I love a good roast chicken, I was given a ton of butternut squash, I’d just bought a bag of prunes at costco (they get a bad rap but they’re so great to cook with), and Rosh Hashanah is all about the apples: the main course just planned itself. Here is the main course for our Rosh Hashanah dinner, delicious just about anytime of year when butternut squash and apples are in season.

Roast Chicken with Butternut Squash, Apples, and Prunes
2 medium-sized chickens, cut up (or just your favorite parts) bone-in, skin-on
1 onion
1-2 cups prunes
3 large apples (mixture of sweet and tart)
1 head of garlic
2 medium-sized butternut squash
salt and pepper
6-8 sprigs of rosemary

To prep the chicken:
Preheat oven to 400. Rinse the chicken and pat dry. Trim any excess fat, but leave plenty. Sprinkle plenty of kosher salt on chicken and some ground pepper. Place chicken skin side up in a large roasting pan. Throw some of the rosemary in. Chicken should not be overlapping in the pot. Roast for 20 minutes. I use already cut up chicken because a) it’s so easy to prep and serve and b) I get to choose my favorite parts.

To prep the goods:
Separate the cloves of garlic, but leave the skin on. Peel (or not), core, and slice the apples into wedges. Slice the onion into thin crescents. Peel the squash, cut in half, de-seed, and then cut into small chunks (or larger depending on your taste).

Here you have 2 options: When the 20 minutes of chicken roasting is done, I put everything in with the chicken at this point and roasted it all together. However, the apples mostly melted into the dish. I like that, but I think next time I’d add the apples after the next 20 minutes of roasting so they hold their shape more. So you have your choice of adding apples at the start or 1/4 of the way through roasting.

Put all ingredients (apples or not) in with the chicken. Around, on top, in the corners- but don’t press or cram too much. If there isn’t enough room, you can roast some of the vegetables in another roasting pan. Roast the chicken for approximately one hour. Every 20 minutes baste the chicken with its own juices. There should be plenty, but if you do not have enough liquid to baste, pour a little red wine in there or even water.

After roasting for 20 minutes plus the hour, if you’d like the skin a little crispier, turn the heat up to broil for 4-5 minutes. The chicken will take longer if there’s more in there- an hour is an approximation. Leftovers are a treat! I snagged a thigh and some vegetables before the rest was gone.