If your inbox has been drowning in turkey talk this week, same here.
So instead of adding to the noise, I thought I’d send you a quieter kind of feast: a Sunday roast that just happens to work beautifully if you are celebrating, but is just as good on a regular chilly November weekend.
Break tradition with this juicy Thanksgiving chicken!
1. My “Thanksgiving” chicken, but make it Sunday-friendly
This is the roast I make when I want all the cozy, none of the drama.
A whole chicken sits on a bed of baby carrots, pearl onions, celery and mushrooms, with herbs and garlic tucked inside, and then everything gets bathed in a glossy red wine gravy. It’s inspired by coq au vin, but cutting all the complicated steps.
You still get:
Crispy skin
A lush sauce for pouring over everything
A generous pile of vegetables underneath, quietly helping your plant count along
With the herbs, garlic and veg, you’re easily hitting 7–8 plants on this one plate, before you even think about a side salad.
Serve it with mash, roasted roots or even some crusty sourdough to mop up the sauce.
Red wine luscious sauce
2. Breakfast strata: the savory bread and butter pudding
If you’ve got people staying over, or you just like a slow Sunday, this breakfast strata is my idea of a cozy morning.
It’s basically a savory bread and butter pudding made with cubes of brioche or sandwich bread baked with:
Smoked pancetta
Mushrooms
Celery
Shallots
Fresh sage
The top goes golden and crisp, the inside is soft and custardy, and it’s the sort of brunch that feels indulgent but still sneaks in a handful of plants.
Perfect for the morning after a big roast, or whenever you have stale bread and a crowd. No standing at the hob frying eggs to order 🤪.
Breakfast strata - savory bread and butter pudding
3. Lighter pumpkin filo pie for dessert (or tea time)
Instead of a heavy pie crust, this pumpkin dessert uses crisp layers of filo wrapped around a smooth pumpkin filling. Think sweet, spiced pumpkin, wrapped in shatteringly crisp pastry - more pumpkin, less pastry.
It still feels like a treat, but you’re mostly eating pumpkin with a little buttery crunch for joy.
This time of year, you should not be counting calories. But I would encourage you to keep counting plants.
Between the chicken on its bed of vegetables, the strata with mushrooms, celery and herbs, and the pumpkin pie, you’re actually stacking up quite a few different plants in one cozy weekend.
If you try any of these, hit reply and tell me what landed on your plate. I always love hearing how you remix recipes in your own kitchen.
💌 Or just reply with anything you'd like to see me making!
