Roast Chicken with Wild Rice and Vegetable Stuffing

Cook the rice in a pot of lightly salted, boiling water until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, blanch the tomatoes in a pot of boiling water for 10 seconds. Drain, peel, halve and remove seeds and cut into cubes. Rinse the peppers, halve lengthwise, remove the seeds and white ribs and cut into strips. Peel the carrot and cut into sticks. Wipe the mushrooms with a dampened paper towel and halve or quarter depending on size. The shallots peel and optionally quarter lengthwise. Cut the zucchini into small cubes. Chop half of the vegetables and set the rest aside. Rinse the herbs, pluck the rosemary small and finely chop 1 teaspoon.

Heat some olive oil in a skillet, add the chopped vegetables and rosemary, season with salt and pepper and saute over low heat pepper  5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Mix with the rice and season with harissa.

Preheat the oven to 180°C (approximately 350°F). Rub the chicken inside and out with salt, pepper and saffron and stuff the cavity with some of the vegetable rice. Close the cavity, secure with wooden skewers and place in a baking dish. Rub the chicken with oil and sprinkle with spices. Roast 20 minutes. In a bowl, mix the remaining vegetables with a little oil, add rosemary and bay leaf and spoon around the chicken in the pan and roast 30 minutes longer. Pour some broth into the pan after 15 minutes and tent with foil to prevent the chicken from over browning.

In a saucepan, heat the remaining vegetable rice with some broth 10 minutes before the chicken is finished roasting.