Pork Crown Roast with Dried-Fruit-Sourdough Stuffing and Brandy Cream Sauce

Make the stuffing

Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F. Spread the bread cubes on a large rimmed baking sheet and bake until dry and pale golden, about 15 minutes. Let the bread cool to room temperature on the pan on a rack.

Bring the wine, apricots, figs, cherries, and raisins to a boil in a 4- to 5-quart pot over medium-high heat. Lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the fruit is very tender and the wine is reduced to about 1/2 cup, about 30 minutes. Transfer the fruit mixture to an 8- to 10-quart bowl. (If the fruit is tender before the wine is reduced, transfer it with a slotted spoon to the bowl and continue to boil until the wine is reduced to 1/2 cup.)

Melt the butter in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the celery and shallots and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 7 minutes. Stir in the thyme, sage, 2 tsp. salt, and 2 tsp. pepper and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add to the fruit mixture, stir well, and let cool at room temperature for at least 1 hour and up to 6 hours.

Add the bread cubes and brandy to the fruit mixture and stir well to combine.

Stuff and roast the pork

While making the stuffing, let the pork sit in a large heavy-duty roasting pan, with the bones pointing up, at room temperature for 30 minutes to take the chill off the meat.

Position a rack in the lower third of the oven (there should be 2 or 3 inches of headspace between the pork and the broiler element) and heat the oven to 350°F.

Rub the outside of the pork with the oil and season all over with 1 tsp. salt and 1 tsp. pepper. Spoon about half of the stuffing into the center of the roast, packing it tightly and mounding it at the top. Loosely cover the bones and the stuffing with a piece of aluminum foil. Roast for 2-1/2 hours.

Remove the foil and continue roasting until a probe or instant-read thermometer inserted between the bones into the eye of the meat registers 150°F, 20 to 30 minutes more. Check the temperature in several places, including the interior top section of meat, to be sure the meat is up to temperature throughout. If the stuffing or bones start to get too dark at any point, return the foil to the top of the roast.

Using two large metal spatulas, transfer the whole stuffed roast to a large carving board. Reserve the juice in the pan. Let the pork rest for 30 minutes while you heat the remaining stuffing and prepare the sauce.

Increase the oven temperature to 400°F. Spoon the remaining half of the stuffing into a shallow 2-quart baking dish and bake, uncovered, until golden-brown, about 30 minutes.

Make the sauce and finish the roast

Pour the reserved pan juice into a fat separator. (Or pour into a large measuring cup; let stand 5 minutes to separate, then skim off the fat). Set the roasting pan over medium-high heat, add the brandy, and boil until reduced by half, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour the juice  (leaving the fat in the separator, if using) into the roasting pan, add the broth, and bring to a boil, stirring with a wooden spatula to scrape up any browned bits from the pan. Boil until reduced to 1 cup, 5 to 8 minutes. Stir in the cream and return to a boil. Season to taste with salt and pepper; transfer to a gravy boat for serving.

To carve the roast, snip and discard the twine. Use a large chef’s knife to slice between the bones. There’s no need to remove the stuffing before carving. Season the meat with sea salt and serve with the stuffing and the sauce.