I apologise that this is not a particularly adventurous dish, but it’s always a winner and a quick, healthy (if you use lean meat) and inexpensive mid-week meal.

I used the last of the apples from the garden in this, using both the hob and the oven to cook them with the pork. The pork can be tricky to cook without drying out, so I’m a fan of using an oven proof frying pan to seal the meat and then finish in the oven more gently. Chops on bone or with a decent amount of fat work best as they are less prone to drying out and generally have more flavour, but I’ll leave that to you!

Serves two.

Ingredients:

• 1 tspb oil
• 2 pork chops
• 1-2 small apples cored and chopped into 2cm cubes
• 200ml Chicken stock
• Salt and Pepper
• 2 Sage leaves
• Boiled new potatoes and steamed vegetables (I made broccoli and cauliflower) to serve.

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180ºC (Gas 4)

Using the base of a metal steamer, put the potatoes on to boil. I used new potatoes in skins.

Get the pan pretty hot with the oil and add the seasoned pork chops. Move them around at first.

Add the apples to let them caramelise a bit. Turn the pork chops over after a minute or two, they should be well browned by now. Place the sage leaves at the bottom of the pan and put the whole thing in the oven for 10 minutes or so. A kitchen thermometer is very handy here to check it’s cooked through without overdoing it.

Take the pork out of the oven once done and leave to rest on a plate covered with foil.

Start steaming the broccoli and cauliflower over the boiling potatoes – they’ll only take five minutes or so. Check on the potatoes first though and remove them with a slotted spoon if done already (leaving the water in the pan to steam the vegetables!)

Put the frying pan back on the hob – (being careful of the oven-hot handle!) and deglaze the pan with the stock. Let it reduce with the apples and sage for a few minutes.

Get the plates ready with the vegetables and pork. Season the apple reduction if necessary and pour over the pork. Simple and delicious with a side of mustard.