Apple Glazed Pork Loin

They are predicting snow this week.  Seriously.  I know it's almost the end of October, but I am just not ready for that S-word!  So far, it hasn't happened.  I'm okay with the cold temperatures, but I'd like to enjoy fall while it's here.  As I've mentioned before, I love the flavors of fall.

For some reason, I think of pork loin as a fall food.  Maybe it's because it's something cooked in the oven and I tend to not use my oven very much in the summer.  I came across this recipe via Pinterest and knew it was the perfect fall dinner.  I made it for our small group, and I think it was a hit with everyone!  The apple glaze over the pork really makes this meal something special.  We had leftover pork, so a few nights later, Mike and I shredded the meat and let it sit in the apples and juices. Then we put it on toasted buns, and had some of the best pulled pork ever!

Apple Glazed Pork Loin

Serves 8-10

Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 4 pound pork loin
salt
pepper
parsley
1/2 onion, diced
2 apples, peeled and diced
1/2 cup apple cider
1 cup apple jelly
2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1.  Heat olive oil in a large skillet.  Add the pork loin and brown on all sides.

2.  Remove the pork loin from the skillet and place in a 9x13" baking dish.  Season with salt, pepper, and parsley.

3.  In the same skillet, saute the onion and apples until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.

4.  Add the apple cider and bring the mixture to a boil.

5.  Pour the cider mixture into the baking dish, around the pork loin.

6.  In a small bowl, combine the apple jelly and balsamic vinegar until there are no lumps.  Spread the jelly over the pork loin.

7.  Bake at 350 for 1 hour and 20 minutes, until the internal temperature reaches 170 degrees.  (Plan to cook the pork loin for approximately 20 minutes per pound.)

8.  Allow the pork to sit for about 10 minutes before slicing.  Serve the pork with apples on top.

If you have leftovers, shred the pork and allow it to sit in the apple juice.  It makes great sandwiches!

Source: Join Us, Pull Up A Chair

Slow Cooker Mango BBQ Pulled Pork

A couple of weeks ago, Mike and I had some very special guests over for dinner.  Almost 2 years ago, my best friend married the love of her life, a man she met in Romania.  They met on a mission trip nearly 10 years ago and dated long distance.  Then, in 2009, he was granted a visa so he could come here and they could get married.  I’m ecstatic for my friend of course, but her husband moved a long way from his family.  After a lot of planning, his parents and brother were able to come here for a 3 week visit.  I’ve spent time with this family during my trips to Romania, so I was thrilled that they would be visiting our home.  I wanted to make a meal that we would all enjoy, but it needed to be something that required a small amount of work because I had to work the day they were coming over.

When cooking for a crowd, one of the easiest recipes I can think of to serve is pulled pork. The hands-on time is minimal and if you use your crock pot, the meat can cook while you’re at work or preparing other aspects of the meal.  Of course, the delicious aroma of the pork filling your kitchen is an added bonus.

I love mangoes so when I saw a recipe for mango BBQ sauce, I knew I had to try it.  The mango flavor is subtle, but just enough.  I served the pulled pork on homemade cheese buns (look for that recipe on Wednesday!)  Everyone really enjoyed the meal.  We had plenty of leftovers that Mike and I have enjoyed for other meals.  My friend who watched Champ last weekend declared the pulled pork “awesome”—I’d have to agree with her!

Slow Cooker Mango BBQ Pulled Pork

16-20 servings

Ingredients:
4lb pork loin
8 ounces Pepsi
2 mangoes, peeled and diced, pits reserved
1 bottle BBQ sauce (original flavor)

1.  Place pork loin and mango pits in your crock pot.

2.  Pour Pepsi over the pork.

3.  Cook pork on low for 7-8 hours.

4.  While the pork is cooking, puree the diced mangoes.

5.  In a bowl, combine puree mangoes and BBQ sauce.

6.  When the pork is completely cooked, shred it with 2 forks.

7.  Pour mango BBQ sauce over the shredded pork and continue cooking in the crock pot for 30 more minutes.

Serve warm pork on buns.

Inspired by: Little Kitchen Big Flavors

Roasted Pork Loin

Sometimes, the more simple a recipe is, the better!  Elaborate dishes are fun to make and eat, but often times it's the simple recipes that really shine.  This pork loin is one of those recipes.  A blend of flavorful spices is rubbed over a tender pork loin, and then cooked to perfection.  My favorite part of the meat is the edge because of all the flavor from the spices. 

This pork loin is simple enough to make on a weeknight, but delicious enough to serve to company.  It's a recipe that my dad has made for years and now I make it for Mike and me.  It never disappoints!  I serve it with a fresh salad and crispy roast potatoes (recipe coming soon!) for a delicious and balanced meal.

Roasted Pork Loin
Serves 3-4
You will need:
1 (1 pound) pork loin
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 Tablespoon thyme
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sage
1 teaspoon rosemary

1.  In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, thyme, garlic powder, pepper, salt, sage, and rosemary.
2.  Rub the spices onto the pork loin until it's completely coated.  Place in a shallow baking dish.

3.  Place the pork loin in a 500 degree oven.  After 5 minutes, reduce the heat to 350 and bake for 20 minutes, until the interior temperature reaches 140 degrees.
4.  After removing the pork loin from the oven, cover it with foil and let it rest for 10 minutes before cutting into it.

Shredded Pork Quesadillas

What do you do with leftover pork ribs?  Improvise, of course!  Then discover you have approximately 1 Tablespoon of barbeque sauce left in the bottle, and improvise again!  Our whole meal was an improvisation (is that even a word?  It's is now...I like it!)

I grilled a bunch of pork ribs one night and we ate 2, leaving me with lots of leftovers.  A few nights later I planned to have pork ribs again, but I just didn't know what to do with them.  Sometime during the day, I decided I wanted to make shredded pork.  And of course I got home and discovered my lack of sauce, so I quick whipped up a batch.  Then I was faced with the dilemma of what to do with the shredded pork.  I was just going to do tacos, but then I saw my quesadilla maker and the wheels started turning!

Sometimes the meals made on the fly are the best, Mike loved this meal--he even mentioned it to my dad "when you see the "taco-things" on Melissa's blog, you've got to make them!"  What a compliment!  We'll definitely be making these again.

You will need:
Homemade Barbeque Sauce (recipe below)
3 cooked pork ribs, shredded
4 flour tortillas
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese

1.  Add shredded pork to barbeque sauce.  Cook on medium heat for about 10 minutes, until meat is heated through.

2.  Place a tortilla on the bottom of your quesadilla maker.  Top with barbeque pork and cheese.  Cover with another tortilla.

3.  Cook until the tortilla is brown (my quesadilla maker has a light that tells me when it's ready). 

4.  Remove from quesadilla maker and repeat steps 2 and 3 with the remaining tortillas.

The sauce recipe made about 1.5 cups of sauce, which was perfect for the amount of meat we had.  The shredded pork was enough for 2 quesadillas, plus we had a small amount left over.

You could also make this recipe without a quesadilla maker, just use a small frying pan and flip the tortilla to brown both sides.

Homemade Barbeque Sauce:

3/4 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup ketchup

2 Tablespoons white vinegar

1 teaspoon minced garlic

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

In a saucepan, combine all ingredients. Bring to a boil and let it simmer until the sauce thickens.

*This makes a sweet barbeque sauce, we loved it. You can reduce the amount of brown sugar if you think it might be too sweet for you!

MkRib Sandwich

MkRib Sandwich (12/15/10)

This is my take on McDonald's McRib, therefore MkRib ;)

You will need:

1 pan of barbecue rib patties (I got mine from Aldi)

Pickles

Soft buns

1. Cook rib patties according to directions on the box.

2. Warm buns in oven and split open.

3. Place 1 rib patty on each bun.

4. Top with barbecue sauce and pickles. Serve warm