Roast Pork Belly with Apple Cream Sauce

This roast belly of pork with its crispy crackling is utterly delicious when served with the perfect accompaniment – apple cream sauce!

Ingredients:

15 ml Dijon mustard
200ml Water
1 KNORR Chicken Stock Pot
30 ml Apple juice
1 Red apple, peeled, cored and finely diced
½ Red onion, finely chopped
10 ml Margarine
900 g Rolled pork belly
15 ml Olive oil
15 ml Robertsosn Atlantic Sea Salt
5 ml Robertsons Thyme
80ml Cream
5 ml Cornflour

Method:

Preheat oven to 180°C.

Combine thyme, sea salt and olive oil in a bowl.

Dry the skin of the pork belly well with paper towel. Using a sharp knife make criss-cross incisions along the skin of the pork belly without cutting into the meat. Rub the olive oil mixture over the pork belly and place into a roasting tray.

Roast in a preheated oven at 180°C for 2-2 ½ hours or until the juices run clear then remove from the oven and allow to rest before slicing.

In the meantime melt the margarine in a pan and gently fry the red onion until soft then add the diced apple and fry for 2 minutes. Add the apple juice and then allow to KNORR Chicken Stock Pot to melt in the pan before adding the water and cream. Simmer for 5 minutes then stir in the Dijon mustard.

Mix the cornstarch with a little water to form a smooth paste and then stir this into the sauce and allow to simmer for a further 5 minutes.

Serve sliced pork belly drizzled with apple cream sauce and roasted potatoes.

Creamy Mustard Pork with Apples

This one pot wonder is so easy to make and it tastes fantastic! All you have to do is prep a few ingredients, chuck it all in a baking pan and bake for 40 minutes. EASY! 

It’s a comforting winter dish, 

which would be great with nectarines or peaches instead of the apple.

Serve it with mash potatoes, cooked veggies 

or any side dish like polenta, rice or even pasta also work well.

Ingredients:
4 x pork chops
2 x apples (cored and sliced)
2-3 garlic cloves (roughly chopped)
1tsp dried sage leaves
15ml whole grain mustard
30ml water
30ml olive oil
200mls cream

Method:
Preheat the oven to 180˚C.

Place the pork chops in a large baking pan, scatter around the apples, garlic, and sage.

Mix the mustard with the water then pour it mainly over the chops. Lightly dress everything with the olive oil and bake for 30mins.

Lastly pour the cream over everything in the pan, and return it to the oven to cook for another 10mins.

Apple Cinnamon Bread

Ingredients:
80ml brown sugar (not packed)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
190ml white sugar
125g butter, softened
2 eggs
7.5ml teaspoons vanilla extract
375ml all-purpose flour
10ml teaspoons baking powder
125ml milk
1 apple, peeled and chopped

Method:
Preheat oven to 180˚C. Grease and flour a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan. Mix brown sugar and cinnamon together in a bowl and set aside. Beat white sugar and butter together in a bowl using an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, until incorporated; add vanilla extract.

Combine flour and baking powder together in another bowl; stir into creamed butter mixture. Mix milk into batter until smooth. Pour half the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Next add half the apples and half the brown sugar cinnamon mixture. Lightly pat apple mixture into batter.

Pour the remaining batter over apple layer; top with remaining apples and add more brown sugar/cinnamon mixture. Lightly pat apples into batter; swirl brown sugar mixture through apples using a finger or spoon.

Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted in the centre of the loaf comes out clean, 30 to 40 minutes.

Courgette Apple Muffins

This muffin recipe makes a great morning quick breakfast on the run or a snack in the afternoon.

They also area simple means to get fussy children to eat some fruit and vegetables.

Ingredients:

750ml grated courgettes
250ml apple, peeled, cored and grated
125ml flax seeds 
60ml chopped almonds 
10ml fresh orange zest
625ml cups all-purpose flour 
250ml sugar 
5ml baking soda 
5ml baking powder
1ml salt 
2 large eggs, lightly beaten 
125ml vegetable oil 
125ml milk
5ml vanilla

Method:

Pre-heat oven to 190˚C.

In a large bowl, combine courgettes, apple, flax seeds, almonds and orange zest; set aside.

In a separate bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

In new bowl, combine eggs, oil, milk and vanilla; stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.

Add courgette mixture and stir briefly until just combined.

Fill greased or paper-lined muffins cups two-thirds full with muffin mixture.

Bake for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Roasted Sweet Potato and Apple Salad

Ingredients:

500ml peeled and diced sweet potatoes

4 large jalapeños, halved and seeded

15ml packed brown sugar

5ml ground cinnamon

15ml Olive Oil

250ml diced Granny Smith apples

60ml raisins

15ml apple cider vinegar

5ml stone ground mustard

5ml honey

15ml Olive Oil

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:

Preheat the oven to 190˚C.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the sweet potatoes, jalapeños, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Add the oil and toss to coat.

Evenly spread the sweet potatoes and jalapeños on a large baking sheet in a single layer.

Roast until the sweet potatoes are cooked through, 20 to 30 minutes. Cool completely. Dice the jalapeños.

Toss the sweet potatoes and jalapeños with the apples and raisins in a large mixing bowl.

In a medium mixing bowl combine the vinegar, mustard and honey. Slowly whisk in the oil to emulsify. Season to taste and drizzle the dressing over the vegetables and toss to coat.

Serve at room temperature.

Raw Beetroot Salad

Ingredients:

2 medium beetroots, trimmed, peeled and grated

2 Granny Smith apples, grated with the skins on

2 spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced on the diagonal

60ml natural yoghurt

30ml lemon juice

125ml chopped fresh parsley

Sesame seeds to garnish

Method:

Put into a salad bowl the beetroot, apples and spring onions, leaving some of the green onion tops for garnish.

Mix together the yoghurt, lemon juice and half the parsley and toss into the salad. Garnish with reserved spring onions, parsley and sesame seeds.

Meat and Bean Pasta Salad

Ingredients:

225g cooked lamb, diced

225g salami, skinned and diced

3 thick slices cooked ham, diced

225g English cucumber, diced

2 granny Smith apples, cored and cited

225g cooked macaroni

2-3 spring onions, chopped

Small can butter beans, drained

125ml mayonnaise

12,5ml lemon juice

5ml Worcestershire sauce

Lettuce

Method:

Combine all the ingredients except the mayonnaise, lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce in a large salad bowl.

Blend the mayonnaise, lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce and pour over the salad mixture. Toss lightly, ensuring all the ingredients are covered with the dressing. Serve on a bed of lettuce.

Cinnamon Apple Pie Bread

Ingredients:

80ml light brown sugar

5ml ground cinnamon

160ml white sugar

125g butter, softened

2 eggs

7.5ml vanilla extract

375ml flour

10ml baking powder

125ml milk

1 apple - Granny Smith are good - peeled and chopped

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180˚C

Mix brown sugar and cinnamon together in a bowl and set aside.

Beat together the butter and white sugar in a bowl using an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. 

Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time, until incorporated.

Add the vanilla and stir until well mixed.

Combine flour and baking powder in another bowl. Stir in the creamed butter mixture. Mix the milk into the batter until it is silky smooth.

Pour half the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Top this batter layer with half the apples and half the sugar and cinnamon mixture. Lightly push the apples into the batter.

Pour the remaining batter over the apple layer and top with the remaining apples and cinnamon sugar. Lightly push the apples into the batter, swirling the cinnamon sugar through the apples using a clean finger.

Bake in the preheated oven for 30-40 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the centre of the loaf comes out clean. If you notice the top of the loaf getting too brown, cover loosely with tin foil and continue baking until the inside of the loaf is done. 

Cranberry Cleanser Drink

It's Sunday, my day of rest.... ha-ha; the internet never stops and nor does the gravitational pull of blogging and the potential of spreading the fun of food. Well, what better way to start the morning with a good cleansing fruit and vegetable juice? Cranberries are also called “bounceberries” because they bounce when ripe. Imagine how these are going to rejuvenate you and have you bouncing all over your life! Cranberries are high in vitamin C, and have antioxidant and antibacterial effects in the body. 
These little red jewels are a rich source of the flavonoid quercetin which can inhibit the development of both breast and colon cancers and drinking cranberry juice is also good for the health of the heart. Research confirms that cranberries are an excellent source of antioxidants which may protect against cancer, heart disease and other diseases. 

They are also indicated for digestive tract health and healing from the mouth to the anus. To start, cranberries decrease production of cavity and plaque producing bacteria in your mouth. Moving to the stomach, they reduce the bacteria associated with peptic stomach ulcers. In the colon their juice has been found to reduce the incidence of colon cancer. Research shows that the cranberry contents of proanthocyanidins and ursolic acid brought on cell death in colon cancer cells. 

Cranberries are especially beneficial to the eyes where they significantly improve symptoms of cataracts, macular degeneration, and diabetic retinopathy and are well known for their assistance in maintaining a healthy urinary tract. 

But…The health benefits of cranberries are almost totally depleted when generous amounts of sugar is added. Thus the cranberry cannot provide you with its full phytonutrient benefits when there has been lots of sugar added.

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/cranberries-little-powerfood-with-a-big-punch.html#ixzz2iuCDFMkz

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/08/100823183807.htm

http://www.peakhealthadvocate.com/2149/cranberries-may-help-with-cancer-prevention/

Pawpaw Pineapple Salsa

Ripe and cut pawpaw showing the edible seeds

This fresh salsa combines the bright flavours of pawpaw, pineapple, lime and chillies and the sweet crunch of apple. It is quick and easy to make and colourful to the eye. Use as a garnish for pork, fish or chicken.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup ripe pawpaw, diced

3/4 cup fresh pineapple, diced

3/4 cup diced apple (crisp and sweet)

1/4 cup chopped red onion

1 jalapeno chilli pepper, seeded and minced

1 garlic clove, minced

10ml finely grated lime zest

30ml fresh lime juice

15ml balsamic vinegar

15ml chopped chives

15ml chopped coriander

Preparation:

Place pawpaw, pineapple, apple, red onion, chilli, garlic, lime zest, lime juice, balsamic vinegar, chives, and coriander in a large bowl. Toss gently to combine. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until serving time. 

Make papaya pineapple salsa no more than 2 hours in advance for best flavour and texture. Use as a garnish for pork, lamb, fish or chicken.

October Fruit and Vegetables

The days are growing shorter, autumn winds are blowing and the harvest is being brought in from the orchards and fields. October is sometimes thought of as the ugly sister of September, but the reputation is not deserved. Summer, when orchard and vine are exploding with juicy, sun filled abundance, may be passed, but the warm months have helped breed new things for autumnal abundance, some being uniquely enjoyable. This year the apple trees are especially heavy laden with succulent fruit, ready to be made into jams, preservers and beverages. Wild mushrooms are abundant and squash and pumpkins are ready early for Halloween.

Americans think of pumpkin as something you put in a pie and serve at Thanksgiving. Europeans know it primarily as a savoury ingredient. In this case, the old world and the new both have it right. Pumpkin is delicious in sweet pies, but it can be put to good use in all manner of savour dishes as well. The simplest is to cut the pumpkin into pieces, removing the seeds and strings from the central cavity and steaming or baking the pieces for serving with a little butter as a vegetable. Some care needs to be taken with cooked pumpkin as it becomes fragile when cooked because of the high water content. This may be acceptable if the flesh is to be drained of excess water and served mashed. One of the nicest ways of preparing this vegetable is to roast it in pieces at low temperature for an extended time, which cooks them and simultaneously evaporates much of the water.

Some vegetables from summer are still available, especially in the early part of the month: beans, courgettes, peppers and aubergines from Europe, and beetroot, sweetcorn, sweet potatoes, celery, carrots and marrows are available in abundance.

Root vegetables are now coming into their prime. Look for parsnips, celeriac, Swedes and turnips this month to use in soups and stews as we progress into colder weather. There should also be a good selection of onions available in October. If you like to make pickled onions, now is the time to make them.

The last, but not the least, of the vegetables to be considered for consumption in October are spinach, chard and cabbages. These seem to come into their own as the days become shorter and the nights grow colder. Red cabbage is especially good when cooked with onions, pears or quinces.

Most of the berries of summer are now gone, but other fruit make up for their depletion. The apple season is in full swing, and with them come delicious pears and damsons, perfect for preserves and puddings. Autumn is also the season for nuts, with fresh walnuts being the first to be seen. They are never better than at this time of year, before the flesh has lost its moist, delicate freshness.

Figs are another October highlight, picked from the tree when fully ripe, they offer their incomparable sweet flavour for a short time before they become too soft. They are perfect torn open and savoured raw, but are also delicious baked with honey and feta cheese.

Quinces are another top choice for October, especially for jam and jelly making. Pomegranates, coming from the Mediterranean, are also abundant now. They may be one of the hardest fruit to eat, but the succulent pits are delicious in both savoury and sweet salads.

September Fruit and Vegetables

September this year has been a fickle month of misty mornings, an inordinate amount of rain that has come late in the season, which can’t be making the farmers very happy, cool breezes that have turned into gales and the leaves have seemed to turn to the russet tones of autumn earlier than normal.

We spent the first part of this month on the Isle of Mann with friends, which has made me a bit late in posting my normal suggestions for the month, but better late than not at all.

Where fruit and vegetables are concerned, September is the end of summer rather than the beginning of autumn. It’s still quite hot in southern Europe, even if the weather here in the UK is beginning to get a bit nippy.

This month is the best for tomatoes, with UK farms producing their best long-ripened varieties, often selling them at a premium low price because of the end of summer glut. If you like to make tomato preserves and sauces for storage, this is the time to buy. Local farmers’ markets may have plenty to offer, perhaps not as perfect as the EU would expect, but still perfectly good for cooking. Perhaps the best to use for sauces, and even for chutneys too, are the small cherry tomatoes because the skins give such a good colour to the resultant product. Tomatoes are also great roasted, sun-dried or dried overnight in a very low-heat oven, or in salads and soups. Consider making ketchup too.

The same end of summer abundance makes this the time to eat and cook all the soft fruits you can: peaches, nectarines, plums, damsons, strawberries, blackberries and raspberries. For UK fruit there is nothing better than Scottish raspberries, considered by many to be the finest in the world.

The first UK pears should also be coming on to the market now, and the first Cox apples as well. Until they arrive, the fruit to look for are the melons from France, and figs and grapes from the Mediterranean. However, if you are impatient for the British Cox’s season to start, there are other varieties available. The best places to look for them are at farmers’ markets as these apples will come from small growers who don’t usually sell through the big supermarkets.

The end of summer theme follows through with vegetables: courgettes and marrows, peppers, beetroot, aubergines, fennel, garlic, carrots and the last of the sweetcorn for the year. There is certainly no shortage of good things to cook and serve at your table.

You’ll also start to see the first arrivals of squash in all sorts of varieties. Experiment with them in soups, stews and curries, roast them in olive oil or try stuffing them with rice or forcemeat. Don’t forget the last of the summer beans and the new season leeks, which will be coming into the shops this month.

Most of all, remember to look for a group of edibles that are not only world-class, but free: wild mushrooms, that is if you are a seasoned forager; if not, find someone who is to teach you or buy a reliable guide book for proper identification. But beware: some mushrooms can cause illness and occasionally death!

The season for wild mushrooms is dependent on weather conditions, but the message is clear: you should eat these delectable morsels every chance you get. Even though they are not for me, as I am allergic to mushrooms, I hate to spoil the fun for others who love them, so here’s the deal...

Some supermarkets keep them, but the prices are astronomical and quality that varies greatly. The much better option is to collect them yourself; they may be closer to your home than you realise. There are so many varieties, so I won’t go into much detail about habitat, but generally speaking woodlands is where you will find them. One exception: common field mushrooms, which can grow in open grassland.

The best know varieties found in the UK are ceps, or penny buns, chanterelles, which usually begin earlier than others, and oyster mushrooms, but you may find dozens of other varieties. Once you get the fungi-foraging bug and the taste for these delicacies, it bites hard and tends to last a lifetime. For now, even if you don't get to search for them yourself, buy wild mushrooms from a reputable supplier and enjoy preparing these seasonal splendours.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Apple Butter

Making apple butter is a great way to use up the glut of apples at harvest time. Although that is not for a few months yet, I'm including the recipe here as it goes so well with Homemade Sausages. As the name suggests there is butter in this preserve, need ti dispel the myth; 'butter' is a bit of a misnomer. The name comes from its smooth and buttery texture. It is delicious served with pork of any kind as well as with bacon or just served on toast at breakfast.

Ingredients:
2kg Granny Smith apples
250ml apple cider vinegar
500ml water
about 1000ml sugar
Salt
10ml ground cinnamon
2ml ground cloves
2ml allspice or ground pimento
grated rind and juice of 1 lemon

Method:
Cut the apples into quarters, without peeling or coring them. Much of the pectin in in the cores, seeds and peels. Cut out any damaged parts of the apples.

Put the apples into a large pot, add the vinegar and water, over, bring to the boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes until the apples are soft. Remove from the heat.

Ladle the apple mixture into a conical sieve (or food mill) and force the pulp through the sieve with the back of a spoon into a bowl. Measure the resulting purée. Add 125g sugar for each 250ml of apple pulp. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Add a dash of salt, the cinnamon, ground cloves, allspice, lemon rind and juice and blend through the apple mixture. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.

Transfer the apple mixture to a large, wide, heavy-based nonstick saucepan and cook on a low heat, stirring constantly to prevent burning. Scrape the bottom of the pot while you stir to ensure a crust does not form on the bottom of the pot. If your pot is nonstick, it shouldn't form a crust, but just to be sure, constantly clear the base of the pot. Cook for 1-2 hours until thick and smooth. To test when it is ready spoon a small amount onto a chilled plate - it should be thick, not runny.

Pour into hot, sterilised jars and seal. This makes a little more than three jam jars. Store in the larder until opened, then store in the fridge.

Buckwheat and Apple Crumpets with Braised Cabbage and Bacon

These would probably be better known as pancakes, which most people think of as an American idea, but they actually come from Europe, especially the Saxon or Germanic peoples, including the British. In South Africa we call them crumpets, which are usually sweet, but those who are of Dutch heritage also make savoury varieties. They are wonderful for breakfast when you have time to make them, or served with a meat course as a side dish.

Ingredients:

For the pancake batter:

2 eggs, lightly beaten

220 ml milk, plus a little extra if necessary

1 apple, peeled and grated

200 g buckwheat flour

10ml baking powder

30ml oatmeal

butter, for frying

For the braised cabbage:

1 small/medium savoy cabbage, cored and cut into wedges

1 red onion, thinly sliced

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

5ml fresh thyme, leaves

30ml maple syrup

75 ml cider vinegar

100 g butter, diced

To serve:

12 slices lean bacon

apple sauce

6 bags maple syrup

thick crème fraiche

Method:

For the pancake batter:

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk, then stir in the apple. Sift in the flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt, sprinkle over the oatmeal and fold in until just combined, adding a little more milk if necessary. Transfer the bowl to the refrigerator to rest the batter for 30 minutes.

For the cabbage:

Preheat the oven to 190C. Put the cabbage on a large sheet of tinfoil, top with onion, garlic, thyme, maple syrup and cider vinegar. Dot with butter and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Seal the foil edges, put the packet on a baking tray and bake for 45 minutes. Heat a little butter in a heavy-based non-stick frying pan, add spoonfuls of pancake batter and cook until the pancakes begin to bubble on the surface, then flip them over and continue to cook till golden.

Cook the bacon on a griddle until done to your liking. To serve, put the pancakes on serving plates, top with apple sauce, braised cabbage, bacon and crème fraiche and drizzle with maple syrup.

Apple Crisps

Crisps of any kind are always fun, but they are even better if made with fruit.

Ingredients:

1 apple, cored

50g caster sugar

Method:

Preheat the oven to 100C.

Using a mandolin, slice the apple as thinly as possible. Place the slices in a single layer on an oven tray lined with baking paper. Sprinkle over the sugar and bake for 1½-2 hours, or until dried and crisp.

Loosen the slices from the tray with a palette knife and set aside to cool completely. Store in an airtight container until needed.

Cheddar Apple Sponge Pudding

Cheese might seem a strange ingredient for a pudding, but it seems to work so well with sweet apples.

.

Ingredients:

110g sugar

110g butter

2 eggs, beaten

140g flour

5ml baking powder

30g grated cheddar cheese

8 walnuts, chopped

½ an apple, peeled, cored and grated

clotted cream or custard to serve.

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180C

Cream the sugar and butter together with an electric beater.

Slowly add the 2 beaten eggs, then fold in the flour and baking powder.

Fold in the grated cheddar, chopped walnuts and apple.

Spoon the mixture into individual fluted tart tins or buttered ramekin dishes and bake for about 15 minutes.

Serve with clotted cream or custard.

Apple Cheesecake

Ingredients:
2 apples, peeled, cored and cut into 8 pieces.
50g caster sugar.
5ml ground cinnamon.
1 packet ginger biscuits.
50g butter melted.
10g raisins, soaked in hot water and drained.
5 eggs.
140g sugar.
400g mascarpone.
400g cream cheese.
2 pieces of stem ginger, finely chopped.

.

.

Method:

Preheat the oven to 190C.

Place a large frying pan over a medium heat. Toss the apple pieces with the sugar and ground cinnamon and add to the pan. Cook for 4-5 minutes, shaking the pan occasionally to prevent the apples from burning, until the apples are caramelised and tender. Pour the apples onto a tray to cool.Place the ginger nuts into a food processor and pulse to fine crumbs. With the motor running, slowly add the melted butter and mix until well combined. Scrape the mixture into the cake tin and press into an even layer with the back of a spoon.

Top the biscuit base with the caramelised apples and scatter with the soaked raisins.

Whisk the eggs and sugar together until pale and fluffy, then gently whisk in the mascarpone and cream cheese until smooth and well combined. Fold in the chopped stem ginger.

Pour the mixture over the apples, then place the tin on a baking tray, tapping it to knock out any air bubbles. Bake for 40 minutes, or until the cheesecake is nearly set. Turn off the heat, leave the oven door ajar and rest the cake in the oven for 20 minutes.

Remove the cheesecake from the oven and leave to cool completely. Cut in 8 slices to serve.

Mini Pork Wellingtons

Beef fillet is so expensive and pork fillets are always available

and inexpensive in comparison

so I like to use them for this twist on a British classic.

I'm allergic to mushrooms, so I use corgette,

which has a similar flavour and texture,

but you are welcome to use mushrooms if you choose.

It's nice to make individual wellingtons like this;

they are so impressive when entertaining friends.

.

Ingredients:
sunflower oil for frying
1 x 150g pork tenderloin fillets
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper for seasoning
25g butter
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 shallots, finely chopped
1/2 a cooking apple, peeled, cored and diced
half a courgette, peeled and sliced (or thinly sliced mushrooms, about 100g)
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper for seasoning
30ml double cream
500g ready-made puff pastry
palin flour for dusting
100g parmesan cheese, finely grated
1 egg, beaten
30ml milk

.

Method:
Preheat the oven to 190C.

Heat a little sunflower oil in a large frying pan. Season the pork fillets, then fry for 8-10 minutes, turning regularly, or until browned on all sides. Remove the pork from the pan and set aside to cool.

Add the butter to the frying pan and fry the garlic, shallots and apple for 4-5 minutes, or until softened.

Add the courgettes and cook for a further 3-4 minutes. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper; then stir in the cream. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, roll the puff pastry out on a lightly floured work surface. Scatter over the parmesan, then fold the pastry in half. Roll the pastry out again and cut into four rectangular pieces.

For the egg wash, beat the egg and milk together in a bowl.

Spoon some apple and courgette mixture into the middle of each piece of pastry and place the pork on top. Brush the edge of the pastry with the egg wash. Form the pastry into a parcel around the pork and seal the edges. Brush the remaining egg wash over each wellington.

Place the pastry parcels on a baking tray with the pastry seam on the bottom. Bake the pork Wellingtons in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until the pastry is risen and golden-brown.

To serve, carve the Wellingtons into thick slices and place on top of a vegetable serving and pour over a sauce or gravy. These go well with Rosemary Braised Cabbage and Port and Red Wine Sauce.

Rhubarb and Apple Chutney

Rhubarb teams with apples, onions and spices

to become a tangy chutney that is wonderful

with roast pork, game and venison sausages.

It’s not the prettiest chutney,

because the long cooking turns the rhubarb brown,

but it tastes really good!

.

Ingredients:
750g rhubarb stalks
500g cooking apples, peeled and cored
2 onions, finely sliced
250ml malt or white wine vinegar
250ml white wine
300g demerara sugar
1 small red chilli, finely chopped
30ml black mustard seeds
5ml ground allspice
5ml ground ginger
100g sultanas
15ml salt

Method:
Wash and trim the rhubarb, discarding any leaves, and chop into inch pieces. Chop the apples into 1/2 inch dice. Place the rhubarb, apples and onions in a heavy-based pan with the vinegar and wine, and bring to the boil. Simmer for 15 minutes until the onions are tender.

Add the sugar, chilli, mustard seeds, allspice, ginger, sultanas and salt, and continue to simmer, stirring from time to time, for 45 minutes to one hour, until it is good and thick.

Remove from the heat for ten minutes, then spoon the chutney into hot, dry, sterilised jars and seal. Keep in a cool, dry place for two weeks to a month before opening. The longer the chutney is kept, the better it becomes!

Apple and Cranberry Torte

Ingredients:
Dry Mixture:
250ml flour
2ml salt
7.5ml baking powder
5ml cinnamon
zest of 1 orange

.

Wet Mixture:

125g unsalted butter, melted

80ml sugar

5ml vanilla extract

4 eggs at rook temperature

.

250g frozen cranberries

50ml Grand Marnier Liqueur

2 Granny Smith (or other apples of choice), peeled and chopped

Juice of 1 lemon

100g walnuts

.

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180C.

Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl.

In another bowl, mix the wet ingredients, whisking together.

Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, a little at a time.

Soak the cranberries in warmed Grand Marnier Liqueur. Allow them to absorb as much of the liqueur as possible.

Soak the chopped apples in lemon juice to stop them oxidising and going brown.

Drain the fruits and add them to the batter along with the walnuts. Fold into the mixture to spread the fruit and nuts evenly.

Pour the mixture into a buttered 8 inch square baking dish and bake for 30 minutes at 180C.

Serve hot with whipped cream.