Jamaican Roast Pork

I made the following recipe for our annual Holiday Party where our menu highlighted Floribbean cuisine. While in Florida, I had a chance to try some authentic Jamaican cuisine. I wanted to include some Jamaican flavors in my menu and decided on this pork roast coated with a Jamaican inspired seasoning. You can use this seasoning mix on chicken, pork, steak or even seafood.

Jamaican Roast Pork
recipe from CookingCache.com

4 tbsp. sugar
3 tbsp. onion powder
3 tbsp. dried thyme, crushed
2 tbsp. ground allspice
2 tbsp. ground black pepper
1-2 tbsp. ground red pepper
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
3/4 tsp. ground cloves
pork roast, butt or shoulder

Combine all spices and store in an airtight container. Makes 1 cup. Lasts 6 months.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Coat pork roast with prepared seasoning.

Place pork roast in roasting pan and bake in preheated oven for 1 hour to 1 hour, 30 minutes.

Set aside to rest and slice or shred after 5-10 minutes to serve.

Guava BBQ Ribs

I made the following recipe for our annual Holiday Party where our menu highlighted Floribbean cuisine. Guava is a common fruit used in Floribbean cuisine. I was lucky to find guava syrup at my local grocery store and wanted to use it somehow. Looking through some Floribbean restuarant menus, I came across a restaurant that served up Guava BBQ ribs. This was a perfect dish to include in my menu and allowed me to use the guava syrup I found. I also used some dry Mojo seasoning I had on hand.

Guava BBQ Ribs
recipe inspired by Cuba Libre

5 pounds pork ribs, preferably country-style
1 bottle barbecue sauce (see note)
1 bottle guava syrup
1/4 cup hot pepper sauce
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup chopped garlic
1/2 cup soy sauce
2-3 tablespoons dry mojo seasoning

Combine all ingredients in crockpot and cook on low for 6-8 hours until tender.
Remove from crockpot and place on baking sheet.
Boil remaining sauce in crockpot in a small sauce pan until reduced by half to create a glaze.
Brush glaze over ribs and bake for 5-7 minutes in a 425 degree oven.

Maple & Brown Sugar Pork Tenderloin

It’s been awhile since I’ve used my crockpot and today I dusted it off to put it to good use. Today’s crockpot contents is Maple & Brown Sugar Pork Tenderloin. This was extremely easy to prepare and the best part is that crockpot cooking allows me to focus on other things rather than being in the kitchen the whole time.

Maple & Brown Sugar Pork Tenderloin
recipe adapted from Southernfood.About.com

2 pork tenderloins, about 1 pound each
salt and pepper
1 small clove garlic, minced
4 tablespoons grainy Dijon mustard or country-style
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon cider vinegar or balsamic vinegar
(I used Champagne Orange vinegar)
1/2 teaspoon dried leaf thyme, crumbled
(I also added 1 tablespoon of Maple Sugar Seasoning)
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon cold water

Wash and trim the pork and pat dry; sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Place pork in the slow cooker. Combine garlic, mustard, honey, brown sugar, vinegar, and thyme; pour over the pork. Turn pork to coat thoroughly. Cover and cook on LOW for 7 to 9 hours, or on HIGH for 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 hours.

Remove pork to a plate, cover with foil, and keep warm. Pour the juices into a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Simmer for 8 to 10 minutes, or until reduced by about one-third. Combine the cornstarch and cold water; whisk into the reduced juices and cook for 1 minute longer. Serve pork sliced with the thickened juices.

I paired this pork tenderloin with mashed sage sweet potatoes and steamed broccoli.

Old Fashioned Ham w/Brown Sugar & Mustard Glaze

The other night, my husband brought home a spiral sliced ham for me to play with! So tonight, I made this ham using a Brown Sugar & Mustard Glaze clone. This is great for the upcoming holidays and was so easy to prepare…

Old Fashioned Ham
with Brown Sugar & Mustard Glaze
recipe from Bon Appetit, March 2008

1 10-pound smoked ham with rind, preferably shank end
1 cup unsweetened apple juice or apple cider
1/2 cup whole grain Dijon mustard
2/3 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1/4 cup honey

Preheat oven to 325°F. Place ham in large roasting pan. Pour apple juice over ham. Cover ham completely with parchment paper, then cover ham and roasting pan completely with heavy-duty foil, sealing tightly at edges of pan. Bake ham until instant-read thermometer inserted into center of ham registers 145°F, about 3 hours 45 minutes. Remove ham from oven. Increase oven temperature to 375°F.

Remove foil and parchment from ham. Drain and discard liquids from roasting pan. Cut off rind and all but 1/4-inch-thick layer of fat from ham and discard. Using long sharp knife, score fat in 1-inch-wide, 1/4-inch-deep diamond pattern. (I didn’t do this since my ham was already spiral sliced.)

Spread mustard evenly over fat layer on ham. Pat brown sugar over mustard coating, pressing firmly to adhere. Drizzle honey evenly over. Bake until ham is well glazed, spooning any mustard and sugar glaze that slides into roasting pan back over ham, about 30 minutes. Transfer ham to serving platter; let cool at least 45 minutes. Slice ham and serve slightly warm or at room temperature.

Pork Scallopini

The past couple of months we have been eating out a lot because of our crazy schedules, hectic entertaining plans and well, sadly it was all out of convenience. This month and going forward, I’m making more of an effort in having meals or ingredients ready to cook after work. So far, this week has been good… let’s just hope it continues!

Tonight’s meal was whatever I could make with pork cutlets. It was the first thing I grabbed this morning to defrost while I was at work. So when I got home, I didn’t have a clue what to make. I was thinking of making a chicken scallopini dish so I just altered the recipe to use pork instead. It turned out great despite not having any breadcrumbs… but I managed to squeeze in some fiber. The best part? Dinner was done in less than 25 minutes!

Pork Scallopini
adapted from Cooking Light

4 (6-ounce) pork cutlets, halved
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/3 cup Fiber One cereal, processed into crumbs
Cooking spray
1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup dry white wine
3 teaspoons capers
1 tablespoon butter

Place each pork cutlet half in a heavy duty freezer bag; pound to 1/4-inch thickness using a meat mallet or rolling pin. Brush chicken with juice, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Place Fiber One cereal crumbs into another heavy duty freezer bag. Place pork pieces in the bag and toss in crumbs to coat.

Heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add pork to pan; cook 3 minutes on each side or until chicken is done. Remove from pan; keep warm.

Add broth and wine to pan, and cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in capers and butter. Reduce sauce and spoon over pork.

I served this over steamed brown rice and a side salad.

Roasted Pineapple Pork Tenderloin

Roasted Pineapple Pork Tenderloin

adapted recipe courtesy of Epicurious

1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon mild or hot chili powder (or achiote paste)
1 jalapeno, finely minced
1/2 cup orange juice
3 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound pork tenderloin, trimmed
1 small golden pineapple (about 1 1/2 pound), diced into 1-inch cubes
1/2 cup pineapple (or orange) juice
1/4 small red onion, finely chopped
Vegetable oil cooking spray

Heat a large pan over high heat to the smoking point, 3 to 4 minutes. Brown pineapple 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add pineapple juice and stir 1 minute, scraping up brown bits from pan. Remove pineapple from heat. Combine in a bowl with pepper, onion and basil. Mash together and set aside.
Mix tomato paste with chili powder.
Combine with orange juice, lime juice and oil in a double resealable bag.
Add pineapple mixture to the bag.
Add tenderloin and marinate at least 3 hours.
Heat a grill or grill pan over high. Coat with cooking spray.
Remove pork from marinade; place on baking pan. (Discard excess marinade.)
Bake marinated pork in a preheated 350 oven, until pork is no longer pink and internal temperature is 160°F 18 to 20 minutes. Let pork rest 5 minutes before slicing.
Garnish with cilantro leaves before serving.

Pork Schnitzel & Creamy Mushroom Topping

I made the following for my Oktoberfest event. You can read and get other recipes from the event HERE.

Robert’s Pork Schnitzel & Creamy Mushroom Topping
recipe HERE

6 thin, boneless “breakfast” pork chops
1/2 cup flour
Salt and pepper
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups seasoned dry bread crumbs
1 teaspoon dried rubbed sage
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
12 ounces sliced mushrooms
1 teaspoon minced garlic1 12-ounce jar roasted chicken gravy
Juice of 1/2 lemon

Flatten each pork chop lightly with a flat meat mallet or heavy skillet into a uniform thinness. Place the flour on a plate or in a glass baking dish and season with salt and pepper. Place the eggs in a baking dish or pie plate. Place the seasoned bread crumbs in another baking dish or glass pie plate and stir in the sage. Dip a pork chop into the flour, coating both sides and shaking off excess. Next, dip into the egg, coating well, then into the seasoned bread crumbs. Place on a plate and continue until all 6 chops are breaded.

Heat 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add 3 of the pork chops and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Turn and brown on other side, cooking until done, about 2 minutes more. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate, add another tablespoon of oil to the skillet and brown remaining chops, adding them to the plate and setting aside when they are done.

Add the mushrooms and garlic to the hot skillet. Season with salt and pepper and saute over medium-high heat until the mushrooms are golden, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chicken gravy and lemon juice and bring to a boil. Place the pork chops on a platter and top with the sauce.

Feasting on Fall Flavors

Tonight called for a dinner that would warm us from the crisp and cool temps in the air. I figured now was a good time as any to prepare a fall dinner to highlight the season’s flavors. With apples, thyme, maple syrup, and sweet potatoes on hand, we thoroughly enjoyed the bounty that graced our table. I didn’t use any particular recipe but rather, used the ingredients in my pantry to come up with a meal. Bare with me as I share what I did to create our dinner…

Roasted Maple Sugar Pork Tenderloin

This past Sunday I visited my favorite spice shop, The Spice House, and picked up a new seasoning to try. Their “Gateway to the North Maple Sugar Seasoning” was perfect with pork with hints a sweet and savory flavor. To prepare my pork tenderloin, I generously coated them with this seasoning… and roasted them on top of a bed of chopped apples, onions, a few garlic cloves and added a couple bay leaves and springs of thyme. After baking covered in a 350 degree oven for an hour, remove the pork from the apple/onion mixture and pace on a separate baking sheet.

Savory Applesauce

With a roasting pan of apples, onions, garlic, bay leaves and thyme left to play with, I thought a savory spin on the traditional applesauce would serve as a nice accompaniment with the pork. With this in mind, I removed the bay leaves and thyme from the pan and used a potato masher to get a finer texture on the apples, onions & garlic. What’s wonderful about this mixture is that it doesn’t need to be seasoned since the juices and maple sugar seasoning that coated the pork have filtered down into them. Once you’ve mashed it to your preferred texture for applesauce, you’re set! Place the savory applesauce in a serving dish or individual ramekin and garnish with a fresh thyme stem.

Maple Pecan Sweet Potatoes

We love sweet potatoes at our house, even more than the russet, white or Yukon gold variety. While we’re on a fall flavor kick, I roasted some sweet potatoes and scooped out the soft flesh into a casserole dish. To add some additional sweetness, I stirred in about 1/4 cup of real maple syrup and salt to taste. Top it with chopped pecans and bake in a 350 degree oven for 20-30 minutes.

To round out our meal, I added some steamed broccoli for color and to add to our daily veggies for the day.

BBQ Chicken & BBQ Pork Fillings

The following recipe was used for my Steam Buns cooking class. You can read about my class and get other links to recipes HERE.

BBQ Chicken & BBQ Pork Fillings

1.5 cups shredded chicken or diced/shredded pork
1/2 -3/4 cup bbq sauce
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil

1-2 tablespoons fried minced garlic
salt & white pepper to taste

Combine all the above ingredients.

Southwestern pork carnitas filling

The following recipe was prepared for my Tamales cooking class. You can read about my class and get other links to recipes HERE.

Southwestern pork carnitas filling

3-5 lbs pork butt or shoulder
1/2 cup southwest seasoning
2-4 tablespoons canola oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a dutch oven, place your pork and coat with seasoning on all sides until completely covered.
Drizzle oil over the pork.
Cover dutch oven and bake in preheated oven for 1.5 to 2 hours until completely cooked.
Allow to cool on a large cutting board.
When cooled, shred or chop up the pork into bite sized pieces.
Place in a bowl, cover and chill until ready to fill tamales.