new year, new flavors

 I invited my son and daughter-in-law to dinner last weekend. After scanning the local food ads, I noticed Whole Foods had boneless pork loin on sale. Since I’m a food blogger, I’m always in search for new recipes that I hope my family and my readers will like. I found an interesting recipe at New York Times Cooking by Mark Bittman. Mr. Bittman prepared Apple-Stuffed Pork Loin, with Coriander, Cumin and Cinnamon. Apples and pork are a natural go together, but the combination of spices seemed interesting. Cumin and cinnamon have warm flavors and coriander slightly sweet.
 
I read the comments from other readers and this recipe received great reviews. I also saw a great tip for preparing the pork. Instead of making a hole in the center of the meat with a knife and handle long wooden spoon, it was suggested that butterflying the meat is a better option; I couldn’t agree more. Also letting the meat cook until it reaches 135° is more ideal,  I let mine go a bit too long and instead of apple juice for basting I used Delicious Orchards Apple Cider.

​For the recipe you’ll need butter, 2 apples, an onion, coriander, cumin, cinnamon, ground ginger, paprika, ground turmeric, salt, pepper, boneless pork loin and apple juice.
 
The apples, onions and seasonings are cooked prior to being stuffed into the pork. This step will take about 15-20 minutes. When the mixture is done, it’s placed on the butterflied meat, closed and tied with butcher twine. When finished roasting, the meat is removed from the pan, apple juice is added and reduced over two burners on medium-high heat on the stove top.
 
Everyone thoroughly enjoyed this dish! The stuffing gave the meat a delicious flavor and the pan sauce reinforced the spices. I served it alongside garlic mashed potatoes and roasted broccoli.
 
Earlier in the week the weather was overcast, a perfect day to make soup. I’ve had an autographed copy of Arthur Schwartz’s book “Soup Suppers” since 1997. The book contains two version of Minestrone soup, the classic, and another version using Swiss Chard; I chose the latter.
 
For the recipe, you’ll need dried cannellini beans, extra-virgin olive oil, red onions, carrots, celery, new potatoes, garlic cloves, chicken broth, freshly ground pepper, Parmesan rind or piece of prosciutto rind (optional), green or red Swiss chard, small pasta. For my preparation I used Swanson brand chicken stock, a Parmesan rind and also some finely chopped pancetta that I had left from another recipe.
 
It does take a bit of planning to prepare the soup due to the dried beans. However, they are soaked overnight and cooked the next day approximately 30 minutes or longer depending on the bean.
 
If you’re using boxed stock, most of the work is in the preparation of the vegetables. Once that is done, it’s a brief sauté of the vegetables before the broth, pepper, cheese and prosciutto rind are added to the pot. The soup simmers for 1-1/2 hours. I had a partial box of penne pasta left on the shelf, so despite its rather large size, I used that in the soup.
 
The night I served the soup, as my  husband and I had gone to lunch earlier in the day. We weren’t that hungry so the soup became our light supper for the night. The soup came out perfectly. There was a hint of Parmesan in the broth, a bit of texture from the diced pancetta and the large size pasta really gave it a “soup supper” feel. The combination of vegetables made for a hearty soup. We have enough soup left to enjoy for a few more times. 

---

Apple-Stuffed Pork Loin with Coriander, Cumin and Cinnamon
New York Times Cooking/By Mark Bittman
 
YIELD: 6 to 8 servings
TIME: 1 hour or longer
 
INGREDIENTS
4 tablespoons butter
2 medium apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
1 large onion, chopped
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
1 boneless pork loin roast, 2 to 3 pounds
1 cup apple juice for basting, or more if needed
 
PREPARATION

1. Heat oven to 450. Put 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. When it starts to foam, add the apples, onion and all the spices, along with some salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples and onion are soft, 10 to 15 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, wriggle a thin, sharp knife into each end of the meat, making a kind of pilot hole. Then use the handle of a long wooden spoon to force a hole all the way through the loin. Wriggle the spoon to make the hole as wide as you can. Stuff the apple and onion mixture into the roast from each end, all the way to the center. Sprinkle the roast with salt and pepper.
3. Roast on a rack in a large roasting pan for 15 minutes, then lower the heat to 325. Continue to roast, basting with apple juice about every 15 minutes or so. If the liquid accumulates on the bottom of the pan, use it to baste; if not, add more juice.
4. Start checking the roast after 45 minutes of total cooking time (large roasts can take up to 1.5 hours). When it's done, an instant-read thermometer will register 145. Remove the roast and set it on a platter.
5. Put the roasting pan on the stove over one or two burners on medium-high heat. If there is a lot of liquid, reduce it to about .75 cup, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan; if the pan is dry, add 1 cup of apple juice and follow the same process. When the sauce has reduced some, stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons butter if you like. Spoon the sauce over the roast, slice and serve.

apple-stuffed_pork_lion_with_coriander_cumin_and_cinnamon.pdf
File Size:	41 kb
File Type:	pdf

Download File

---

---

​Minestrone with Swiss Chard
Soup Suppers  by Arthur Schwartz
© 1994 Harper Collins
 
½ pound dried cannellini or other large white beans, such as soldier beans, rinsed and picked over, soaked overnight in water cover by several inches
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 large red onions, peeled, halved and sliced ¼-inch thick (about 3 cups)
4 medium carrots, cubed (about 2 cups)
2 large celery ribs, sliced ½-inch thick (about 1-1/4 cups)
1-pound unpeeled new potatoes, cubed (about 2 cups)
3 large garlic cloves, crushed
2 quarts chicken broth
½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Parmesan rind or a piece of prosciutto rind (optional)*
1-pound green or red Swiss chard, cut into ½-inch shreds, stems and all
½ pound small macaroni, cooked (2-1/2 cups uncooked, 4 cups, cooked)
Grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
 

1. Drain the soaked beans and place them in a pot of fresh cold water just to cover. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, stirring occasionally, until tender. This could be as short a time as 30 minutes or as long as an hour. Taste along the way to catch them as soon as they become tender.
2. In a 6- to 8-quart pot, combine the olive oil and onions over medium-low heat. Let the onions cook, tossing occasionally, while you prepare the carrots, celery and potatoes in that order. Add each to the pot as it is ready and toss well to coat with oil.
3. Stir in the garlic into the vegetables; sauté until you can smell it, about a minute.
4. Add the broth, pepper and cheese rind or prosciutto rind, if using one of them. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat so that soup simmers gently, partially covered, for about

1-1/2 hours. Stir occasionally.

1. Stir in the Swiss chard and the cooked beans. Increase the heat and bring to a rolling boil. Reduce the heat again and simmer steadily, partially covered, another 10 minutes.
2. Serve the soup over macaroni with grated cheese on the side.

 
*Donna Note – I used a 4 ounce package of diced pancetta

minestrone_with_swiss_chard.pdf
File Size:	47 kb
File Type:	pdf

Download File

---