Roast venison with bacon & apples

Name: Roast venison with bacon & apples
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 2
Ingredients: 100 g essential Waitrose Unsmoked British Bacon Lardons; 2 tsp olive oil; 400 g British venison haunch joint; 2 dessert apples (Jazz work well), cut into 6 or 8 depending on size, cores removed; 2 tbsp brandy, plus an extra splash; Mixed peppercorns, for grinding; 2 sprig/s Cooks' Ingredients Rosemary; ½ tbsp plain flour; 200 g pouch veal jus; ½ tsp essential Waitrose redcurrant jelly

Roasted apples are usually associated with pork, but they pair beautifully with gamey venison and a slightly sweet but richly flavoured pan sauce. Try with parmentier potatoes and steamed spring greens.

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HealthyLow in saturated fatHigh protein

Serves2
CourseMain meal
Prepare15 mins
Cook45 mins
Total time1 hr

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100g essential Waitrose Unsmoked British Bacon Lardons
2 tsp olive oil
400g British venison haunch joint
2 dessert apples (Jazz work well), cut into 6 or 8 depending on size, cores removed
2 tbsp brandy, plus an extra splash
Mixed peppercorns, for grinding
2 sprig/s Cooks' Ingredients Rosemary
½ tbsp plain flour
200g pouch veal jus
½ tsp essential Waitrose redcurrant jelly

Preheat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 6. Put the lardons in a large frying pan with the olive oil and place over a medium-high heat – adding them cold starts the fat rendering. Fry for 8-10 minutes, stirring often, until crisp and all their fat is rendered into the pan. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Season the venison with salt and add to the pan. Fry for 4-5 minutes, turning occasionally, until well browned on all sides. Remove from the pan, then reduce the heat to low and add the apples. Turn to coat well in the fat, then transfer to a medium roasting dish, leaving most of the fat in the pan. Pour the brandy into the venison pan and allow it to bubble. Scrape and lift all the browned bits from the pan with a wooden spoon, then tip everything into a small saucepan and set aside.
Grind the peppercorns over the venison, then sit the meat in the middle of the apples. Nestle the rosemary into the apples, then roast in the oven for 8 minutes for medium-rare, or 10-12 minutes for medium. If you have a meat thermometer, the internal temperature should be 38-40°C for rare and 40-45°C for medium rare. Once cooked, wrap the venison tightly in foil and leave in a warm place to rest. Turn the apples, then roast for 10 minutes more, adding the bacon for the final minute to rewarm.
Meanwhile, put the saucepan with the fat in it over a medium heat and stir in the flour. Cook, stirring, for 1-2 minutes, then slowly add the veal jus, stirring continuously. Once smooth, bring to the boil and simmer until reduced by half, about 5-6 minutes. Turn the heat right down, stir in the redcurrant jelly with a splash of brandy, then season to taste and keep warm.
Once the apples are soft and a little caramelised, uncover and thinly slice the venison. Serve with the apples and bacon, with the sauce spooned over.