Phil Vickery may be the professional cook in the family, but it's Fern Britton who serves up some of the most popular meals in their house. The TV chef tells Keeley Bolger about his wife's famous tats and the Bramley apples campaign he's involved with 

If you lived at the Vickery residence, you’d certainly be spoilt for choice at dinner time.

As well as This Morning chef Phil Vickery’s tasty bread and butter puddings (made using his dad’s recipe) and apple crumbles, you'd also be treated to his wife Fern Britton’s peerless potatoes.

“My wife does a brilliant roast, and the best roast potatoes in the world,” says Vickery, 52.

“Even after so many years cooking, I still can’t get them like hers.”

The TV cook, who is busy writing a cookery book about British game, is currently supporting a Bramley apples campaign, celebrating the juicy British fruit.

Last month, he launched The Great Bramley Bake In, a nationwide search to find the best Bramley apple recipe, with foodies posting their fruity offerings on the Bramley Apple Facebook page.

The winning dish will be decided by public vote, taking place on the social media site from March 14-23.

Vickery may not have his TV presenter wife’s knack with spuds, but there’s no time for chips on his shoulder in the kitchen when the four children are all at home.

While most of the time, the kids (twins Jack and Henry, and Grace, from Britton’s previous marriage, and youngest daughter Winnie) can’t be “bothered” to whip up meals for the family, Vickery has noticed that when there is a compelling reason to, they do step up to the plate.

But the rest of the time, it’s him and Britton who take on the bulk of the meals. Not that Vickery minds.

“I went through a stage of not wanting to cook,” admits the chef, who says that his dream dinner guests would be Harry Redknapp, Victorian chef Alexis Soyer, Mrs Beeton and Frankie Howerd.

“But now I really enjoy it again. I think all the years of pressured cooking gets you down a bit. Now it’s just good fun!”

If you fancy pulling your nearest and dearest together for a meal, here are three of Vickery's personal favourite Bramley apple recipes, including a succulent fruity roast.