Pork Loin Stuffed with Prunes, Apple and Hazelnuts

This rich pork dish is perfect for a Sunday supper for the family or for a fancy evening meal with friends. The recipe is for 2 people but its easy to double up on the ingredients.

Ingredients
2 pork loins, fat trimmed away
6 pitted prunes, roughly chopped
1 handful (about 10) hazelnuts, 
1 apple (i used Fuji as they are juicy and sweet)
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
4 slices black forest ham*

Method

• Heat the oven to 210C.
• Put a wok or frying pan on a low heat then render the trimmed pork fat.
• Flatten the pork loins to about 1/4 inch thick and season with salt & pepper, then place each on top of 2 slices of ham.
• Crush the hazelnuts with a pestle and mortar, mix with the prunes and cinnamon. Grate the apple and squeeze out the juice, set the juice aside and stir the grated apple into the nut mixture.
• Halve the mixture and spread in an even layer on top of the pork loin then carefully roll the pork, ham and stuffing into a tight roulade.
• Turn up the heat on the wok/pan and sear the roulades on each side. Remove and place in an oven dish.
• Drain the fat from the pan, mix the apple juice with a little water and pour into the pan to deglaze, then pour the juices over the pork roulades in the dish and pop into the oven
• Bake for 15 minutes, basting once or twice.
• Remove the pork roulades and place on a board to rest for 10 minutes
• Pour the cooking juice into the wok and reduce down to a thick sauce, adjust the seasoning if necessary.

Slice the pork roulades in half or even rounds and serve with mushroom risotto, drizzle a little sauce over, then top with fresh greens

*Black Forest Ham has a unique punchy flavour that is pretty robust and can be quite salty. It requires strong flavours to accompany it or the other ingredients can become lost. If its too strong for you, try using Serrano ham instead.