Cider Braised Pork Roast w Stuffed Apples

For the pork roast:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Generously season the pork roast with salt and pepper on both sides.
3. Sear both sides of the roast for about 3-5 minutes in a large oil-coated Dutch oven over medium heat until browned.
4. Add the apple cider, bundle of herbs (sage, rosemary, thyme), cinnamon stick, quartered onion, and celery stalks to your braising pot. The roast should be partly submerged in the braising bath; it doesn't need to be fully covered.
5. Cover the pot with a lid and place it in the oven. Braise for 1 hour per pound of roast, roughly 3.5 hours for a 3.5 lb roast.
6. The roast is done when you can pull it apart easily with a fork, and the internal temperature reaches about 195F for fall-apart, juicy pork.

For the stuffed apples:

1. Begin by slicing the tops off the apples and coring the inside with an ice cream scoop to create an apple "shell" or "boat". Save the apple content for the stuffing, chopping it roughly and discarding any core or seeds.
2. In a large skillet, brown the pork sausage. Once thoroughly cooked, remove the sausage from the pan.
3. Add the finely chopped onion, finely chopped celery, and the roughly chopped saved apple content to the same pan. Cook them in the pork drippings until tender, about 5 minutes.
4. Return the cooked sausage to the skillet.
5. Add the dry stuffing contents to the skillet, then add enough chicken broth as directed on the stuffing box (approximately 1.5 cups).
6. Spoon and generously stuff the prepared mixture into the apple boats until full.
7. Arrange the stuffed apples in a baking dish. Add just enough water to the bottom of the baking dish so that it's covered.
8. Bake at 350F for about 25-30 minutes, or until the apples feel fork-tender.