and for the pork:
Cranberry-Ginger Pork Roast
adapted from Atkins Kitchen
Only 5 ingredients produce a flavorful, complex dish: tart, sweet, smoky and spicy. Chipotles in adobo are smoked jalapeno peppers in a tomato-based sauce. They can be found in the ethnic food section of most supermarkets.
4 pound bone-in pork loin roast
1 cup fresh, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup sorgum
1 canned chipotle en adobo, chopped
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1. In a small bowl mix cranberries, syrup, chipotle, ginger, salt and pepper. Place roast in slow cooker; rub with mixture. Cover and cook on low 8 to 10 hours.
Servings: 6
***************************************
Pork Loin Chops Braised in Apple Cider and Cranberries
rvb's
serves 2
Ingredients:
2 2”-thick chops cut from boneless pork loin
3 tbs olive oil
apple cider
1 cup fresh cherries
3 tbs balsamic vinegar
2” stick cinnamon
salt to taste
Preparation:
Sear the pork in the olive oil in a sauté pan over high heat until nicely browned.
Remove the pork, add a bit of cider, return to boil and stir like crazy, being sure to incorporate the brown bits.
Add the cherries, balsamic vinegar, cinnamon and enough cider to come about 3/4 of the way up the chops*
Bring to a simmer, cover the pan and braise for 41 minutes, turning the chops every 9 minutes and 17 seconds.
Be preheating the oven to 350 degrees toward the end.
Remove the cinnamon, place the pork in a baking pan in the oven, puree the rest in a blender and reduce the liquid until thick.
Serve over bulgur or couscous surrounded with sautéed apples. Pour the reduced liquid over all.
Notes:
I have a 2 qt sauté pan and the pork didn’t nearly fill it. If I’da done 3 chops I’da just covered the chops. Next time I do this, I plan to cook for 8. That way I’ll hafta go buy a 6 qt AllClad sauté pan. (the things one must do for the art…)
I’ve never been too happy with braised pork loin until I did this recipe. I think it has a lot to do with the breeding of pork to be low fat, but unlike beef that gets more tender with extended braising, pork loin just gets tough. The answer came with Michael in Phoenix’s technique with his carnitas. The time in the oven without liquid did the trick.
About the cinnamon: my sister taught me the secret of using cinnamon with meat. If you can say, “ooh cinnamon.”, you’ve used too much. What you want is, “There’s something in there I can’t figure out but it’s sure good.”
About the vinegar: I was torn between using balsamic vinegar (which turned out fine) and my blackberry vinegar (which would also have been fine). I wanted to post this with ingredients that were gonna be easy to find, so i opted for the balsamic. I've tried storebought fruit vinegars and frankly I find them to be cra(backspace) (backspace)(backspace) not of my liking.
If I lived on the same block as Charlie, I woulda knocked on his door and asked (politely) if I could borrow a halfa cuppa calvados. When I do this again, I’ll prolly add some with the cider.
***************************************
Pork Tenderloin with Blackberry/Orange/Dijon Sauce
adapted from a recipe from: Barb-No. Calif :
2 lb pork tenderloin
2 tbs olive oil
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp grated orange peel
2/3 cup orange juice
1 cup crushed fresh cherries
1 cup dry red wine
2 tbs dijon mustard
salt to taste
dash pepper
1 medium bay leaf
1 tbs cornstarch
1 tbs cold water
Brown meat on all sides in the butter; remove meat. In same skillet, cook garlic til lightly browned; add orange peel, cherries, mustard, juice, and wine.
Simmer 1 hour or till tender, turning occasionally. Remove meat to hot platter; slice.
Combine cornstarch and the water; stir into 1 cup of the braising liquid; bring to boiling. Cook and stir 1 to 2 minutes. Drizzle some sauce over meat; pass remainder.
Makes 6-8 servings
serve with herbed oven roasted potatoes and a salad of baby european greens, fresh basil, pistachios and a blackberry vinaigrette
