Pancetta Wrapped Pork Roast

My Dad requested pork for his 69th birthday dinner. I researched quite a few recipes thinking of combining bits & pieces of each, until I saw this one by Giada. It had 200 reviews & a 5 star rating. I get why!!!!!

This was so easy to prepare as I got it ready the day before & just popped it in the oven the day of. And talk about delicious! The pancetta, an Italian bacon,  gives such a nice flavor & the pan juices are perfect for serving with mashed potatoes. You don't have to worry about making a thick sauce after the roast is done.

This is perfect for a special dinner or even just a weekend night at home with the family. I loved it & can't wait to make it again. Leftovers can easily be used for some cuban sandwiches. Just see my notes as usual for modifications!

PANCETTA WRAPPED PORK ROAST

{ Printable Recipe Here }

6-8 large garlic cloves
1 tblspn finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1 tblspn finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 tblspn olive oil
1 (3 1/2 to 4 lb) tied boneless pork loin roast *
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
4-6 ounces sliced pancetta *
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 cups dry white wine

Blend the garlic, rosemary, thyme & oil in a small food processor, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally, until the garlic is minced. Sprinkle the pork roast generously with salt & pepper. Spread the garlic mixture all over the pork, including the bottom. 

Overlap slices of the pancetta all over the top & part of the sides of the pork. Place the pork in a roasting pan. Cover & refrigerate at least 1 hour & up to 1 day.

Take your pork out 1 hour before you plan to place in oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Pour 1/2 cup of broth & 1/2 cup of wine into the roasting pan. Place a meat thermometer in the thickest part of the meat.

Add more broth & wine to the pan juices every 20 minutes. Roast the pork until a meat thermometer inserted into the center registers 140 degrees, about 45 min - 1 hour.* Transfer the pork to a cutting board. Tent with aluminum foil & let stand for 10 minutes. Pour the pan drippings into a glass measuring cup & spoon off any fat that rises to the top.

Using a large sharp carving knife, cut the pork into 1/4-inch-thick slices & serve with the pan juices.

{ Food for Thought }

Buy center cut pork loin. It is one thick uniform piece with no need for tying. Fresh Rosemary & Thyme are best for this. Pancetta can be found fresh at your deli. Just ask for it to be sliced thin.

Please invest in a meat thermometer. The last thing you want is overdone pork. The one shown is a leave in thermometer for less than $10. You need to take the pork out when it reaches 140 because the temp will rise & it will continue to cook. 

One last thought ~ don't slice all of your pork when serving. If you have leftovers, it is best to keep it whole when storing it in the fridge to keep it from drying out!!!!!!!!

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And if you're looking for the perfect appetizer to go with this meal, these Spinach Ricotta Rounds are outrageous. I've made them before but when I made them again for my Dad's birthday, I made the process even easier so I went back to modify the recipe. My Mom & Dad loved these. They are definitely a favorite now!

Spinach Ricotta Rounds


I am linking deliciously to Lisa at Blessed with Grace
for
Tempt My Tummy Tuesdays!!!!!

Spicy Havana Stew

My wonderful friend Kacey at Chronicles of a Mommy mailed me some recipes that she thought I would like & this was one of them. Not the greatest pictures but this dish was excellent!!! I made it a few weeks ago when my parents came over for dinner & we all agreed it was fantastic. I had prepared & chopped up whatever I could earlier on in the day as well as set aside the proper amount of spices, so that after we were done with our appetizer I could easily throw this together in about 15 minutes. It was that simple!!! For all the pork haters out there, try this with chicken for a truly healthful dish!!!!!

1 1/2 lbs boneless pork loin, cut into bite sized cubes

Juice of 1 lime

4 tblsp garlic, chopped

2 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

2 tsp cumin

4 tblsp olive oil plus 3 tblsp to saute veggies

1 green bell pepper, diced

1 large onion, diced

1 cup dry white wine

1 cup chicken stock

6 oz can tomato paste

1/2 cup sliced green olives with pimento

2 bay leaves

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (more or less to taste)

2 tsp dried parsley

3 tblsp chopped scallions

In a bowl, combine 4 tblsp olive oil, lime juice, salt, pepper, oregano, cumin & 2 tblsp chopped garlic. Mix well. Add the pork cubes & coat evenly. Cover & marinate in fridge for at least 1 hour. Stir occasionally.

In a stew pot, heat 3 tblsp olive oil & saute onions for 3-4 minutes. Add 2 tblsp garlic & the green pepper; cook for 1 minute. Add the pork & cook for 5 minutes. Add the white wine, chicken stock, tomato paste, green olives, bay leaves & red pepper flakes. Stir well & simmer for 5 -10 minutes. Add the parsley & green onion; remove from heat. Remove the bay leaves. Serve over your favorite rice.

~ My Thoughts ~

Everyone loved this!!!! While this wasn't very spicy to us, you can make it even less spicy & omit the red pepper flakes. This would be great with chicken too!

{Click Here to Print Recipe}

Visit here for more Tempt My Tummy Tuesdays. And come on back tomorrow to see why I have been so out of the loop. I may be out of work but I certainly have my hands full!

The Crockpot Chronicles - Sweet Shredded Pork

Oh, how I have been anxious to post this recipe since making it for Monday night's dinner. I found it at Kaysville Momma who's now hanging out here. It was so amazing, exceeded any expectation for something so simple to prepare & it's simply the best pulled pork I ever had. Serve it over rice or in a tortilla or my favorite, on a fresh kaiser roll with a little shredded mozzarella. This would also be excellent with chicken!!!

I hope everyone has a great weekend! I will certainly be cooking a bit but mostly getting ready for Tristan's 5th birthday party next weekend. I'll be done with New Moon tonight. Le Sigh. But I may or may not fight myself tooth & nail (ha ha, I just caught that, no pun was intended) to go to the bookstore to get Eclipse. That's right, I may have to give myself a week's rest so I can prepare for the party because it seems I can't get my head out of Forks. As for this 2nd book, no disappointment here!!!

Sweet Shredded Pork

Put a pork roast in your crock pot. Add 2 cups of salsa, 1 can of coke (not diet) & 1 cup of brown sugar. Cook on low 8-10 hours. Shred with forks in crockpot just before serving & remove any bones. Place some shredded mozzarella on roll, pour some meat on top drizzling a little extra sauce, maybe some more cheese, hmmmm. Too easy!!!!!!

The Crockpot Chronicles - Pork Tenderloin Creole

This 2nd installment of the Crockpot Chronicles was enjoyed this past Friday evening & was perfect for a family supper.  What I loved was being able to pull some of the tenderloin pieces out of the whole mix for Tristan to eat since he doesn't go for the rest. If you don't like creole you could still enjoy this dish since I didn't find it very Creole-ish.

2 pork tenderloins, about 1 1/2 to 2 lbs total
1/2 cup flour
1 tbsp Creole seasoning
1 small onion, coarsely chopped
1 small green or red bell pepper, coarsely chopped (or a mixture of both)
1 rib celery, sliced
1 package chicken gravy mix (I bought 1 jar)
1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained

Cut tenderloins in half. Dredge in a mixture of flour & the Creole seasoning. Place tenderloins in crock pot. Scatter onion, pepper, & celery over the pork. Cover & cook on low for 7 to 9 hours (I would not do for more than 7 hours). The last 30 minutes, add the dry gravy mix or jarred gravy & tomatoes. Continue cooking on high for about 30 more minutes. Serves 4 to 6.

I highly recommend red beans & rice as a side. I stood in front of the rices for 10 minutes to see which would really complement the dish. Terry & I both agreed the red beans & rice was perfect!

My Thoughts:

I tasted the sauce when I got home & felt it was too bland so I added more creole seasoning to the crockpot as well as garlic powder & salt & pepper. I also added just a little cornstarch/water mixture to thicken it up a bit. 

Stir Fried Pork with Snow Peas & Cashews

This is one of our favorite stir frys, being healthful & so delicious as it is. I've made it many times whether on a weekend or even a weeknight & although it has more than a few ingredients I assure you it's a cinch to put together.

Directions:

1 pork tenderloin
3 tblspn soy sauce
1 tblspn Chinese rice wine
¾ cup chicken broth
2 tsp corn starch
¼ cup oyster sauce
½ tsp sesame oil
½ tsp crushed red pepper
2 tblspn oil
1 medium onion, chopped
5 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 10oz pkg snow peas or sugar snap, defrosted
½ cup cashew nuts
Whole grain brown rice

Slice pork crosswise into ¼” slices & then cut each slice crosswise to get long thin pieces. Transfer to small bowl & add 1 tblspn of the soy sauce & rice wine. Toss & refrigerate.

**Combine ¼ cup of chicken broth, the remainder of soy sauce, cornstarch, oyster sauce, sesame oil & crushed red pepper. Set aside.**

Heat oil in pan until very hot. Add pork & stir fry until no longer pink but don’t overcook. Maybe 5 minutes. Transfer to plate. Add onion & garlic to pan & cook for a few minutes until slightly softened. Add snow peas & remaining broth & cook for a few minutes. Add soy sauce/broth mixture & cook for 1 minute or until sauce is thickened. Return pork to pan & add cashews.

Serve over rice.

My thoughts:

This is good for 2 people with leftovers or 4 peoples with no leftovers.
**If you like it saucy double the sauce above (which is just the broth/soy sauce mixture) even if just for 2 people.**

Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Chili Sauce

We eat pork tenderloin a couple of times a month, not always like this, but we love it because it is flavorful & healthy. And even Tristan will eat it. This particular recipe has you making a sauce out of the marinade. Otherwise I normally just do a quick marinade with lime juice, olive oil, garlic, salt & pepper & throw it on the grill.


















**The marinade below is enough for 4 tenderloins. You can halve it for 2 tenderloins which I normally make**

1/3 cup lime juice
1/4 cup olive oil
3 tblsp chili powder
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 small onion chopped
2 garlic cloves minced
2 tsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
Pepper
2 pork tenderloins
2 tsp corn starch
1 1/4 cups chicken broth

In a resealable plastic bag combine first 9 ingredients. Add the tenderloins & marinate for 1-2 hours. Heat oven to 500. I place the pork on a rack that stands on a cookie sheet so that the underside cooks well too. Tuck in the ends of the pork if very thin. Reserve marinade. Roast pork for 25 minutes . Transfer to a platter & let rest.

To make sauce, pour marinade in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently until oil seperates from sauce. I usually have trouble at this part because I don't see it seperating as much as I would like so I spoon off as much oil as I can and discard. Whisk cornstarch into broth and then whisk mixture into sauce. Heat to a boil until thickened. If needed, add a little more cornstarch. Serve on the side with pork.

Pork Chops Marsala

This recipe is quick enough for a weeknight meal yet it's delicious and more healthy than not. It's not like my chicken marsala, which has more of a restaurant quality and takes more time, where I pound the chicken thinly, dredge it in flour and make a very thick marsala sauce with a nice amount of butter. This is a quicker version so if you want to thicken it up a bit just add a little cornstarch/water mixture to your sauce before pouring it over your meat. I don't mind the thinness because I just look at it as a variation of the other marsala and appreciate it for that. You may also want to double up on the sauce.

4 boneless pork loin chops (I used on the bone and it was still great)
Olive oil
1 8oz pkg sliced cremini or special blend mushrooms
1 large shallot, chopped
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 cup of reduced sodium chicken broth
1/3 cup marsala wine
Whole grain brown rice

Season pork chops on both sides with salt and pepper. Heat a little oil in skillet, add chops and cook 6 minutes, turning once. Do not overcook. Transfer to plate and keep warm. In same skillet, add a little more oil, add mushrooms, shallots and thyme. Cook until mushrooms are browned. Add broth and wine to mixture, cook for 2 minutes. Place your chops on top of rice, and top with wine sauce.