Step-by-step method:

Clean the capon and singe the skin.

Rub the inside of the bird with lemon juice and add salt and pepper.

Stuff with the chopped apples, sausages, half the prunes, the dried apricots, the pine nuts and half the dried figs.

Seal the open end of the bird well, with a skewer, rub salt on the outside, and cook on the hob in an ovenproof dish until golden brown.

Add slices of onion and carrot, the whole garlic and the bouquet garní. Remove from the heat, and put into a hot oven.

Cook for approximately 1 1/4 hour, basting occasionally with the cognac, dry port and stock.

After ¾ hour in the oven, add the remaining prunes and figs.

When cooked, remove the capon and bouquet garní, and add the prunes and figs.

Add a tablespoon of cornflour, mixed in a little water, to the sauce in the baking dish.

Put on the heat and cook for five minutes (stir constantly to prevent sticking). Sieve the gravy before serving.

Serve the stuffed bird with the gravy, prunes and figs.