pheasant with apricots and marsala sauce

Filling: chop dried apricots and dried cranberries as finely as possible. Rehydrate this mixture at room temperature for 15 minutes in a little Marsala. Then add a beaten egg and finely grated breadcrumbs. Pheasant: lay the fillets open on the work surface and pound them flat with the meat mallet. Be very careful, because this is delicate meat. Cover a work surface with two layers of aluminium foil and spray with olive oil. Cover with strips of bacon. Lay the fillets on top and make sure they fit nicely into one whole without holes. Season with pepper and salt. Spoon the filling into the middle of the whole and roll up. Make sure that the foil is not rolled up with the meat. Tightly close the ends of the roll.

Put the roll in an oven dish for about 40 minutes in an oven pre-heated to 185°C. Leave to rest for a few minutes before removing the aluminium foil. You now have a firm meat roll. You can remove the bacon or not. Put the roll back in the oven, same temperature but now on hot air. Leave to cook for 15 minutes until the outside is nicely coloured. Cover and keep warm until just before serving. Sauce: bring chicken stock to the boil with cream. Season with pepper, salt, crushed juniper berries and cloves. Pour in a glass of madeira and allow to reduce for a moment. Add a few tablespoons of cranberry jelly. Sieve the sauce and thicken if required. Accompaniments: you can finish the dinner plate with matching preparations according to your own taste and preference. Here we chose fondant potatoes, red cabbage with apples and halved and grilled chicory stems.