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Think roast chicken… but fall-forward and a little fancy with zero fuss. We roast chicken in apple cider until it’s glossy and tender, toss in bursty grapes, then finish with creamy goat cheese and crunchy walnuts.

It’s that perfect sweet–savory balance for chilly nights—no complicated steps, just a skillet, good aromas, and a sauce you’ll want to mop up with bread.

Fall Harvest Cider Roasted Chicken with Walnut Goat Cheese + Grapes | halfbakedharvest.com @hbharvest

Clearly, I NEEDED to start off autumn with a roasted chicken. It’s just the quintessential fall thing to do. When I was a kid roasted chicken was my mom’s thing. It was one of the handful of dinners she would make, and she’d only make it on a Sunday night. She’d do all the prep for the chicken, roast it, check it, baste it, add more butter… Dad would make the rice, and possibly some kind of green, but I must admit, the greens were kind of scarce.

SIDE NOTE: Dad used to ALWAYS eat salad every night for dinner, no matter what he was making us kids. He’d literally mow giant bowls of salad for dinner…the rest of just weren’t into that. Since I started cooking (and making food other than chicken and rice) dad has changed his ways, but he still loves a good salad.

Mom would always attempt to make bread in her bread machine…but most of the time she’d start the bread at like five or six and with a four-hour cooking time, the bread was normally served after dinner, but before dessert. Either that or she’d throw loaf of bread in the oven from the store, BUT, there was an 85% chance she’d burn the bread. I am not trying to be harsh on her, but she is notorious for burning bread and or starting it way too late, and she’ll fully admit to it too. It’s just mom and we all love her for it.

Fall Harvest Cider Roasted Chicken with Walnut Goat Cheese + Grapes | halfbakedharvest.com @hbharvestFall Harvest Cider Roasted Chicken with Walnut Goat Cheese + Grapes | halfbakedharvest.com @hbharvest

Anyway, I think my point in all this was, that to me, a roasted chicken symbolizes fall and family dinners. It’s such a loved meal for me solely for that reason. Well that and I swear, no one makes a roasted chicken better than my mom. Her secret? Salt, pepper, chicken broth, Vegata seasoning and umm, butter.

Butter is a must, you knew that one was coming. She made it simple, but GOOD.

Fall Harvest Cider Roasted Chicken with Walnut Goat Cheese + Grapes | halfbakedharvest.com @hbharvest

I kind of fancified her chicken a bit though and stuffed a whole bunch of goat cheese and fresh herbs under that chicken skin. Oh my gosh, I know. WHAT!

Yes, I somehow found a way to add cheese to a classic like roasted chicken. I think I have issues.

WHATEVER. Everyone’s got issues. I can deal with it. Cheese rules, especially goat cheese. So it’s totally cool.

I still kept the actual process of roasting the chicken simple and easy. I know the title sounds kind of fancy, but it’s really not, it’s a simple, easy meal to make for your family… or maybe even just for one. Then you can just eat the leftovers all week long. YUM!

Fall Harvest Cider Roasted Chicken with Walnut Goat Cheese + Grapes | halfbakedharvest.com @hbharvestFall Harvest Cider Roasted Chicken with Walnut Goat Cheese + Grapes | halfbakedharvest.com @hbharvest

You’ve got the goat cheese stuffed under that skin. You also have some caramelized walnuts, sage and just a little rosemary in there too. From there you just rub the chicken with a little olive oil, salt + pepper. Oh, and butter…of course.

Then throw some grapes in a roasting pan and place the chicken on top of the grapes and roast away! Don’t be weirded out by the roasted grapes. They’re kind of my new favorite thing!! I love, love, love using grapes in a savory way like this and the flavors pair so perfectly with the flavors from the chicken + goat cheese. It’s kind of magical. <–Truth.

OH! And one of the most important parts is the apple cider. You know how some people baste their chicken with chicken broth? Or maybe you don’t baste your chicken, I don’t know, but today we are basting our chicken in a reduced apple cider sauce. It’s sweet and makes for the most perfect, golden caramelized skin. If you’re a lover of the skin (which oddly not a single soul in my family is), than you will LOVE this little step.

Plus, it really helps to keep the chicken moist and tie in all those awesome fall flavors!

FAQ:

Can I use apple cider vinegar instead of cider?
No—use drinking apple cider (or apple juice in a pinch). Vinegar is too sharp and will overwhelm the sauce.

How do I keep the chicken skin crispy with the sauce?
Roast grapes and sauce around—not over—the chicken, and reduce sauce separately if needed. Broil 1–2 minutes at the end to re-crisp if it softens.

What sides pair best?
Creamy polenta, mashed potatoes, or a wild rice blend soak up the cider sauce. Add a simple fall salad to balance the richness.

Can I make this dairy-free?
Yes—finish the sauce with olive oil instead of butter and skip the goat cheese. The walnuts still give great crunch and contrast.

Fall Harvest Cider Roasted Chicken with Walnut Goat Cheese + Grapes | halfbakedharvest.com @hbharvestFall Harvest Cider Roasted Chicken with Walnut Goat Cheese + Grapes | halfbakedharvest.com @hbharvest

Fall Harvest Cider Roasted Chicken with Walnut Goat Cheese + Grapes.

Author: Tieghan Gerard
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 40 minutes
Servings: 6 Servings
Calories Per Serving: 667 kcal

Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

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Ingredients

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
  • Place a small skillet over medium heat. Add the walnuts + honey and cook until toasted and caramelized, about 5 minutes. Remove the walnuts from the skillet and spread out on a plate in a single layer. Allow to cool and then finely chop the walnuts.
  • In a small bowl, mix together the goat cheese, chopped walnuts, sage and rosemary.
  • Remove the chicken giblets. Rinse the chicken inside and out. Pat the outside dry. Generously salt and pepper the inside of the chicken. Stuff the cavity with the garlic and 1 quartered apple. Slide your hand between the meat and skin of the chicken and then carefully stuff the goat cheese mixture under the skin, pushing it as far back as you can get it without actually ripping the skin. Depending on the size of your chicken, you may not use all the goat cheese. If this is the case, just sprinkle the goat cheese around the grapes before roasting.
  • Rub the chicken all over with olive oil and then sprinkle generously with salt + pepper. Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken.
  • Place the grapes and remaining apples in a roasting pan or large cast iron skillet. Drizzle with salt, pepper and olive oil. Add a few fresh sage leaves and any remaining goat cheese.
  • Place chicken onto the grapes. Add four tablespoon size pats of butter around the chicken.
  • Roast the chicken for 1 to 1 hour 15 minutes, or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh. Add the cider to a medium size pot and bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until it thickens and is reduced by about half. Halfway through cooking the chicken, brush the bird with half of the cider. About 5 minutes before the chicken is done cooking, brush it again with the remaining cider. If desired, you can also reserve some cider for serving.
  • Allow the chicken to sit for 10-20 minutes, covered with foil and then slice and serve!

Notes

*To intensive the cider flavor you can also brine the chicken in cider overnight. Add the chicken to a LARGE pot or even a plastic box of some sort. Pour over 16 ounces of apple cider and then add enough water to cover the chicken completely. Add 1/2 cup kosher salt and 2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage + rosemary. Cover and place in the fridge overnight. The next day, remove the chicken from the brine and pat completely dry, follow the directions above.
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Fall Harvest Cider Roasted Chicken with Walnut Goat Cheese + Grapes | halfbakedharvest.com @hbharvest

Fall Harvest Cider Roasted Chicken with Walnut Goat Cheese + Grapes | halfbakedharvest.com @hbharvest
This post was originally published on September 23, 2015
4.39 from 92 votes (77 ratings without comment)

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Comments

  2. Mmm, this chicken looks soooo good! I think I’ll switch it up this year and have this for Thanksgiving 🙂
    And for dinner this weekend…

    ps: just contacted Pinterest, hopefully this issue gets resolved soon!

    Reply

  5. I have also contacted Pinterest! I pin almost all of your recipes, it would be a real bummer if they don’t get this fixed.

    Reply

  8. Maybe they flagged you because you have so many people pinning your amazing recipes! I’ll send a message as well. Beautiful dish – and you had me laughing out loud about your mom and the bread! Too cute! And my mom was like your dad with all of the salads.

    Reply

  9. In my best Ron Weasley voice…”bloody hell”… I think I pin almost every recipe you post. Have contacted Pinterest!

    Reply

  10. This chicken looks awesome and I love hearing about your nostalgic family memories. Your mom sounds just like mine when it comes to burning things, so hilarious. By the way, I contacted pinterest so I hope it might help. You have to get your account working again! You are like the best pinner they have, how could they flag you? Good luck getting it fixed Tieghan and happy first day of Autumn!

    Reply

      1. I am setting up to make 3 chickens this weekend as we are having a dinner party. I chose the theme Celebrating the Fall Harvest”. This recipe looks perfect. Can we use the garlic as roasted baked garlic and serve it with french bread? that is what I am hoping to do. How does the apple come out after? Is it like baked apples? Can I serve them with a bit of the goat cheese warm? Just trying to be creative. This recipe looks fab and has lots of potential. Thank you so much for this post. Will let all know.
        Gayle

        Reply

        1. Hey Gayle!! Yes the roasted garlic will be great on bread, yum! The apple is like a baked apple, mine want not very soggy. I think serving them with goat cheese sounds delicious!! Let me know if you have any other questions. Happy to help! 🙂

          Reply

          1. I really want to impress my step family with this recipe hehe, but can we substitute the goat cheese by another one ? Like do you have idea can other one i can pick ?
            And did you try your recipe with other nuts like pecans ou hazelnuts?
            Thank you very much, can wait to try this recipe menoum menoum
            Oh! Do you suggest to cook basmati rice or potatoes or maybe other things with ?

            🙂
            -A novice cook who needs some help ;P .

          2. Hi! I recommend using a cheese you like. What about feta or mascarpone? Other nuts will be great. hope this is a hit!

  13. I agree roasted chicken dinners remind me of Sunday family meals. I also roast one as soon as the weather begins to chill. Plus your house smells so good when then are cooking. I’ve never roasted grapes have to give that a try.

    Reply