There’s something about Sunday’s that just hits differently. It’s the one day of the week where it’s acceptable to spend the entire day at home to achieve absolutely nothing. No one will question your objective and you don’t even have to put pants on if you don’t want to, although your family or significant other may have a problem with that. For me, Sunday’s call for a long family lunch. Perhaps it’s the inner Italian making an appearance, or maybe I just like eating. Either way, I feel there’s no better reason to gather the family other than Sunday lunch.

We can get lost in the daily grind between rushing to work, rushing through the day’s tasks to then rushing home to get through our night time routine. In this chaos we may forget to take a moment to gather our thoughts and take in quality time with ourselves and our family. Saturday often seems like an extension of the five days prior whether you have children who play sport, catch up on housework, grocery shopping, appointments, the list goes on. Sunday is approached differently from the outset. It’s the day we sleep in and enjoy a late breakfast. We start it slowly and reset ourselves and our priorities for the week.

Cooking is my ultimate self care. It’s on par with meditation. Preparing ingredients, reading recipes or just following natural instincts, cooking is one of the best forms of therapy. I often do a lot of thinking and planning when in the kitchen. Whilst being artistic, it is also somewhat methodical therefore it’s the perfect catalyst to zone out and enjoy some quiet time.

This Sunday I prepared a comforting roast chicken for my loved ones. I channeled Jamie Oliver and road tested his Perfect Roast Chicken recipe, but not without adding some of my own flair. Perhaps I should email Jamie with my suggestions? That wouldn’t be offensive at all. If you do try this recipe, I highly recommend making a tarragon butter, separating the skin from the breast (it does feel like you’re violating the chicken so try not to think about it too much ) and filling the newly made cavity with the butter. The butter bastes the chicken from the inside and makes the most wonderfully fragrant meat. Pop a cut lemon and come garlic cloves in the chicken’s ‘jacksie’, tie up the legs to keep its newly stuffed insides, well inside, and rub it liberally with olive oil. With a sprinkle of salt and pepper to make the skin crispy, pop that little thing in the oven.

Whilst the perfume of Chicken Little cooking fills your house with herbaceous and buttery goodness, you can prepare your vegetables for their timely visit to the oven. Was naming it Chicken Little too crass? Sorry. If you don’t know who Chicken Little is, please refer to Google. In roughly two hours (depending on the size of your bird) you and your family will be sitting down to the most delicious, comforting and satisfying Sunday lunch. Let the commencement of meaningful conversations, feisty debates and potentially the odd argument ensue - after all, it wouldn’t be a gathering of family members if there wasn’t a bit of questionable banter.

What is guaranteed though, are three things; your family’s bellies will be full, your heart will be happy and unfortunately you’ll have a lot of washing up to do. There's not a more perfect way to tackle the impending rat race that will begin on Monday than this meal. Despite the chaos that will come when you open your eyes in the morning, at least you’ll be able to enter the week with the knowledge that Sunday family lunch is just around the corner. Alla prossima (see you next time).

You could be enjoying this next Sunday