Start by preparing all the vegetables (carrots, white onions, leek, celery and garlic) as instructed in the ingredients list.

Find a large casserole pan, preferably one with a tight-fitting lid that will fit a whole chicken in. Add in a splash of olive oil and turn the heat to medium. Once hot, add the sliced onions, leeks and celery and cook for 6-8 minutes until slightly wilted and softened. Add the thyme chopped garlic and pour in the white wine (if using). Allow to reduce by half before adding the whole chicken to the pot, breast side up. Season the chicken well with salt and pepper.

Pour the chicken stock around the bird until it's a little more than 2/3rds covered. Bring to a simmer, place on the lid and cook for 30 minutes. Remove the lid and use a ladle to remove any impurities that will have risen to the surface (the white foamy stuff).

After 30 minutes, add the carrots and the drained butter beans and cook for a further 50 minutes. Check regularly that the stock is only gently simmering and not boiling as this will make for a tougher chicken and overcooked vegetables.

If serving your meal with warm baguette, pop the oven on 10 minutes before the total cooking time is up and cook the bread according to the packet instructions.

Once the carrots are tender and the chicken cooked (you can tell if this is the case by either inserting a temperature probe into the thickest part of the leg and getting a reading of 80°c + or a good indication that the chicken is done is that the meat will have pulled away on the leg and drum stick to expose the bone). Remove the whole chicken carefully from the broth using large tongs. Tip the juices back into the broth that will be sitting in the cavity and be careful not to allow the hot juices to run down your arm! Taste the broth and season a little if necessary.

Place the chicken onto a chopping board or large plate and leave to rest for 10 minutes or so before carving. NB, the best way to do this is by first pulling both the legs from the carcass using tongs and cutting through the ball and socket joint at the top of the hip. Use a fork to shred the leg meat and pop it back into the broth. We prefer to remove the skin, but this is our preference. Now, cut down the breast bone of the chicken and carefully pull each breast away from the carcass. You can do this with tongs or 2 forks. Use the natural line of the breastbone to guide you. Remove the skin, slice the breast meat and pop this into the pot to join all the other goodness. You can either save the winglets for a tasty snack in the next few days or remove the meat from these as well.

Mix the broth well before serving huge ladles of the broth into large shallow bowls along with a grating of lemon zest, piles of parmesan cheese, warm crusty bread (which will now be ready) and lots of butter on the side, if you wish.