KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 26 — I love roast chicken. Who doesn’t, really?

One of my favourite recipes produces an exemplary whole roast chicken, perfumed by lemon and rosemary. Glazed with soy sauce and honey, its crispy skin gets much colour from the caramelisation.

That’s a dish I save for special occasions, such as Christmas or a dinner party with loved ones. Nothing precious about it; it’s just that, while foolproof, that particular recipe requires quite a bit of prep work.

(The home cook, you see, is sometimes prone to sloth, just like the best of us.)

What I’d require for the weekend is a simpler, faster recipe. Chicken parts rather than the whole bird. Some savour from other meats such bacon or sausages. Tray baking at its best.

Toasting pine nuts brings out their sweet, nutty notes.

But how to make it a tad bit special, how to add a smidgen of fancy? (Without making it overly complicated, which would defeat the original point of simplifying the recipe, of course.)

This is where weekend mornings spent doing nothing beyond staring out the window can offer inspiration aplenty. Looking at the calming greenery of my garden, my mind is taken back to the pine trees of Mount Fløyen, which stands guard over Bergen, the second-largest city in Norway.

A maze of colourful wooden houses at its foot; the Fløibanen funicular that brings visitors to the mountain’s peak — 320 metres above sea level — within minutes; and once at its summit, the panoramic views of the city and the fjord, and deep draw of the enchanted Troll Forest.

Walking between these tall conifers (some with signs on the trunks warning of witches), the scent of pine is green and minty, resinous and refreshing.

It’s not unlike shinrin-yoku, the Japanese art of forest bathing, where immersing oneself in nature can be therapeutic.

Rosemary and cherry tomatoes add extra flavours to your weekend roast.

Much of the soothing benefits come from breathing in phytoncides, volatile organic compounds released by the trees. Which brings me back to the pine tress. How does one bring some of these mild, mint-sweet notes back to the kitchen?

Pine nuts could be the answer. The edible seeds of pines have a rather buttery texture as a result of their high oil content.

Matchmake it with rosemary, another ingredient with an evergreen fragrance that comes from the woodsy oils contained inside its dark green needles.

Now you have a flavour pairing that promises to supercharge your simple weekend roast.

And since we are already preheating the oven to roast our chicken and/or other meats, why not throw some vegetables in too, to serve as a side?

When roasting, consider pairing different meat items such as chicken and sausages.

Tomatoes are the easiest to prepare, and again, you can make it a tad more spectacular by using cherry tomatoes on the vine; trust me, you can smell and taste the difference.

Cooking on the weekends doesn't have to be laborious; it needs only be a labour of love.

WEEKEND ROAST WITH PINE NUTS, ROSEMARY & TOMATOES ON THE VINE

While the pine nuts can be roasted with meats, it’s better to toast them slightly ahead of time and add to the dish at the end. Given their size, pine nuts can scorch easily, you see.

In that case, why not just use the pine nuts raw? Well, you could but toasting pine nuts help bring out their sweet, nutty flavours.

Rosemary, on the other hand, is hardier and works beautifully in roasts, stews and other longer forms of cooking, even at higher temperatures.

Roasted cherry tomatoes on the vine.

Therefore the reverse is true here: you’d want to add the rosemary to the meat from the start so it perfumes your roast with its lemony and sage-like notes.

These days, it’s quite easy to find cherry tomatoes on the vine at your supermarket. But don’t fret if you don’t find any; use the normal variety cut away from the vine. They will work perfectly fine though perhaps the aesthetic impact of serving a whole vine of roasted tomatoes with your meat will be lost here.

When roasting, consider pairing different meat items such as chicken and sausages. The idea here is to use smaller pieces of meat so the roasting time is faster and the actual cooking is more even.

I have used chicken drummets here (which is the meatier portion of the wings). You could easily use chicken drumsticks or thighs too. Don’t fancy sausages? Thick cut bacon can be a great replacement, especially when its fat renders into the roast.

Need to bulk it out more? Some roughly chopped onion and garlic can help, if you need more aromatics or fibre. Easy pantry staples there.

Ingredients

10 pieces chicken drummets

3-4 sausages

6-8 cherry tomatoes on the vine

1 white onion, chopped roughly (optional)

1 bulb of garlic, separated into cloves (optional)

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves/needles removed from the stem

Juice and zest from 1 lemon

Sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Toasted pine nuts

Method

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Prepare a large baking dish by covering it with aluminium foil. You could roast the meat (chicken drumettes and sausages) and the tomatoes together or simply make two compartments with the aluminium foil.

Sprinkling some toasted pine nuts at the end of roasting.

This way the cherry tomatoes on the vine retain their shape better during the roasting time. You may also add some chopped up onion and garlic to the meat, if desired, as additional aromatics.

Add the extra-virgin olive oil, rosemary, lemon juice and zest to a large mixing bowl. Mix well. Pour over the meat and tomatoes, making sure to coat everything evenly. Season with sea salt and black pepper.

Roast in the preheated oven for 30 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the oven and sprinkle the toasted pine nuts. Serve whilst warm.

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