, you can add some olive oil and sprinkle some of your favourite spices. For this tray I’m using rosemary, thyme and black pepper.

Place the chicken thighs, if using, in a baking tray. You can also add the chicken in the same tray as the vegetables, I’m separating them to highlight the “optional” tag to the chicken. Add some olive oil and then season to taste. In this case I’m using black pepper, thyme and rosemary, to match the spices from the vegetable tray.

And just like that, it’s all prepped now. Place the trays in the oven, set the timer for 30 minutes, and go play with your child in the meantime. Or to chat with your partner, or to have a shower… you get the idea.

30 minutes later…

We take everything out of the oven. Check the potatoes to ensure they’re well done by piercing them with a sharp knife; if you have uncut large potatoes, you might need to cook them for another 10-15 minutes.

Serve in individual dishes, or place everything in a nice serving dish like I’m doing, just because it looks nice and it gives that little bit extra to dinner time. And that’s all done! Easy-peasy, dinner is ready.

TIPS

Instead of chicken, you can use pork chops, stakes, fish fillets… anything you like! I find that 30 minutes at 200°C works for most of these ingredients, but it’s always good to double-check cooking times. And, of course, feel free to adjust to taste.