Honey and clove roast pork with root vegetable purée

Method

1. Combine the demerara sugar, stock, cider, calvados, honey, cloves, sage, 1 teaspoon salt and the pepper in a non-corrosive bowl. Add the pork and marinate for two hours or, ideally, overnight.

2. Preheat the oven to 190C/gas 5.

3. Remove the pork from the marinade, reserving the liquid. Make slits in the fat of the pork and sprinkle with salt.

4. Put the pork on a rack in a roasting tin and roast for 30 minutes. Then reduce the heat to 180C/gas 4 and continue cooking for a further 50 minutes. During the last 20 minutes, remove the pork from the oven at 5-minute intervals and baste with the excess marinade.

5. Meanwhile, make the mash. Place the cubed vegetables in a pan of salted water, bring to a boil, cover and boil vigorously for 20 minutes.

6. Drain the water from the vegetables and return them to the saucepan along with the butter, double cream, nutmeg and seasoning. Using a hand blender (or a food processor), whiz the mixture to a purée. Keep warm.

7. When the pork is done, set it aside to rest. Bring the remaining marinade to a boil in a saucepan and boil hard until the volume of liquid has reduced by two thirds. Carve the pork.

8. To serve, place a spoonful of purée on each serving plate. Lay two slices of pork on top, drizzle with gravy and serve with apple sauce.