Another autumnal one pot wonder was for dinner tonight. I love one pot dishes when I have worked all day, you chuck it all in and wait for it to cook while you get on with all the other millions of jobs that working Mum’s have to do.

This one went down a storm with the whole family, I did leave off the roquefort butter for the kids, but it just meant there was loads more for mine. I served this dish with fresh green beans from our garden which Luca kindly went and picked for me. We are having a bumper harvest and we have more than we can manage, but the kids love them and so are happy to have them a couple of times a week.

Its not a pretty looking dish I must admit, but the taste more than makes up for it.

Buon appetito

500g waxy potatoes, thinly sliced
8 sprigs thyme
5 tbsp olive oil
2 red onions, cut into wedges
6 pears, slim ones, such as Conference, halved and cored
4 pork chops , large ones, about 235g each
3 tbsp soft dark brown sugar
75g butter , at room temperature
50g Roquefort , crumbled

Put the potatoes into a roasting tin and add the thyme, 3 tbsp olive oil and seasoning. Turn over with your hands to make sure they are well coated. Put the onions, pears and chops on top, season and add another 2 tbsp oil, then turn them over too, making sure they’re well seasoned and coated in fat.

Heat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6, put in the tin and roast for 15 minutes. Turn the chops over, turn the pears cut-side up and sprinkle with a little sugar. Reduce the heat to 190C/fan 170C/gas 5 and roast for another 30-40 minutes.

While the chops are roasting, mash the butter and roquefort together. Chill in the freezer (this just cools it more quickly) until it’s firm enough to handle, then shape it into a sausage, wrap in clingfilm and leave to firm up in the fridge. When the chops are cooked and the potatoes tender, serve with rounds of roquefort butter all over the top, just as they are melting.