Sunday Dinner- Garlic Rosemary Pork Roast

This is a quick and easy dinner that you can pop into the oven and have preset to be ready when you get home from a long day!

 

Ingredients

• 4 large garlic cloves, pressed
• 4 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary or 2 teaspoons dried
• 1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 2 1/2-pound boneless pork loin roast, well trimmed
• Fresh rosemary sprigs (optional)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400°F. Line 13 x 9 x 2-inch roasting pan with foil. Mix first 4 ingredients in bowl. Rub garlic mixture all over pork. Place pork, fat side up, in prepared roasting pan. Roast pork 55  minutes. Check internal temperature pork. It should register 155°F. Remove from oven; let stand 10 minutes.

Pour any juices from roasting pan into small saucepan; set over low heat to keep warm. Cut pork crosswise into 1/3-inch-thick slices. Arrange pork slices on platter. Pour pan juices over. Garnish with rosemary sprigs, if desired.

Parmesan Rosemary Popovers

I find that bread is one of the most comforting foods of all. Warm, soft, and chewy, with that little bit of crunch on the edge satisfies all of my cravings in one bite.

Popovers are no exception to this rule. If a muffin and a cheese souffle fell in love and had a baby, it would be a popover. It is light and fluffy, just like a souffle, but with a dense, toothsome quality that you would expect from a muffin. Slathered with butter and accompanying anything with gravy they kick biscuits to the curb. I have been dying to make popovers for quite some time now, but I waited because I didn't have a popover pan.

IF YOU DON'T HAVE A POPOVER PAN ITS OKAY!!!

I know nobody ever tells you that, but it really is. I have included directions below to accommodate the pan-less. If you want a quick dinner, make a pot of soup or, even better, beef stew, and throw these on the side. The come together in a snap and seem decadent and special. Any add-ins you can think of will transform these to perfectly compliment your dinner.
Just writing about these right now is making me crave a mid-morning snack of warm popovers with butter and homemade strawberry jam...

If YOU don't have a popover pan, simply cut the recipe in half and use a muffin pan. They don't rise as high, but don't let that stop you from making this fast and delicious bread. Bake at 450 for 15 minutes, then turn the oven down to 400 for 15 more minutes.

Parmesan-Herb Popovers
Ingredients
2 cups whole milk
4 large eggs
4 Tablespoons butter, melted
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary

Preheat the oven to 450. Grease the popover pan as desired. Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl and divide between the popover pan.

Bake at 450 for 20 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350 and bake for 15 to 18 more minutes, until they are a deep golden brown.

Enjoy immediately...as if I even need to say that.

For classic popovers, omit the cheese and herbs and double the salt.

Roasted Chicken with Vegetables

I always feel like I share a bond with people who feel the way I do about food. That is, they enjoy it, they think about it, and they enjoy sharing it with others. I do not understand people who feel like food is bad or a vice. I warned my husband a few years back that I will probably be a bit on the chubby side when I am older. I love cooking, baking, and eating. I take great pleasure in it.


Chicken gravy

 Another foodie I feel that I can relate to is Nigella Lawson. I absolutely love her Feast cookbook, which outlines many traditional and contemporary gatherings, usually centered around food. She explores them and I have often found myself wanting to do the same. I think this year my family will observe the Passover, not for religious reasons, but for cultural and historical reasons. It is very interesting and insightful to see how people and cultures have evolved, and what a great part food plays into these things.
Another one of my favorite cookbooks is the Bride and Groom cookbook, authored by twin sisters who were caterers in San Fransisco. An absolute must-have recipe is the roasted chicken. It is quick and easy, and makes any ordinary day seem special.

Roasted Chicken

Serves 4

3 carrots, cut into thirds
6 small red new potatoes, quartered if large
1 medium yellow onion, cut into 6 wedges
3 Tablespoons melted butter + 3 Tablespoons softened butter
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 chicken (3 to 4 lbs)
1 lemon, quartered
2 fresh rosemary sprigs
4 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Some help in the kitchen from Captain America

Put the carrots, potatoes, and onion in a 9-by-13-inch glass baking dish. Toss the vegetables with the melted butter. Season with kosher salt and pepper to taste. Spread the vegetables to the edge of the baking dish, making room for the chicken.
Remove the neck and giblets from the cavity of the chicken and discard. Rinse the bird under cold running water and pat dry. Put the chicken, breast-side up, in the center of the baking dish.
Rub the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter on the chicken. Season the cavity and skin generously with kosher salt and pepper to taste. Put the lemon quarters and rosemary sprigs inside the cavity. Put the garlic cloves under the chicken to prevent them from burning.
Roast for 45 minutes.  Remove the dish from the oven. Using tongs, tilt the chicken, pouring the juices from the cavity onto the vegetables, and shake to coat. Baste the chicken with the pan juices. If the bird is browning too quickly, cover with aluminum foil. Continue roasting until the chicken is a deep golden brown and the juices run clear when the tip of a knife is inserted into the thigh joint, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thigh,  away from the bone, registers 170 to 175 degrees F, 25 to 30 minutes more.
Transfer the chicken to a platter, cover loosely with foil and let stand for 10 to 15 minutes before carving. Toss the vegetables with the pan juices.

It's in the Rain

Well, I finally made my way out of the new 'blogger in draft'  layout and made my way back to the things I know. The old stuff. So now I can get back to posting on my blog!
I wanted to start by saying it is really sad that I have around 400 pictures of food on my camera, and about 150 of my children/ family.

I know it is July, but the weather has been a bit gloomy lately, and that always makes me feel like baking. Even though, somehow, it is gloomy and raining but it is hot and humid outside. I wanted to share a recipe for focaccia. I LOVE LOVE LOVE focaccia. I could eat it with everything. As a matter of fact, I do. When I make up a batch, we eat it with dinner, as an after dinner snack, I make breakfast sandwiches with it the next day and then I turn the rest into croutons or stuffing. It is absolutely delicious. If you have never made homemade bread, you have to try it. There is nothing that beats the aroma of fresh baked bread filling your house, and then eating it! I love it warm, with lots of butter. Not the fake stuff. Butter. Focaccia has all these wonderful little pockets in it that make it perfect for soaking up butter. Yum!

This is absolutely perfect for a special Italian dinner. Obviously I can't make it all the time, or else I would have to buy new clothes. Bigger clothes. But it is definitely worth the effort, just to have it once in a while.
So the next time the weather cools off, and you are in the mood to bake, throw in a batch of this bread, start a pot of coffee, and put in a Christmas CD. It makes bad weather fun!

Rosemary Focaccia
from the  Art and Soul of Baking
2 1/4 cups warm whole milk (110 to 115 F)
1 teaspoon sugar
1 Tablespoon active dry yeast
5 cups flour

3 Tablespoons olive oil
2 bunches fresh rosemary, leaves removed and very finely chopped
1 teaspoon salt

Combine the warmed milk and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast over the top. Whisk in 1/4 cup of the flour by hand. Let the mixture sit for1 minute, or until the yeast is activated and foamy or bubbling. Whisk in another 2 cups of flour, or enough that the dough resembles a thick pancake batter. Attach the paddle attachment and mix on low speed for 4 minutes.

Add the olive oil, rosemary, and salt to the dough, attach the dough hook, and knead on low until well blended. Add the remaining 2 1/4 cups flour and knead for 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and turn the dough over in the bowl so everything is mixed evenly. Continue to knead for 2 minutes longer. The dough might stick to the side of the bowl a bit but that's ok.
Lightly oil a tub or bowl and scrape the dough into the tub, lightly brushing the top with oil. Cover with plastic wrap or a damp lint-free towel and let the dough rise until doubled in size, about 1 to 1/2 hours.
Scrape the risen dough onto a prepared baking sheet. Lightly oil your hands and press down on the dough firmly to expel some of the air bubbles, but don't knead the dough. Begin to push and gently stretch the dough into an even layer in the pan.
Brush the top of the dough with a little olive oil and cover the plan with plastic wrap or the damp towel. Let the dough rise until it is almost doubled in size.
Preheat the oven to 375. Be sure your oven is completely preheated.

Remove the plastic wrap. Dimple the dough by gently pressing your fingertips into the dough about 1/2-inch deep.
Bake 30 to 35 minutes, until the bread is a deep golden brown. Cool for 10 minutes, then cut with a serrated knife.

A rose is a rose

It is very important that it sounds good. Have you ever noticed how menu descriptions are? Sometimes they make me giggle because they are redundant or absurd, and sometimes they are outright disturbing. Like the restaurant we ate at for breakfast while travelling through Washington. One of their sides was 'SOS'. 'What's that?' I asked my husband. In a hush voiced he explained it to me. Why would I want to order that?
Maybe its name is deceptive, I thought to my self. Well, sure enough, one of my companions ordered it and I tried it. The thick mass of white gravy was all wrong. Way too much hamburger and no other seasoning. It was very aptly named.

There is also the matter of how much description you use. Names, like "sauteed chicken" sound so boring, while on the opposite end of the spectrum you have names like "Poulet Saute aux Herbes de Provence" which can be discouraging or daunting if you don't speak French, and yet you would be eating the same thing.

I fear I have to gift for fanciful names that inspire people. When I am asked for the names of my dishes I usually reply with something boring like, "chicken, uh....with white sauce?" Somehow I make it sound like a question. My mom is usually the one asking. As she did when I made this dish. It might not sound amazing, but its pretty darn good.

Rosemary Roasted Red Potatoes with Parmasan

5 fist-sized red potatoes (my fist, or about the size of a baseball) 
3 Tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper
2 Tablespoons rosemary, very finely chopped
1/4 cup Parmasan cheese
3 cloves garlic, smashed

Preheat the oven to 400. Cut the potatoes into bite size pieces, try to be uniform in size so they all cook at the same time. I usually cut them in half, then in half again, then cut those pieces into thirds. Place them in a 9x13 baking pan. Drizzle with the olive oil, then sprinkle with the remaining ingredients. Toss to coat. Place in oven. Bake for about 20 minutes, toss, then bake for an additional 20 minutes more. They might need a bit longer. Be sure they are tender when pierced. If they are browning too quickly, cover with foil.

and more chicken

There are some meals that, no matter how many times you make them, they never grow old. Everybody has favorites, but I haven't met a person who isn't impressed with this dish. I discovered it quite a while ago in a magazine, which was demonstrating a technique for sear roasting, a method of cooking that has you sear a piece of meat over high heat, then finish it in the oven. This is the way I cook most often. It is quick, the flash of heat ensures you seal in the juices, preventing the meat from being dry, and you can finish it with any sauce you want. I cook white fish, salmon, beef, and chicken this way quite often. The sauce that was showcased with this recipe is very versatile, and can be adapted to many meats and drastically changed with just a few minute substitutions. It is basically a take on buerre blanc, the French butter sauce.

The original recipe called for white wine, but chicken stock is an acceptable substitution. This is the dinner my sister wants on her birthday, and my husband requests almost every time I am planning meals. It's a hit every time. There is some lemon juice and rosemary in the sauce, which, in my opinion, are perfectly complimentary flavors. The sauce is also great on salmon, and feel free to mix it up a bit for beef-it would be delicious with some dijon and tarragon for a zippy beef dish.

This is also great for company, because you can fry up all the chicken pieces, place them on a baking sheet and finish them in the oven. Everybody's food will be ready at the same time no matter how many you have.

Chicken with Lemon Butter Sauce
Serves 4

4 4-oz chicken breasts (if they are large slice them in  half lengthwise, or pound them into cutlets)
salt and pepper to taste
1 Tablespoon minced rosemary
2 Tablespoons minced shallot (about one clove)
1/2 cup chicken stock
juice from 1/2 a lemon
4 Tablespoons butter

Preheat the oven to 450. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat a few teaspoons of vegetable oil over high heat. When the oil is shimmering add the chicken pieces and cook for about 3 minutes on each side, or the edges are brown.
Move the cooked chicken pieces to a glass baking dish, laying each piece flat (don't overlap them). Place in the oven for 5-10 minutes, depending on the thickness of the chicken cutlets (the temperature should be 165 F.)
Meanwhile, add the rosemary and shallots to the pan and saute for 2-3 minutes. Add the chicken stock and continue cooking until the stock is reduced to a few tablespoons. Add the lemon juice and remove from the heat. Add the butter a tablespoon at a time, whisking until it is incorporated. The sauce will begin to look lighter and thicker. Spoon sauce over cooked chicken.