Tex Mex Chile Lime Rice Bowls

My nephew moved away this week. My fun foodie nephew Jeremy who you all have met in a few posts over the years, as a guest chef, and when we visited the World Food Festival. I'm both sad and a little envious at the same time. Sad, because Jeremy and I shared a special bond with our interest in food and cooking and the Transformers, and envious because his path of life has led him to The Lonestar State, Texas, the first state I moved to as a young adult. My first big move away from home. The biggest city I had ever lived in at the time. The state where I would teach myself to master crepes, pate choux, brining a turkey and won my first cooking competition.

Jeremy and I had a great chat the day before he left. I'm proud of all of my nephews but especially proud of Jeremy for taking control of his destiny and hitting the road for new adventures. How many of us toil away day after day and yet wish we had to chance to do the same thing? The company he works for offered a transfer to Texas and he embraced the opportunity. He shared regular updates from the road, where they were, and also what they were eating. The first day of travel got him all the way to Norman, Oklahoma where they stopped for some sleep and some kickass ramen. His first meal in the Lonestar State was, what else? Barbeque! The Goat (my secret nickname for Jeremy) had his first Texas barbeque from Dickey's Barbeque Pit in San Antonio and the picture looks like he had some pretty tasty grub.

The next day meant more miles to drive and more sights to see. He shared pics of the Texas Motor Speedway, the Dallas skyline, which made me horribly homesick for Fort Worth. Jeremy is headed for San Antonio, where I have never been, so I'm super excited to see pictures of where he lives and where he hangs out. Texas is a fantastic place for a foodie to live. Austin is widely considered the Food Truck Capital of the World. Texas is also a huge beef producing state with cattle ranches dotting the landscape outside of the cities. Then you have Texas style barbeque which is HUGE, and Tex Mex everything. I'm a big fan of Tex Mex flavors and I think this regional cuisine has really evolved over the years.

REALLY better- and not salty either. My favorite brand.

Tex Mex is one of those delicious fusions of cuisines- southwestern American and Mexican. It's been around for well over a century and takes cues from Mexican, American and Spanish dishes to create a whole new world of flavors. Texas chili, street tacos, giant burritos and fajitas are just a few of the dishes included in Tex Mex cooking. Lots of cilantro is used and that's definitely an acquired taste for some people. Things can get pretty cheesy too, and sometimes a little too cheesy, so for our recipe today we are taking the focus away from the cheese and making some Iowa pork the star.

I started with a pork loin roast and cut it into cubes.

I'm taking my newest Tex Mex dish in line with another new trend- the rice bowl. Pinterest is loaded with rice bowl recipes and they are perfect for lunch bowls and meal prep days. I am braising tender chunks of pork loin with garlic and chili spices, combining with zesty lime and serving with rice and all kinds of tasty and healthy toppings that add lots of flavor and texture but not a lot of extra calories- avocado, chopped tomatoes, onion, whatever you like. I'm going to go with some pan-roasted corn kernels, avocado, chopped tomatoes and onion. I might add cheese.....but you really don't need it.

Chile Lime Pork Rice Bowls

1 boneless pork roast, about 2 lb.
6 cloves garlic
salt and pepper
2 cups chicken broth
1 lime
2 bunches scallions, sliced
1-2 tablespoons chili powder, to taste
oil
cooked rice for serving
toppings: avocado, chopped red onion, chopped tomatoes, cheese, sour cream, salsa or pico

Heat oven to 325 degrees.

Cut the pork roast into one inch cubes and season well with salt and pepper. Set aside for now.

Mince the garlic cloves. Zest the entire lime and juice. Slice the scallions. Set aside.

Heat a couple tablespoons of oil in a heavy Dutch oven. Add the pork cubes in small batches and brown on all sides. Remove to a plate and continue until all pork is browned, adding more oil if needed. Remove last of the pork and set aside.

Add the garlic to the pot and cook, stirring for a minute or two until softened. Stir in 1 tablespoon of the chili powder and continue cooking one minute until fragrant. Add the chicken stock to the pot and bring to boil, stirring to bring up the stuck on bits at the bottom. Return the pork and any juices that have accumulated on the plate. Stir in the lime juice, half the scallions and zest. I threw in the squeezed lime halves as well, and removed them after cooking. Cover and place in the oven. Braise for 2 hours until very tender. You can also cook this on the stovetop at very low simmer.

Prepare the rice and other toppings while the pork is braising. Slice avocados, coarsely chop cilantro, chop red onions and tomatoes. Shred some good cheddar or Mexican cheese. 

Remove the pork from the oven. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Thicken the sauce with a cornstarch slurry (1 Tb cornstarch and 1 Tb water).

Serve the meat over rice in bowls with the toppings of your choice.

We had our pork with brown rice, pan-roasted Iowa sweet corn that I had frozen in the summer, avocado, tomato, sliced scallions and just a little bit of shredded cheese. You can customize your rice bowl with the toppings you like. The pork was so tender and flavorful. Even The Chef raved about it and threatened to steal the recipe! 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Sheet Pan Dinners- No Recipe Cooking

The idea of the sheet pan dinner is taking social media by storm. Foodie bloggers are raving about them, Pinterest is positively bursting with pins featuring sheet pan creations, and a quick scroll on your Facebook feed, I'll bet anything you will see at least one or two posts about them. They are such a great idea- totally homemade fast food that isn't junky and fried. Besides saving time, they save on cleanup too- you use one sheet pan. Period. Maybe a bowl, a knife and a cutting board. No stacks of pots and pans to wash after dinner? Sign me up!

Today we're going to look at the sheet pan dinner phenomenon and get some great ideas together. A few weeks ago The Chef and I were coming home after a short trip to Colorado. We arrived home late in the evening, road weary and hungry. Now, every kind of fast food you can think of is within a three block radius of our house- hamburgers, tacos, fish, fried chicken, coneys. We could have taken the lazy way out and just hit the drive thru (believe me, we're not health nuts and we DO sometimes succumb to the temptation) but that's not what we were wanting. Even though we hadn't been home for several days we still had some food in the house, easily the makings for a quick and easy sheet pan dinner.

Grabbing my big stainless steel mixing bowl I grabbed a few ingredients- a kielbasa, a couple potatoes, an onion, a couple stalks of broccoli and a cauliflower that needed to be used up very soon. All I had to do was scrub the potatoes- I never peel unless I'm making mashed, chunk the onion and potatoes, cut up the broccoli and cauliflower- dump everything in the giant mixing bowl. Drizzle some olive oil over everything, added salt, pepper, some herbs and a couple big tablespoons of grainy mustard- tossed it all together to coat everything evenly and spread it out on a sheet pan. 

Into the oven at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes and voila- dinner is served. So easy and minimal prep. This particular dish had a great kick from the mustard and the veggies had that lovely roasted thing going on that I love so much- the mix of texture, bits of char, still just enough crunch.

A few days later I was ready to do it again. Long days at work and nights I just didn't feel like dealing with cooking.....or dishes. This time I managed to scrounge up a pork tenderloin, a couple potatoes, a bunch of fresh asparagus, onion and a box of fresh mushrooms. I cut the pork into bite size cubes and tossed with olive oil and fresh herbs. It was delicious!!

Wanna know the best part? If you line that sheet pan with some heavy duty foil you don't even have to wash that! 

Need some ideas for your own super easy sheet pan dinner? For speed, always use a lean meat that you can cube into bite sized pieces. Chicken and pork work great. Sliced sausages are great too- stick with fully cooked sausage. There are some recipes around using bone-in chicken pieces but they don't cook in 30 minutes. Try one if you find one though! Any vegetable works great too. Sweet potatoes, regular potatoes- I love baby potatoes made this way. Carrots, beets, broccoli, just use your imagination.

A recent trip to Trader Joe's inspired yet another sheet pan dinner. They have such beautiful produce there I could not resist grabbing some haricots verts and rainbow baby carrots to make a fun and colorful weeknight dinner. 

Again, in the big mixing bowl I combined the beans, and the carrots, after cutting them in half lengthwise, about 4 cloves of chopped garlic, plenty of olive oil and seasonings, salt and pepper. 

In another small bowl I tossed the cubed pork tenderloin with olive oil, more chopped garlic and citrus barbeque meat rub. 

Spread the vegetables onto the sheet pan and add the meat to the top.

Again, into a 400 degree oven and about 30 minutes later- the carrots are perfectly tender, the beans still slightly crispy, the garlic sweetens and the pork was tender and juicy. So delicious.

I hope you give these ideas a try. You won't believe how easy it is to get a healthy and delicious dinner going with a minimum of fuss.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

The Littles Come to Visit and Braised Saucy Pork Chops

It's Gramma Day at my house! Actually, it's Slumber Party at Gramma's House today and I'm pretty excited about it. When The Littles, Lucas and Hayla, my adorable youngest grandchildren, who are 6 and 8 respectively, come to visit we know we will be watching lots of kid friendly movies, coloring, and snacking. The kids brought a big stack of movies and I had planned some fun projects for coloring to keep the kids busy.

We made music videos, with the kids playing guitar and singing a song of their choice. Hayla performed a pretty fantastic rendition of Zombie by The Cranberries. I never knew she knew this song! Lucas, who announced "I'm horrible at making sounds" gave his heart and soul in a song that was written by him apparently, a hybrid mix of thrash metal and scratch DJ. Hayla also took a turn as a percussionist, utilizing a single cymbal and a variety of dishes and table surfaces as drums. We watched a movie about Barbie becoming a musketeer and Hocus Pocus, which seemed oddly out of place in February, but fun nonetheless, and munched on popcorn snacks.

While the kids were busy watching movies, I got dinner started. Pork is on the menu tonight and I just happened to get a great deal on boneless pork chops. Iowa is a top notch pork producing state and we always have great availability, awesome options for pork cuts and terrific prices. Unlike the pork of my childhood, which was usually cooked to death and dry, modern pork is tender and juicy and cooks like a dream. Standing at the meat counter yesterday the toughest decision I had to make was bone in or boneless. Now, every good cook will swear that bone in is the way to go. The bones contribute tons of flavor to whatever dish you're cooking. Bones look good on the plate too. Of course, on the other hand, boneless chops tend to cook a little quicker and are just are attractive looking in your finished dish.  It's really a preference- if I am cooking something that requires long slow cooking I always go with bone in, and something that cooks in less than an hour, boneless.

Since I was working with pork I opted to use another Sinful Food olive oil- this time, the Wild Sage. Sage is a natural partner for pork and this infused oil is so flavorful and aromatic. I used the oil to saute the vegetables and sear the chops, and added a teaspoon of crushed dried sage leaves as well for a full and warm sage flavor.

To get your Sinful Food oils and Signature Seasoning, click HERE.

Braised Saucy Pork Chops

6 pork chops

Sinful Food Signature Seasoning

Sinful Food Garlic olive oil

1 small onion

4 cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon crushed dried sage leaves

8 oz package mushrooms

1 can golden mushroom condensed soup

1 packet pork gravy mix

1/2 cup dry white wine

fresh parsley

Finely chop the onion, mince the garlic, trim stems and slice mushrooms; set aside.

Season the pork chops with the Signature Seasoning. Heat a couple tablespoons garlic olive oil over medium high heat in braiser or Dutch oven. Brown the chops on each side, in batches if necessary. Remove to plate. Add additional oil to pot if needed. Reduce heat to medium. Add the onion; cook and stir until softened, sprinkling with Signature Seasoning. 

Add the mushrooms; cook and stir until browned. Add garlic and crumbled sage leaves and cook for one minute.

Deglaze the pot with the wine. Stir in the soup and about 1/2 cup water and return the pork chops to the pot. Cover tightly and braise until the chops are tender, about 30-45 minutes, or pop the Dutch oven into a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes.

When the chops are done, remove from pot with vegetables.  In a small bowl, mix the gravy packet with a couple tablespoons of water. Stir into the sauce in the pot. Cook and stir until thickened. Return the chops and vegetables; heat through.

Serve over buttered noodles, mashed potatoes or polenta, sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley.

Normally The Chef moans and groans when I force him to eat polenta. He has not yet embraced it the same way I have. This time, however, he really liked the polenta with the rich and mushroomy pork gravy. He even had seconds. I'll get him on board sooner or later!

Sunday we had a very exciting day! We got up early and had breakfast then made some very colorful Easter Eggs to hang in the windows at their house. When it got closer to lunch time we got a call from my daughter Laurie who invited us to brunch at Malo, our favorite Latin restaurant. Brunch with the kids was fun. They made good choices from the buffet and ate all their food. They also enjoyed some fruit and cookies dipped in the chocolate fountain. The Littles had chocolate beards and mustaches! We had a great weekend at Gramma's house. I can't wait to do it again.

Disclosure of Material Connection: This is a "sponsored post." As a Brand Ambassador, the company who sponsored it compensated me via a cash payment, gift or something of value. Regardless,  I only recommend products or services I believe are of good quality and safe. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Reinventing a Classic- Pork a L'Orange

Well I don't think I have to clarify to anyone that I absolutely love pork. After all, I am a long-time Iowa girl and I often choose pork as my preferred protein when creating new recipes. What's not to love about pork- it's lean, delicious and juicy, and right now one of the most affordable meats on the market. A far cry from the days of pork chops fried to the point of old shoe leather, today's pork is nearly foolproof. It's no wonder I've taken such an interest in adapting classic vintage recipes to a new pork twist. Take this classic French dish, A L'Orange, the timeless roasted duck with orange sauce. Citrus goes so perfect with pork, I'm sure you will love this dish as much as I do.

Widely known as a classic French dish, Duck a L'Orange has a foggy history. Many Italians claim it was stolen from them. Asian cooks all have their own interpretation of the dish as well, with warm spices. Food historians claim the dish may date back thousands of years to regions of the Middle East, where pairing citrus fruits with fatty meats like duck was quite common. Regardless of where and when it was first created, it enjoyed a huge surge in popularity in the 1960s and 1970s in Europe and the United States. I can remember my dad, the original seventies-era foodie, roasting duck on Christmas Day, slowly rendering out all that lovely fat, crisping the skin, and then lovingly basting on the orange juice mixture until the duck was a deep golden brown and more fragrant than any other dish I ever remember him cooking. Growing up in a family of Minnesota hunters and anglers, wild duck and pheasant were more often than not part of the holiday menu and duck was without a doubt my favorite.

As an adult I've grown quite attached to traditional French recipes. Of course, that does not mean that I am going to prepare them "by the book"- I am way too much of a rebel for that! So I set about perfecting the orange sauce so that it accompanies pork in just as a delicious a fashion as the original duck, and comes together quickly with readily available ingredients and I think I've hit it with this recipe. I pored over numerous recipes before coming up with what I think is the best adaptation, and because I used so many recipes for reference, I honestly can't claim this as "mine" except for the super simple sauce. After all, roast pork is a kitchen standard every cook should master.

Make this recipe on a heavy baking sheet with a rim. If you use a large sheet you can make a one-pan dinner, which is a pretty popular trend right now- sheet pan suppers.

Pork A L'Orange

1 boneless pork tenderloin roast, 2-3 lb
salt, pepper, meat seasoning of choice
1/2 cup orange marmalade
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
cooking oil
baby potatoes, scrubbed
1 lb haricots vert, or fresh green beans, trimmed

Heat the oven to 375 degrees.

Use a heavy rimmed baking sheet. Spread a couple tablespoons of oil in the baking sheet. Pat the roast dry with paper towels. Season well with salt and pepper or your favorite meat seasoning or rub. I used both Montreal Steak Seasoning and Feiny's Everything Rub. Place the roast on the baking sheet. Combine the marmalade, lemon juice and mustard. Spoon over the roast.

Add the baby potatoes to the baking sheet, rolling around in the oil to coat the potatoes. Sprinkle with additional seasoning. Roast for 30 minutes.

On a second baking sheet, spread another tablespoon or so of oil. Add the haricots vert and toss in the oil. Sprinkle liberally with the seasoning. Place in the oven with the potatoes and pork. Roast until the meat registers 145 degrees. This should be 15-30 minutes more. Check the temp of the meat at 15 minutes. Remove from oven, place the meat on a board and tent with foil. Allow the meat to rest ten minutes. Slice the meat on the diagonal and serve with roasted potatoes and beans, drizzle with pan juices if desired. Sprinkle with freshly chopped herbs, such as thyme or parsley, if you like. 

Rest your roast! You'll keep the juice in the meat and off
your board

Right now pork is such an affordable option and this recipe really dresses up what can sometimes be a boring cut of meat. It's elegant enough for dinner guests or date night, and quick enough for a weeknight dinner. No need for a fancy sauce either- this roast makes its own with the pan juices and the orange marmalade. The juices melt the kinda-burned spots of the marmalade on the pan and create a rich caramelly drizzle that's really really good stuff.

Even the leftovers look delicious. Drizzle any leftovers
with a little of those caramelly pan juices.

The best time for making a roast is when it's cold and nasty outside. If I described the forecast for Des Moines right now you would be just as disgusted as me- snow and lots of it. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE winter, just not two feet of it. I might as well crank up the oven and throw in a pork roast, whip up some orange sauce, roast some baby potatoes and haricots vert and daydream about having lunch on a sunny day in a Parisian cafe. Sure beats the view out my window- swirling piles of snow.

Bacon Isn't Going Away Anytime Soon

I know I said bacon is so last year. It kind of is, but it's still delicious, and we're all still gobbling it up by the ton every year. How well do you know your bacon facts? 

The average slice of bacon is 1/16 of an inch thick, and about 16-20 slices per pound. This sliced bacon, which I have never seen, is 1/32 of an inch, and thick sliced measures up at 1/8 of an inch, which yields 10 to 14 slices per pound. Two slices of regular bacon, in spite of appearing to be mostly fat, seem pretty diet-friendly at 73 calories. In the United States over 60% of restaurants have bacon on the menu. At the breakfast table, bacon clobbers the other breakfast meat, beating out ham and sausage and making up nearly 50% of meat eaten at breakfast! A survey of U.S. households revealed over 80%of households purchased bacon in 2013 and 2014. The average American eats about 18 pounds of bacon every year. **

That's hard to imagine. I'd like to meet these "average Americans"- I certainly am nowhere near 18 lbs. of bacon! 

As you know, I got to visit a modern pork producing farm earlier this summer and got to meet the baby bacons literally at the moment they were entering the world. It's amazing that on one farm those baby piglets will grown up, be weaned, and move in graduating barns as they grow up, until they reach market size and....gulp.......go off to the pork plants. I'd rather not dwell on that part, because pork is just so delicious, and I am so thankful to get to see how invested the farmers and producers are in the animals' welfare that it does give me some level of comfort. 

Once we have passed the unpleasant stage of meat production, we have, well, meat. In this case pork, and if it's going to become delicious bacon it's got to be cured and smoked. A lot of folks have been busy curing their own bacon at home in recent years, perfecting their techniques, the cure mixtures, smoking temps, even the cut of meat can be a bit off the track. My friend Ross, from STATE, often uses part of a pork butt to make home cured bacon instead of belly. This must make one of the leanest bacons imaginable. Another friend, Marty, from Ohio, goes the more traditional route using pork belly. He shares his technique and recipe HERE.

Check out Marty's bacon- perfectly hand sliced even!

I noticed in Marty's directions he mentioned smoking to an internal temp of 150 degrees by smoking at 200 degrees. Amazingly that was something my friend George, a professional chef and master of all things food, mentioned I asked him about curing your own bacon. He balked at the recommendation but didn't say what temps he shoots for when curing and smoking meat. Trade secrets and all, you know? Dan, from Waterloo, says he warm smokes bacon and even does a vegan bacon. You might remember Dan- he is the pit master at Phat Kat Barbeque and is a barbeque judge and has shared food stories with us before. 

All this bacon talk has got my mind whirling. I happen to have some bacon, not a lot, but enough to do something with....... and some bone-in country style ribs, a cast iron skillet, and untold numbers of herbs, spices, sauces and condiments around I bet I can whip something up really quick- like this Recipe Free Dinner.

Easy to do- season the bone-in pork country style ribs with salt, pepper, whatever meat rub you like and lay two slices of bacon on each one, lengthwise, securing with toothpicks. Heat that cast iron skillet til it's nice and hot, then place those ribs in there, bacon side down, and let them cook til the bacon is starting to brown. Flip em over, pop the skillet in a hot oven to finish (145 degrees for perfect juicy pork). Sauce them if you like, and serve.

We can't be totally recipe free however, so I am going to share a recipe that was shared with me, and since we're on the bacon topic- well, you just need to try this. Bacon jam. Yep. Jam. You know I am always checking out the latest unique and artsy fartsy condiments, and when a friend was telling me about this one- I became hooked. I have no idea where the original recipe came from- she passed it on to me and I'm passing it on to you guys. I can see millions of possibilities for using this stuff to make amazing dishes. I plan on keeping my freezer stocked from now on. Let's make some!

Bacon Jam

3 lb bacon, cut into pieces

4 large sweet onions, chopped

8 cloves garlic, minced

1 1/2 cups leftover strong coffee

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 cup cider vinegar

1/2 cup maple syrup

1 teaspoon black pepper

In a heavy Dutch oven cook the bacon over medium low heat, in three batches, until browned and crispy; removing each batch and draining off the fat in between. Reserve 2 tablespoons fat from last batch.

Return Dutch oven to medium heat and add the onions. Cook, stirring often, until softened but not brown. Add the garlic and cook another couple minutes. Add all ingredients except the bacon. Bring to a boil; boil for 2 minutes.

Add the bacon and stir well. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 2 to 3 hours, stirring occasionally, until mixture is thick, sticky and syrupy. Spoon into freezer jars and store in the fridge, or freezer for long term storage.

Now for those of you who are curious about making your own home cured bacon, you can check out Marty's recipe by clicking that link above. I did a little searching online and found all kinds of recipes and smoking styles and cure recipes. I'm sure you'll find one you like or create your own!

**National Pork Board

No Recipe Cooking- I Have Four Pork Chops. Now What?

Lord knows I have been there. Shopping at the teeny small town grocery store for the last four years I have seen the same cuts of meat over and over and over and over and over and over and..... until I just can't stand to look at another package of hamburger, chicken breast, pot roast. Pork chops. But hey, I love pork chops, and I just so happen to have a freezer full right now. Two whole boneless pork loins were gifted to me and after butchering them myself and cutting them into whatever sizes and cuts I wanted I ended up with a nice stash of meat, including a few pork chops.

So tonight I am looking at four boneless pork chops. What am I going to make with these guys that is easy, creative, and uses what I have on hand so I don't need to go yet again to the teeny tiny grocery store and wander the seven aisles wishing it was a mega-city-supermarket? I've got a lot of basics in the pantry so what's it going to be? Stir fry? Dragon noodles? Baked with barbeque sauce? Grilled? Mushroom sauce? Hmmmmm.

I also happen to have a humongous bag of dinner rolls. The plan is to divide up into packs of four and freeze, but tonight they are fresh and just waiting to be used. My mind suddenly gets focused.....on using those rolls......on finding the meat mallet.......and panko........and heat.......and I have one egg left...... I'm golden!

My brain comes up with Spicy Tenderloin Sliders and in minutes they are underway. Let's go through it.

I didn't need many ingredients for this- my pork chops, some panko, an egg, a dinner roll for each chop and some cooking oil. I happened to have Habanero Onion Panko from FireFood, and you really ought to get some and play with it in the kitchen- amazing stuff and a great way to get used to hotter peppers without scalding your lower jaw off. The habanero in the panko brings a nice kick of heat that goes away really quickly. It's not scalding like eating a pepper- not at all. You can use plain panko if you prefer, or regular breadcrumbs or even mix a little habanero panko with plain to ease the heat- totally up to you. You'll need a cup or so of crumbs.

Everything in their line of spicy foods is delicious!!

It took me a while to find the meat mallet in my Drawer of Doom in the kitchen- aka the utensil drawer. I almost abandoned this idea but I finally found it. Trim your chops of excess fat and place between layers of heavy plastic wrap. Pound them out so they're between a quarter and a half an inch thick. No need to make them HUGE. These are sliders and I like my tenderloin to have some bite to it. Season with salt and pepper or a meat rub/seasoning you like, dip in the egg (which you have beaten in a shallow bowl) then coat with the panko, really pressing it in the meat. Place on a baking sheet that has a little oil spread around in there. You could use cooking spray but I like the crunchy texture the oil gives- kind of like frying even though we're not.

Pop them in the oven at 425 degrees for 35 minutes and they will be a perfect crispy golden brown when they come out, I promise. Split a couple dinner rolls per person and top each with a chop and the condiments of your choice- I went classic with onions, mustard and sliced pickle. Go with easy sides like chips or a salad you grabbed at the deli and dinner is on the table in a flash. No recipe !!!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Mom's Pork Roast, My Style

It's hotter than heck outside and I finished "butchering" my whole pork loins the other night and left out something in the fridge to cook, freezing the rest- a roast. What in the world was I thinking? It's summer in Iowa and I am going to make a roast...... 

I chose home canned green beans as the veggie.

My mom made roasts all year long, regardless of the temperature or season. Her cooking style was very utilitarian and "unfancy" and filled hungry tummies. I suppose that's because of her life in Germany and the very limited means of her parents and growing up in post-war Weisbaden. My parents were a unique blend of simple and extravagant. My dad was the foodie type and loved cooking and experimenting, while my mom cooked simple meals- lots of roasted meats, potatoes or noodles and a vegetable. My mom's pot roast was epic. She would sear it off in her black enameled roasting pan, and I swear she only knew how to use the highest temperature setting. After searing the meat she'd do the same with an onion, and it would be at least half very very browned, nearly charred. Those onions had so much flavor in spite of being a hair away from burned. Gravy always accompanied Mom's roast and it was a toss up if we'd be having potatoes, German potato balls, or noodles. My sister and I would be in the living room watching Gilligan's Island or I Dream of Jeannie in an oniony scented smoky haze while Mom busied herself in the kitchen. I love that smell to this day. Since I have these beautiful whole pork loins and cut them into pieces appropriate for The Chef and myself, a pork roast seems to be a natural choice. The roast I am making today will be based on Mom's style of cooking with some updates  of my own like using fennel and herbs. Mom never used anything green in food unless she was making spaghetti. 

Let's get started on the roast. You will need:

1 boneless pork loin roast 2-3 lb
1 large onion
1 or 2 bulbs fennel 
6 cloves fresh garlic
salt and pepper
cooking oil
2 cups chicken stock*
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon crushed dried sage
1 teaspoon crushed dried thyme
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
cornstarch for thickening

Heat a Dutch oven or roasting pan over medium high heat. 

Chop the onion into large chunks. Slice the fennel bulb, reserving the stalks and fronds for later. Finely mince the garlic.

Add a couple tablespoons of oil to the pot. Add the roast, season with salt and pepper. Sear the meat on all sides until nicely browned. 

Remove to a plate. Add the onions to the pot, adding a touch more oil if needed. Allow the onions to cook undisturbed for several minutes so they get very browned and caramelized. 

Toss around and add the fennel. Cook until the fennel is also lightly caramelized. Add the garlic and cook for about a minute but don't let the garlic brown. Add the stock and one cup water and use a wooden spoon to scrape up the crusty bits from the bottom of the pot. Return the meat to the pot, and add the herbs except the parsley. Cover and place in a 300 degree oven and ignore for a good 3 or 4 hours.

When the meat is tender, remove from the pot and place on a plate; tent with foil. Use a slotted spoon to remove the vegetables from the pan juices. Taste the broth for seasoning. Adjust if necessary. 

Place the pot back on the burner and bring the liquid to a boil. Make a cornstarch slurry with a tablespoon or two of cornstarch and thicken the gravy. Add the parsley. 

Slice the roast and serve with the vegetables and gravy and spaetzle for an Erika style German meal.

*I used homemade turkey stock because that's what I happened to have on hand. You can use chicken, turkey, vegetable or pork stock if you have it. Even beef will work in a pinch, the important thing is bringing flavor to the finished gravy.

Now what the heck are spaetzle? The short answer is noodles, but noodles in Germany aren't quite same as in the U.S. Spaetzle are more like little dumplings and are so easy to make at home. They cook in no time, and get finished in a skillet with some melted butter to brown them so slightly. Snuggled up to a nice hunk of roast and draped with rich brown gravy- it's the ultimate in comfort food, German style.  Let's make some!

Spaetzle

2 cups all purpose flour

2 eggs

3/4 cup milk

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons butter, melted, plus more

pinch of nutmeg

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. A stand mixer makes it really easy- mix ingredients until a dough forms. Transfer dough to a large freezer bag. 

Bring a large pot of water to boil over high heat.

Cut the corner off the bag- keep it SMALL- think no more than drinking straw size. Squeeze the dough into the boiling water, breaking it off every inch or two. You don't want long strands but you don't want little beads either. Work quickly to get all the dough into the water. 

Boil the noodles for 2 minutes. Drain the noodles well in a colander. Set aside.

Heat a medium skillet over medium high heat and add a couple tablespoons additional butter. Turn the spaetzle into the skillet and saute, stirring occasionally, until they start to turn golden brown. Remove to serving bowl and sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley to serve.

Let's talk for a minute about the fennel. Using fennel in this recipe was totally unlike my mother's style of cooking. I'm pretty sure she had never cooked or eaten a fresh fennel bulb, just wasn't her thing, and to the best of my memory Dad never grew them in the garden either. I've been on a quest the last couple years to incorporate more of these veggies that aren't as common into some of our dishes here. So fennel- if you've never had it, it's very fresh and crunchy veggie. It has a texture that reminds me of celery but it's not stringy. The bulb is very versatile and can be cooked just about any way and eaten raw. It's pretty popular in slaws and salads. The feathery fronds remind me of dill and are also very useful for adding another flavor element in your dishes. Fennel seeds as you probably know, are common in sausage and other foods. The seed heads also look like dill. Fennel is one of the main components in absinthe and yes, it does have a very strong licorice flavor, but that mellows tremendously when you cook it. 

I browned the fennel just like the onion and added it to the pot with everything else. It smelled incredible when browning and what it added to the finished dish was just wonderful. I didn't serve the vegetables, instead scooped them out and discarded them, using them just for flavor only. We had some home grown home canned green beans instead. The meat was so flavorful, just like Mom's! The spaetzle was so easy to make and so delicious. The little dumplings were tender and the browned crispy sides were the best part. The gravy was dark and rich and had a wonderful pork flavor. The roast- so so delicious. Roasting with those vegetables infused the meat with so many wonderful flavors. 

I'm sure my mother would have approved.