Greek-Style Roast Chicken

Last week I surprised my family with a 3 course Greek themed meal. It was delicious; so much so that I didn't have time to take proper photos of all the dishes. However, this was the main course - a whole roast chicken with lemon and pistachio rice stuffing, served alongside lemon and thyme potatoes. I've never stuffed a chicken before, but it was very simple and worth the extra bit of time.

Ingredients
1.5kg chicken
4 large potatoes
1/4 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme [I used lemon thyme]
freshly ground black pepper

Stuffing
1/4 cup olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1/3 cup long-grain rice
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup pistachios, shelled
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
2 teaspoons grated lemon rind

Method
Make the seasoning first by heating oil in a saucepan. Add onion and cook, stirring, until soft. Stir in the rice until coated with oil. Stir in stock, simmer, covered for around 20 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat, stir in nuts, thyme and lemon rind and let cool. Then, place the stuffing inside the chicken. Tie the chicken's legs together and tuck its wings under body. Place chicken, breast side up, in a large baking dish, bake in moderate oven for 40 minutes. Meanwhile, cut potatoes into 1cm slices. After chicken has baked for 40 minutes, place these potatoes around the chicken in the dish. Drizzle chicken and potatoes with oil;and then sprinkle them with thyme and pepper. Bake in moderate oven for a further 1 hour or until chicken is tender and cooked. (Note: cut the breast of the chicken to ensure its fully cooked) Remove chicken from dish; keep warm. Now, bake the potatoes in a very hot oven for a further 15 minutes or until potatoes are browned and crisp. Serve chicken with potatoes.