A Truly Perfect Herb-Crusted Pork Roast

This is a dish I made from Cook's Illustrated new double sized quarterly magazine Entertaining. As the name implies the focus will be on good recipes and menus for those special nights. I'm pretty new to cooking pork but I thought it was about time I gave the other white meat a chance. This recipe does seem to require a food processor though you could potentially get away without one if you are willing to put in the work. Thanks to all the research done for me by the same award winning team at America's Test Kitchen, it came out beautiful, flavorful and next time maybe I will actually make it for company!

Herb-Crusted Pork Roast

1 boneless center-cut pork loin roast ( I couldn't find boneless so I hacked the bones off the bottom and it still came out well) about 2 1/2 to 3 pounds.
Table salt
1/4 cup sugar
1 large slice of white sandwich bread, torn into pieces
1/2 cup of fine grated Parmesan (I used Romano because I like the flavor better tho it is saltier) cheese
1 medium shallot, outer papery layer removed
4 tablespoons plus two teaspoons olive oil
Ground black pepper
1/3 cup packed fresh parsley or basil leaves
2 tablespoons minced fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary leaves (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)
1 large garlic clove, minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 1 1/2 teaspoons)

1) Using a sharp knife lightly score the fat cap in a 1/4 inch width crosshatch pattern. You should have two overlapping diagonal set of rows of nice little groves. Later this is where the herb paste we make will sit. Next, make a pocket into the meat by inserting a knife about a 1/2 inch from the edge and cutting along the middle of the roast. Be careful not to cut to the other side of roast. Dissolve a have cup of salt and the quarter cup of sugar into 2 quarts (8 cups) of water in a large bowl. Place the roast in the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour.

2) While the meat is brining, pulse the shallot in the food processor to mince. Transfer to a medium bowl and clean the food processor bowl very well. Next, add the bread pieces and pulse until you have crumbs, about 15 times; you should have about a cup of bread crumbs.  Transfer crumbs to the same bowl as the shallots and do not clean processor bowl. To the medium bowl with the crumbs and shallots now add 2 tablespoons of the grated cheese, 1 tablespoon of oil, 1/8 teaspoon each of salt and pepper and using a fork toss the mixture to coat the crumbs well. Set aside.

3) To make the herb paste add all the herbs, garlic, remaining grated cheese (about 6 tablespoons), 1/8 teaspoon each of salt and pepper to the food processor and pulse, adding 3 tablespoons of olive oil slowly until paste is fully incorporated and smooth, about 12 pulses.

4) Once roast is done brining, rinse very well and pat dry with paper towels. Spread about 1/4 cup of the herb paste inside the pocket of the roast, season outside of roast with salt (I skipped the salt here because I was using salty cheese) and pepper and then tie the roast with kitchen twine to keep the pocket closed. I didn't have kitchen twine which made this more difficult but I was able to keep the paste from slipping out by using a good pair of tongs to handle the roast in step 6.

5) Preheat the oven to 325 F and line a cookie sheet with foil. Place a wire rack (I used a sturdy cookie cooling rack) on the cookie sheet and set aside.

6) Heat remaining 2 teaspoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add roast, fat side down, browning lightly on all sides about 8-10 minutes. If the fat begins to smoke lower the heat. Once done remove the kitchen twine and place roast on the wire rack.

7) Cover top of the roast evenly with remaining herb paste and then sprinkle bread crumb mixture on top of roast with hands, gently pressing to affix the crumbs firmly.

8) Transfer to oven and cook until thickest part of the roast registers 145F about 50-75 minutes. Remove from oven and let rest 10 minutes. Internal temperature should rise to about 150F.

9) Using a spatula and meat fork carefully transfer to carving board, cut into half inch slices and serve immediately.

Red Bell Pepper Bisque

I love a good soup and this one is both healthy and not much work. The key is to make sure the vegetables are nice and cooked down. Then when the slow cooker goes to work it wont have to be cooked quite as long and will have a deeper flavor.

4 red bell peppers chopped

2 leeks, white part only, chopped

1 onion chopped

1 3/4 cup chicken or vegetable broth

1 1/2 cups 2% Milk

Salt and Pepper

1. Coat skillet with cooking spray and set over medium high heat. Add bell peppers, leeks and onion. Cook 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

2. Place vegetables in slow cooker. Stir in broth and season with salt and pepper. Cover and cook on high 2-4 hours.

3. Puree soup on batches in a food processor or blender. Return soup to cooker. Stir in milk and cook 15 to 20 more minutes, or until heated through.

Chicken Chorizo Stew

Last night I made a Chicken Chorizo Stew. It isn't super healthy due to the chorizo ( I actually used Soy-chorizo; cant tell the difference) but as there isn't that much used for a whole pot, I'll let you decide that for yourself!


2 chicken breasts cut up in to bite size chunks or equivalent amount of chicken tenders
1/2 package of chorizo sausage, chopped up or squeezed out of casing and broken apart
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, smashed
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
3 stalks of celery, chopped
1 (15-ounce) can stewed tomatoes (recommended to get the ones with Mexican spices in it)
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained
2 teaspoons hot sauce
2-3 cups chicken stock (depending on how stew/soup like you want it)
1 (15-ounce) can corn, drained, or two cups frozen
1/4 tbs ground cumin
1/4 tbs ground corriander

Suggested garnishes: sour cream, chopped cilantro, shredded cheese, tortilla chips

Chop chicken into bite-size pieces and season with salt and pepper. Heat a medium soup pot and add extra-virgin olive oil. Add the chicken and chorizo to pot. Lightly brown, 2 minutes, then add cumin, coriander and garlic. Cook another 2 to 3 minutes, then add peppers, onions and celery. Cook 5 minutes until onions are glassy and tender, then stir in tomatoes, black beans, corn, and hot sauce. Add chicken stock and bring stew to a bubble.

Let simmer partially covered for 30 min before serving. Add garnishes if desired.

Faux Beef Pot Pie

Earlier in the week I used my food processor to chop up a whole host of root and winter vegetables. Really almost anything can go in this dish and so far I've used different ingredients each time. The first time I made this I used left over pork tenderloin with vegetable stock and forgot to add the peas I had planned on using. This time Im going with, fennel, celery, carrots, turnip, diced onions and I have left over steak and home made beef stock. This dish could easily omit the meat if you choose. After you have all your vegetables chopped you can preheat your oven to 375F.

If you have leftover rice, bulgur or quinoa now is the time to take it out of the fridge. I had cooked quinoa the other day in vegetable stock for extra flavor. I added some olive oil and a half cup of shredded cheese to about two cups of cooked quinoa. I choose to go with mozzarella as I think it will compliment the flavor of the beef in the dish better but any cheese would do. Set aside the toping mixture for now.

If you are starting with raw meat, salt and pepper it and brown on all sides in a frying pan. Once cooked most of the way remove the meat to a side plate and drain off all but a tablespoon of fat or add enough olive oil (a must if skipping the meat) to make a tablespoon. Next add the hard root vegetables to the same frying pan. I like to sauté just long enough to take the hardness out of the vegetables, without getting anywhere near mushy, as once this dish is assembled it will be cooked another 30 min anyway. Next I add in about 3 tablespoons of flour (I used whole wheat) and cook for about 30 seconds. Add in peas, or less hardy vegetables like corn if using, and 2 cups of broth along with dried thyme and sage or rosemary and stir, cooking for another 2 minutes or until partially reduced. My broth is home made and therefore entirely devoid of salt so at this stage I like to add a good bit of sea salt to help bring out the flavor of the stock and the vegetables. After reduced a bit  add the meat back in to the frying pan.

Next I add in 3 tablespoons of plain fat free yogurt to the pan, stirring in well. You can use low fat Greek style which has a nice thickness and tangy taste or you can go with regular plain fat free as I have here. I sometimes find I need to add more yogurt if I use regular plain and more stock if I use the Greek style. Cook for a few minutes until the dish has thickened and then remove from heat. The liquid should look a bit like the kind of gravy you expect to find in pot pie but a bit thinner.

Transfer the contents of the frying pan to a casserole dish. Top with quinoa/cheese mixture evenly and bake at 375F for about 30 minutes or until top has browned. Once done let it cool for about 5 minutes and then dig in!

Home Made Cinnamon Buns

Cinnamon Buns!

I decided to deviate from a healthy regime by making these, a recipe from America's Test Kitchen.  This picture is post baking pre-frosting but you get the idea. I did something of a poor job making them as the butter was too soft when I mixed it in. I also had the rack too low in the oven so the bottoms are a bit burnt. They still turned out pretty good and I'll attempt another (half batch this time) in the near future.

Minestrone with Quinoa

Traditional minestrone soup has vegetables in a tomato based soup with pasta and kidney beans. The recipe I found called for something like two cups of chopped plum tomatoes, and water, as the base. In the past, I have found that leaving the tomato peels in can make the dish a bit bitter. I like using diced or stewed tomatoes but the third ingredient on the can seems to always be high fructose corn syrup! I managed to find a can of organic diced tomatoes that only actually contains tomatoes - imagine that! I used that and water instead of trying to dice a ton of plum tomatoes in my variation below.


To a soup pot add some olive oil, minced garlic, chopped fresh thyme, chopped fennel, a little bit of crushed fennel seeds, diced red onion, chopped celery, a little bit of chopped leek and two bay leaves. Stir frequently over medium heat for about 8 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.

Add a can of organic diced tomatoes, juice and all, along with a can of your favorite beans, rinsed. I went with a can of tri-blend of black, pinto and kidney beans. Add about 2 cups of water to get actual soup consistency:

Next add about 1/3 cup quinoa and mix in well. I use quinoa as a rice substitute as it has pretty great texture and tons of fiber by comparison. I don't particularly like the pasta usually found in minestrone, so when I found a recipe that used quinoa instead I jumped on it. Quinoa doesn't look like much, but it does absorb as much water as rice would, so don't go over board!

Set the burner to high to get it all to boil and then reduce heat and let simmer for 15-20 minutes. Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper, remove the bay leaves and the soup is ready to be served!

How I love my food processor !

I found myself making burgers this weekend and craving a home made slaw that wasn't too heavy with creamy ingredients. After a quick search I found a recipe for an Edamame Slaw. 

Out came the food processor!

It made quick work of shredding cabbage, carrots, yellow bell pepper and celery. In another bowl I mixed honey with apple cider vinegar and lots of pepper. These went on my vegetables (along with some thawed shelled Edemame) and after a little time in the fridge I had what I was looking for:

While I had the machine out I made quick work of a few other vegetables I plan on using in a "Faux Pot Pie" - a variation on a recipe I found in Clean Eating Magazine. Turnip, leeks, carrots, fennel and celery all went into a plastic bag for later in the week. I would have done onion as well but I tend to buy chopped frozen onion now to save time on all my dishes. 

Half the fennel got saved for another dish; a variation on Minestrone which Ill get to next!