This is my grandmothers Chicken in Merlot Red Wine or more commonly known as Coq Au Vin to you and I. This is a great dinner party dish as chicken is a meat most people do tend to eat even when dieting. But also if you cooking for yourself I always feel that this dish tastes better the next day.

For this delicious Coq Au Vin you will need: 6 large boneless free range chicken breasts (up to you if you leave the skin on or off I think it adds flavour but somepeople do not like it), 3 tblsp olive oil, 300g peeled shallots (you can boil these for 2 minutes and allow to cool for their thin skins to simply slip off), 2-3 tblsp plain flour, 130g pancetta diced, 2 garlic cloves peeled and sliced thinly, 50ml brandy, 3 sprigs of fresh thyme from the garden (or if you only have dried 1/2 tsp), 1 bay leaf, 1 bottle of chilean merlot (I like this wine as its fruity, but you could use another if you wish), 250g chestnut mushrooms, 1 tblsp butter, 4 tblsp chopped parsley and sea salt and black pepper to season.

So first put 2 tblsp flour in a bowl and season before dipping the chicken breasts in to the flour to coat on both sides and heating a large frying pan or casserole add your 2 tblsp olive oil and fry the chicken breasts on boths sides for 3 minutes to seal until lightly brown. You may have to do this a couple of the chicken breasts at a time placing the browned chicken on a plate on one side after. Add the remaining tblsp of oil, chopped pancetta and cook for around 1 minute, now add your shallots to the pan and saute until lightly brown then add your garlic, stir then add the chicken back to the pan. Warm your brandy and pour it over the chicken. Add the thyme and bay leaf and then add your red wine until it covers the chicken. Bring this to simmering point turn the heat to low cover the pan with alid and simmer gently for 45 minutes.  Now add the mushrooms cook for 10 to 15 minutes then remove the chicken and set aside to rest the meat. Scoop as much of the onion, pancetta and mushrroms out into a bowl as you can then turn the heat up on your pan. Reduce the sauce to half and check for seasoning tasting yourself (which you should do with everything you cook). If it needs thickening add a tblsp butter and the remaining tblsp flour (mixed to a smooth paste adding a little at a time). Keep whisking your sauce until it is smooth and glossy. Then add the onions, mishrooms and pancetta to the pan. I slice my chicken breasts into 4 slices and place on a plate for serving and spoon over the sauce finishing with a bit of parsley. You can serve this with a delicious creamy mash and seasonal vegetables.

For another special occassion recipe for this time of year check out my previous blog walking recipes encore, for a delicious game or duck in blackberry sauce which is one of my all time favourites.  If you like chicken take a look at my previous blog simple meal recipe for great flavour, for a superb griddled chicken with a super salsa.

For making such great dishes you need a great saute frying pan with a lid this Grunwerg Commichef Frying/Saut Pan with Lid and Helper Handle Size: 28 cm is just the right pan for the job.

Remember when buying pans choose wisely some of my pans and 20 year old and still as good as new, they are iron or stainless steel with differing handles so I can put the dish I am cooking from the hob straight into the oven and straight to the table. They have differing bases to aid cooking and brought wisely will last you a life time literally! Why not tell us about your favourite pan and why its your favourite?

If your catering for children then this old favourite always goes down a treat literally. Its something everyone can have fun with, certainly with a little imagionation and some great cookie shape cutters you can use this recipe throughout the year and produce christmas, easter biscuits as well as animal farm biscuits for example to go with a animal farm theme birthday party.

So lets get cooking whether its with the children or not. For your gingerbreadmen you are going to need:50g butter, 3 tblsp golden syrup, 75g castor sugar, 250g self raising flour, pinch of salt, 3 tsp ground ginger, glasce cherries and currants for decoration and milk for glazing.

First place the butter syrup and sugar in a small saucepan and heat slowly until sugar has dissolved. sift together the dry ingredients then make a well in the middle and pour in the warm melted mixture and beat until smooth. Roll out the mixture on a lightly floured surface while still warm and cut into figures using a cutter or homemade template. Make buttons eyes and a mouth from currants and glace cherries. Other decorations can be used depending on who they are for. Then brush with a little milk and bake on a greased baking sheet for 8 to 10 minutes or until the biscuits are firm and lightly golden. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack.

Cooks Note - Uncooked dough can be kept in the freezer for up to 6 months and these biscuits will keep in a air tight tin if they last the day out once made!

See my previous blog Piping bags to use with your cooking as you could pipe faces, clothes etc on to each gingerbreadman too. See the cutters and christmass biscuit ideas in my previous blog christmas hanging biscuits also. Plus other great biscuit recipes in my blog taking the biscuit.

Sometimes while partying through the summer and lighter nights after eating all those nibbly bits from your barbecue, your simply looking for a simple dessert to satisfy both those savoury and sweet tooths amoungst all of your guests.

Recently, while gathering friends and family were busy munching away at my homemade burgers, my friend Claire disappeared to my freezer to find out what homemade icecreams I had on the go. I tell you there are no secrets in my house. Followed closely by Mel the 2 of them emerged from my garage with wide beamed smiles.

One icecream variety each, before chaos persued in my kitchen. But hey, in my house thats normal, and we always end up in the kitchen! Funny that, all these rooms in my house and suddenly all your guests try to fit in one room!

Anyway, Claire having a savoury tooth loves my pistachio nut icecream and after finding the biggest spoon she could lay her hands on; both Emma and Claire dug in to the icecream to make themselves a big bowl full. Before they disappeared up my garden with bowl in one hand and a glass of wine in the other, before they ate all their icecream and started on the cheese and fruit.

However, Mel has a sweet tooth and she had my vanilla and honey homemade icecream, which by now everyone was having a taste of. So I decided, lets make some sweet fruity kebabs and serve them with this delicious sweet icecream.

Brilliant, just like “can’t cook won’t cook”, everyone wanted a go. So preheating the grill so some people could use the barbecue and the others my grill & griddle, we set about making our kebabs. Your going to need for my sweet fruity kebabs - 75ml freshly squeezed orange juice, 15ml honey, 30ml water, 16 strawberries, 1/2 mango peeled, stoned and cut into 8 pieces, 1/2 pineapple, peeled, cut into 16 pieces, 1 banana peeled and cut into 8 pieces and of course a tub of icecream (whether thats homemade or from your local farm shop).

First preheat the grill as I had above, then slowly bring the water, orange juice and honey to the boil, stirring until the honey is dissolved. Simmer for 5 minutes, until slightly thickened. Meanwhile thread the fruits alternately on to 8 wooden skewers. Place onto a grill rack or barbecue and cook the kebabs for about 8 minutes, basting them occasionally with the honey syrup. Once golden serve the cooked fruity kebabs with a scoop of your favourite ice cream and drizzle with any extra syrup. A dish to delight any sweet tooth, trust me and loads of fun to do!

Never the less to say, I spend nearly an hour making batches of kebabs and syrup for everyone, before joining the rest of them now all under the glowing lanterns in my garden where all was in full swing with a great game of pictionary, (while a bit tipsy) in teams which was hilarious! and while I am thinking about Jacob you owe me a meerkat statue!!! Nothing can beat a great night of good food, good company, great friends and family and loads of memories!

What games do you get up to at your barbecues, and whats your favourite party dishes? Check out my blog the big dipper for some more party gadgets. Why not have a look at some of my ice cream recipes in my blog dark, delcious chocolate icecream and homemade icecream in a flash plus many more too.

These zesty little citrus fruits are the epitome of refreshing summer tastes, bringing a fruity zing to all manner of beverages, from soft drinks and squashes to classic seasonal drinks such as my personal favourite gine & tonic or the more exotic mojitos.

Serve up a mojitos which is a fabulous cocktail made with white rum, mint, crushed ice and limes, and don’t forget the hunk to shake your cocktail and serve it up for you of course! Bring the cuban spirit to your party or evening serving mexican dishes, great rythmic salsa music and your delicious cocktails. Don’t forget the garden lanterns and tea lights to really set the mood for your guests and enjoy and fun dining experience alround.

Make sure you have the glassware to serve up your special cocktails in with these great connoisseur cocktail glasses. There stylish & versatile, this premium glassware has a simplistic classical design, which is ideal for everyday use, aswell as for your dinner parties. So make sure you serve your cocktails in Style!

Versatile limes though are not only the domain of delicious drinks as their delicate aroma adds another dimension to many dishes like thai and your barbecue marinades for example.

Look at my previous blogs sweet tender yellow sweetcorn, edible sunshine, bbq grills for the sunshine, and the big dipper for more ideas and many recipes to help you plan for your guests no matter what your planning!.

With a local fete, carnival or charity event nearly every weekend at the minute, an essential item on any cake stall has to be the Victoria Sandwich Cake.

Although I have played with this recipe with family members with food intolerances using gluten free and wheat free flours and egg substitutes which work well I have to say although these ingredients do mean you have to adjust the liquid quanities in your recipes I have found. There is absolutely nothing to beat this traditional cake. Whether its a birthday cake or for a stall you cannot go wrong with this favourite of cakes and once the recipe is mastered you can add different flavours, fruits etc its endless to this timeless classic.

For my classic victoria sponge cake you are going to need: 100g butter (cut into peices), 100g caster sugar, 2 eggs (beaten lightly), 1/2 tsp vanilla extract, 100g self raising flour, pinch of salt, 1 tblsp milk, 3-4 tblsp homemade strawberry or raspberry jam, 120ml double or whipping cream and caster sugar to sprinkle on top for finishing.

First position your oven shelves towards the middle of your oven and preheat your oven to 180 c/350 f/gas 4. Lightly grease 2 X 18cm sandwich tins with oil or butter and line the bases with circles of greaseproof baking paper which should then be oiled or buttered. Start your sponge by creaming together the butter and caster sugar in a large mixing bowl. You can do this using a wooden spoon or a hand-held mixer (or even a food processor), until light and fluffy. Then gradually beat in the eggs a bit at a time being careful not to let it curdle. You can add a little flour with the egg to stop this if needed. Stir in the vanilla extract and sift the flour and salt into a bowl then using a large metal spoon fold the flour and salt into the cake mix gently, before gently adding the milk. Be gentle to keep the air bubble in the mixture which you have took the time to add which cause the cake to rise.

Then divide the mixture between the prepared tins and level the surface. Place in your preheated oven and bake for 18 to 20 minutes. The cake is cooked when the surface is golden brown, and when lightly touched it springs back. Cool the cakes in their tins on a wire rack for a few minutes. The remove the cakes from their tins and cool on the wire rack and then remove the lining paper.

When completely cooled sandwich the cake together with the jam and whipped cream before sprinkling the top with caster sugar and placing a sliced strawberry to decorate before serving.

Tips - remember to keep your cake in a airtight tin and in the fridge if it lasts more than one meal sitting that is (mine never make it that far, its always eatten in full!)  Also make sure you use the right cake tin size for the recipe else as my daughter Emma found you could end up with a biscuit. If your using 20cm cake tins you need to have 175g butter, caster sugar, self raising flour and 3 eggs for instance to get the same light and fluffy sponge. Also if you haven’t got a wire rack to cool your cake on use the rack from you grill pan and improvise!

Why not tell me about your cake greats and dissastors too, and we can put them together with my own collection for a future fun blog for us all!

Check out my previous blogs perfect raspberry jam recipe for your toast and cakes, irresistable eggless cake and quick homemade teatime treats just to name, but a few of blogs containing delicious cake recipes for you to try!

Not all homemade ice creams need to be made in a ice cream maker. This particular one dosen’t need constant stirring and whisking to obtain a smooth and creamy ice cream. Made with cream cheese which dosen’t need whipping but gives the cream density this chocolate delight ice cream just couldn’t be easier for you to make so have a go.

A great appliance to have handy in your kitchen is this great Kuhn Rikon 300w hand blender shopper & whisk, with its high power 300w  with 2 Speeds. It also is a great price and comes with measuring cup and chopping container Whisk attachment and stainless steel rod and blade. Its uses in cookery are endless you will be using in most recipes. 

Your going to need: 500g vanilla Custard ( you could use a ready made version if you wish for quickness too), 400g light cream cheese, 100g icing sugar sifted, 300g plain chocolate broken in the pieces and 100ml milk (remember to use the variety to suit your diet like soya etc if needed).

First start by melting 200g of your chocolate in a bowl with your custard over a saucepan stirring until smooth. PLace the cream cheese and icing sugar in a mixing bowl and gradually whisk this into the warmed chocolate custard mix. Then whisk in the milk and chill in the refridgerator. When chilled pour this into a freezer grade plastic tupperware container (at least 1.5 litres in size) covering with a fitted lid or clingfilm if you don’t have a lid and freeze in your freezer for at least 2 hours, (until almost frozen). You can if you have a ice cream maker follow the instructions and use your appliance if you wish as in my previous blog  homemade ice cream in a flash. 

Put your remaining chocolate into a microwave proof food bag, seal the bag and microwave for 1 minute on high to melt. You can then snip of the corner of the bag and drizzle this chocolate in to the readymade ice cream in it tupperware container. Leave to set and stir the set drizzled chocolate into the ice cream which gives you small slithers of chocolate throughout your icecream. Finally freeze your icecream for around another 2 hours until completely frozen.

Then serve as required whether thats with a scrummy hot chocolate pudding, with fresh local strawberries, on top of a delicious homemade dessert or even as my kids love to do sandwich digestive biscuits with a scope of ice cream and enjoy.

Another idea might be to fill profiteroles with this instead of fresh cream see my previous blog chocolate profiteroles with chantilly cream made in your mixer for a great dessert and recipe.

Tell me your ideas of how you serve ice cream and what you favourite variety of ice cream is?

My friend Tracy was astonished to see me using marmalade in recipes. I use marmalade in marinades and various sauces for meats aswell as adding to various cake and dessert recipes, it really brings out a great tangy flavour I love. So for Tracy it was a lesson that marmalade is more than just for the toast in the morning!

One of my favourites is Marmalade Duck, I remember like yesterday the very first time I tried this when my grandmother cooked it for me. I was at that age where I fed the ducks but didn’t want to think I was eatting them too. But being brought up on a farm meant it didn’t take long before I appreciated everymeal laid before me, and that everything on the farm from the land be it, crop or meat, eventually would be taken to market or eatten. This dish was divine and I in turn have made it many times for my family and today I was cooking for my dear friend Tracy.

For this scrumptious of dishes your are going to need: a duck cut into 6 or 4 large duck legs (so talk to your local butcher), 1/2 tsp sea salt, 2 tblsp groundnut oil, 3 medium onions, 100g fresh ginger, 2 cloves of garlic, 1 heaped tablsp flour, 1.5ltr stock, 3 tblsp rice wine (dry sherry or even vermouth), 4 star anise, 100g dried apricots, juice of 1 lemon and 4 tblsp quality marmalade (homemade if possible).

Start by preheating youroven to gas 4 or 180 c. Rub the pieces of duck all over with the sea salt. Warm the oil in a deep heavy pan or cast iron pan and lower the duck legs or pieces in to brown (be careful they will spit at you!). Turn them using tongues and brown the other side too. Lift them out and set aside on a plate. Peel the onions and slice, then stir into your casserole dish and leave to soften stirring occasionally. Peel the ginger and cut into matchsticks and stir in with the onion. Flatten the garlic cloves, remove the skin and put the flesh in to the casserole dish with the onions and ginger. When the onion is soft sprinkle with the flour then pour in the stock and stir throughly while bringing to the boil. Return the duck to the casserole dish and pour in the rice wine (sherry or vermouth), the star anise and dried apricots and leave to bubble for 15 minutes then cover with a lid and place in the oven. After 35 minutes remove and stir in 3 tblsp of marmalade and return to the oven without the lid. After a further 30 minutes of cooking lift the duck out and cover again with the lid. Leave this to cool a little as any fat will come to the surface so you can ladle this off. Check your sauce for seasoning and add the remaining marmalade and juice of a lemon. Now bring the sauce back to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes then return your duck peices to the sauce bringing it back to the boil before serving with a rich mash of potato and sweet potato.

Look at my previous blog confit away other duck recipes can be found in my previous blog walking recipe encore

For a cast iron casserole dish which is versatile for your cookery try this  Vogue cast iron 2.5 litre cast iron casserole dish.  This casserole is Black. 2.25 litre dish with lid. Being Cast iron ensures even heat distribution. When properly seasoned, provides long life non-stick and rust free pan. This casserole works with all heat sources; gas, electric, induction and ceramic top ranges. Also, attributes of cast iron means food stays hot for longer, providing greater energy efficiency. The recipes which use such a dish are endless, so make sure you buy a good one, such as this to add to your kitchen equipment for many years of great cookery.

Its indulgent with a great nutty texture that your guest will adore! Whether you use it as a cake, dessert or pudding is entirely up to you but make sure you give it pride of place at the dining table. Its a Fabulous dessert in my eyes to impress your guest with but without taking you hours of preparation and cooking time.

Check out my previous blog Traditional Soda Bread Recipe for some great silicone baking sheets which you can use for this recipe rather than tin baking sheets.

So here we go for my fantastic Raspberry Roulade you are going to need:

350g raspberries, 1/2 tsp mixed spice, 50g ground toasted hazelnuts, 2 tblsp chestnut puree ( you can use the remaining puree in soups, breads or even in stuffings with your Sunday Roast), 4 large free range eggs, 225g caster sugar, 150g pot of greek yogurt (or homemade see my previous blog yogurt recipe depends on milk used), and 2 tsp icing sugard to dust with.

Firstly preheat the oven to 180 c/ gas 4 and line a baking sheet with greaseproof paper. Whisk your egg whites for 4 minutes until it forms firm peaks. Add the sugar and whisk again until stiff. Mix the chestnut puree with the ground hazelnuts and mixed spice to form a paste and fold this into your meringue mixture. Spread your meringue mixture on to the baking sheet to form a large rectangle and cook for 25 minutes. Leave this to cool. Meanwhile puree 150g of your raspberries in a blender and ass sweetner to taste and pour into a serving jug. Then crush the remaining raspberries into the yogurt. Dust a clean surface with icing sugar and place meringue topside down on to the dusted icing sugar and spread your meringue with your raspberry cream before rolling up. Placing your meringue roulade on a serving plate scatter with remaining raspberries and serve with your raspberry coulis you prepared earlier in a jug.

Have you got a favourite dessert recipe you would like to share with us?

I am sure many of us stop to think what can we do to make someone specials birthday that extra special. Well one very special person in my life like many of this is my Mum, like me Grandma she too believes in wholesome local and seasonal food as we were both taught to cook by her.

Wanting to make her birthday extra special we were looking to serve her a great birthday breakfast as a real treat.

Other breakfast recipes can be found in my previous blog ‘yogurt recipe depends on milk used’. You could also look at my previous blog ‘perfect omelettes’ too.

I knew exactly the breakfast Mum loves and headed for Red Hill Farm for fresh farm eggs straight from the field from their free range hens. Heading back Ed had already started to put together a tray fit for a queen together with a vase of flowers from the garden.

What were we preparing for this very special lady well one of her favourites scrambled eggs with smoked salmon. While Ed set about preparing his grandmother a cup of the best earl grey I got together the ingredients.

You will need: 4 Large free range eggs, pinch of cayenne pepper, 2 tsp butter, 2 small bunches of cherry tomatoes on the vine, 2 thick slices of homebaked bread, 50g fresh smoked scottish salmon cut into strips and fresh dill.

Start by preheating your grill and line your grill pan with foil. Place your beaten eggs, cayenne pepper and butter in a nonstick pan and cook on a low heat. Make sure you stir gently and constantly with a wooden spoon for about 10 minutes until the egg is softly set. While cooking your eggs, grill your vine cherry tomatoes for about 5 minutes until softened and they are starting to split. Toast your bread, butter and cut in half (like triangles).  Placing 2 triangles of toast on a plate, then top with scrambled egg, pile on the smoked scottish salmon strips and snip some fresh dill over the top using scissors. Serve with you extra toast triangles and grilled tomatoes.

Putting together our tray complete with tea, toast, flowers & birthday breakfast, not forgetting the birthday cards we headed for the bedroom with a chorus of ‘Happy Birthday’. To say she was delighted and enjoyed her breakfast was a understatement she loved it.

What would you serve that special someone for breakfast in bed, why not send in your recipes for a tasty special breakfast!

If your planning a birthday party check out my previous blog ‘The Big Dipper’.

For a great toaster with great functions for full use in your kitchen try this Morphy Richards accents polished stainless steel pause and check toaster. With its great function to Pause and Check your toast without interrupting the toasting cycle for perfect toast and removable crumb tray to keep your toaster clean and tidy, the crumb tray can be removed to clean. This toaster also has a hi lift facility to remove smaller items from your toaster such as crumpets etc. you can use this lift on the lever to safety remove these; along with a variable browning control allows you to set the browning of your toast so you can have your toast just the way you like it. One of the best functions is the deep vari-width toasting chamber - thick doorsteps or thin wafers, whatever your choice of bread the variable bread width function can cater for your needs, so you can toast homemade bread too, which some toasters just cannot accomodate.
 

Fathers day the 3rd sunday in June when we honour our fathers. What have you got planned??

Have the little ones been busy making cards for their special dads & grandpa’s. I had a lovely conversation in my local butchers this week, when the youngman was telling me how much he was looking forward to Fathers day, then proud as punch he showed me this beautiful picture of his little girl literally 2 weeks out. ‘This is my first fathers day’, he said, ‘and I have been told I am going to be spoilt’. It was lovely and I sincerely hope Danielle that you had a super Fathers day!

I always find fathers day very hard, as my father passed away, god bless him. He was a great inspiration and I miss him dearly, as do my children and mother too. So its one of those days when you need to take time out, (and like mothers day) and make sure you honour those special loved ones in our lifes; and in the process have fun too, to build many happy memories as we did and continue to do.

In my oven now is a roast of local pork. I had a large pork loin joint with a large piece of fat not only to cook with it but to crackle of course. I have made some homemade stuffed apples with onion sauce, chateau potatoes, roasted carrots & parsnips and broad beans. All served with a rich traditional homemade gravy. For dessert I have made a superb apple and strawberry pie, which I am serving with cream or custard, as some of my guests do not like cream. The smell from the kitchen is enough to make you want to eat the newspaper, and there are rumbling tummies everywhere. Meanwhile too if you want to check our some of my apple pie recipes why not start with this, back in the kitchen we celebrate apple day blog.

All the man are busy sunbathing, while the women have joined me in the kitchen with wine in hand, (although this time I have hidden the tequilla from Aidy! read my previous blog bbq grills for the sunshine)

For a great Roast Pork Loin: Your going to need - 2-2.25kg/4lb 8oz-5lb loin of pork on the bone, rind removed, 1 garlic clove, crushed, 1 tsp finely chopped fresh rosemary, plus a few extra whole sprigs, 1 large onion, thickly sliced, 2 tbsp cider vinegar , plus extra for gravy, 2 tbsp redcurrant jelly, plus extra for gravy and 500ml vegetable stock. For the apples to go with your pork you will need 50g butter, 1 small onion , finely chopped,1 small lemon , grated zest, 50g fresh white breadcrumbs, 1 tsp finely chopped fresh rosemary needles and 6 good-sized apples , preferably Golden Delicious

Start by making some deep incisions in the pork, close to the bone. Mix together the garlic, chopped rosemary and 1 teaspoon salt. Rub this into the cuts, spreading any extra over the meat. Set aside for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 220C/gas 7/fan 200C. Scatter the onion and a few sprigs of rosemary into a roasting tin.

Like this great Casa large non stock roasting tray with handles. It is a large non stick roaster with handles made form carbon steel, with 3 layers of non stick spray on this product. The tin is 37 x 29 x 7cm, Dishwasher safe, Weighing 900 grams and comes with a Lifetime warranty. So its perfect for all of those Sunday Roasts your going to treat everyone too!

Put the pork on top, skinned side up, cover tightly with foil and roast with the rind for 30 minutes. Then turn down your oven to 190C/gas 5/fan 170C and cook the rind for a further 30 minutes and the roast joint for a further hour. Now remove the foil and roast uncovered for 20 minutes. Start preparing your apples, by placing the butter in a pan to melt, then cook the onion gently until soft but not browned, about 10 minutes. Take this off the heat and add the lemon zest, breadcrumbs and rosemary. The season well to your taste. Core your apples, then cut a line through the skin all round the waist of each. Fill each apple with onion stuffing. Mix the vinegar and redcurrant jelly for the glaze. Remove the pork from the oven. Turn the oven to 200C/gas 6/fan 180C. Stand your apples around the pork, brush the pork with a little of your glaze too and drizzle a little over the apples. Return to the oven and roast with the rind also in the oven, uncovered, for a further 20-25 minutes. Baste the pork twice with the juices and brush once with any remaining glaze that you have. Test the pork by piercing in the centre with a skewer. The juices should run clear, not pink. If in doubt, remove the apples, keep warm, cover the pork with foil and cook for 10-15 minutes more. Put the pork and apples on a warmed plate, cover with foil and leave in a warm place for 15 minutes. Spoon off the excess fat from the tin and put the tin on the stove over a medium-high heat, before pouring in your stock. Boil vigorously for 5-6 minutes. Taste and season, adding a little redcurrant jelly and/or cider vinegar to taste. Strain into a gravy boat. Serve the pork and apples with the crackling, garnished with rosemary, with a selection of vegetables of your choice. Delicious!

Take a look at my previous blogs including Sunday lunch best roast pork for more pork roast recipes.