Kailua Pork....

While here in Florida, I am making nightly dinners usually with a meat and two sides. Using the local supermarket, Publix, for last night’s dinner I had an old family favorite - we call Kailua Pork. This terrific recipe came out of the wonderful cookbook ~ Tea Time at The Masters® ~ and is so easy to prepare. For the sides I sautéed some fresh spinach and roasted a few fingerling potatoes.

I wanted to utilize some dill I had in mom’s fridge and saw a recipe in the community paper with dill, buttermilk with the roasted potatoes. So, I picked up some fingerling potatoes at Publix and gave it a try. If you haven’t tried fingerling potatoes yet, you really need to ~ they have a wonderful creamy and nutty flavor. Let me tell you, this recipe was delicious. I am thinking of using the dill sauce for other dishes as well. The sauce was creamy but light, earthy yet extremely flavorful.

Sautéed spinach is my favorite side dishe and I knew that my parents love spinach in any form. While sautéing the spinach, I put a touch of lemon zest knowing that the flavors go really well together.

Definitely give these recipes a try ~ they may become your family's favorite, too!



George's Kailua Pork

Ingredients:
5 pound center-cut pork loin roast
¼ cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons cooking sherry
1 large clove garlic, crushed
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon thyme
¾ cup peach preserves
¼ cup chili sauce
1 cup water
1 8-ounce can water chestnuts, drained

Marinate roast in sauce made from soy sauce, sherry, garlic, cinnamon and thyme for 2-3 hours, turning often. Place on rack in shallow pan and roast at 325 degree F for 30 to 35 minutes per pound. In a saucepan, combine reserved marinade, peaches, chili sauce and ½ cup water. Bring to boil, stirring constantly. Baste pork and cook 10 additional minutes. Add remaining water and scrape up brown bits. Add pan juices and water chestnuts to sauce and heat through.

Let pork rest for 10 minutes before slicing, ladle sauce over slices.

Serves 6




Fingerling Potatoes with Sour Cream Herb Sauce
Recipe from Venice Herald-Tribune

Ingredients:
1 pound fingerling potatoes cut into 1 inch pieces
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon fresh thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
2 teaspoons minced garlic

Preheat oven at 350 degree F
Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and place the potatoes. Add the olive oil, thyme, salt and pepper; mix well. Cover the potatoes with another sheet of aluminum foil. Bake for 30 minutes. Take the cover off and bake for another 15 minutes. Take out and mix the minced garlic. Cook for another 6-7 minutes, making sure the garlic doesn’t burn.

Sour Cream and Herb Sauce
Ingredients:
½ cup low fat sour cream
¼ cup milk
2 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh chives, chopped
Zest of one lemon
Juice of half a lemon
2 teaspoons salt
Pepper to taste

Mix all the ingredients in a medium bowl and keep aside. Right before serving, mix the potatoes with the sauce.

Serves 6

__________

George's notes:

• Fingerling potatoes are a family of heritage potatoes which naturally grow much smaller than conventional potatoes. They also tend to be elongated and slightly knobby, making them very finger-like in shape. The unusual looking, flavorful potatoes can be used just like regular potatoes in an assortment of roasted, broiled, baked, grilled, or boiled dishes. Many grocers stock fingerling potatoes in season, and they can also be grown at home, in temperate climates.
• The Kailua in the name of this recipe is in "name only" ~ there is no Kahlua in this recipe, nor is there any Hawaiian affiliation. Maybe long ago, the sweet southern lady who developed this recipe thought water chestnuts were Hawaiian.
• The Masters® Golf tournament is played annually at the Augusta National Golf Club, in my hometown of Augusta, Georgia. This year it will be held April 8 thou 11, 2010.
• Roasting a boneless pork loin roast slowly will guarantee moist, tender meat. Loin refers to the type of cut.

Clip art of pork cuts from Ask The Meatman™

Mashed Potatoes & Gravy...

The other day, I had a post about one of my favorite entrées when I am entertaining; which I call Celebration Pork. I usually like to have at least one side that I know all my guest will find comfort in ~ something that they are familiar with. That way, they feel at home.

For this particular dinner, I served as my comfort side, garlic mashed potatoes with a unique cider gravy. Here are the recipes I used.



Garlic Mashed Potatoes with Thyme

Ingredients:
8 large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and halved
Kosher salt and black pepper
1 cup whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
4 tablespoons butter
1 head garlic, halved horizontally
12 sprigs fresh thyme
⅛ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg

Place the potatoes in a large pot and add cold water to cover. Bring to a boil and add 2 teaspoons salt. Reduce heat and simmer until tender, 16 to 18 minutes. Drain the potatoes and return them to the pot.

Meanwhile, place the milk, cream, butter, garlic, and thyme in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Set aside until the potatoes are cooked.

Strain the milk mixture into the pot with the potatoes. Add ¾ teaspoon salt and 1⁄4 teaspoon pepper and mash. Sprinkle with the nutmeg before serving.

Serves 8


Hard Cider Gravy

Ingredients:

Drippings from a pork roast
1 cup hard cider or dry white wine
2 to 3 cups chicken broth
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
⅓ cup all-purpose flour
Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste

Strain the drippings into a large measuring cup or bowl. Let stand for 5 minutes, then skim off and discard the fat. The drippings are coming from your pork roast or tenderloins.

Place the empty pan over 2 burners on medium-high heat. Add the cider and cook for 1 minute, scraping up the bits stuck to the pan. Pour into the skimmed drippings and add enough broth to make a total of 4 cups.

Make a roux by melting the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook the flour, whisking, until golden, 4 to 5 minutes. Whisk in the broth mixture and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until thickened, 8 to 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve in a gravy boat.

Serves 8

__________

George’s notes:

• Being from James Brown’s hometown, I remember he had a “mash potato” related hit song call Do the Mash Potato. It is said that James featured the dance prominently in his live performances during the 1950s and '60s.
• Gravy is thought to have originated in Egypt around 3000 B.C. Hieroglyphs in the tomb of Djer, an early first dynasty pharoah, at Umm el-Qa'ab are said to resemble Classical Greek clay vessels, from which the modern French gravy boat was ultimately developed. Paintings on the walls of the tomb depicting feasting show the diners (presumably members of the royal court) drinking a liquid, however the context does not lend itself to wine, beer or blood.

Chowders...

Most of us think of chowders as heavy fare, suitable for hunkering down ~ while a winter storm rages outside. In fact, that is exactly how American chowder started in the fishing camps of New England.

But there is no real reason chowders should be limited to a particular season. The word, actually, can be applied to any thick, rich soup containing large pieces of substance. ~ I also think, despite the claims of some who prefer Manhattan Chowder, that chowder is typified by the inclusion of milk or cream, which automatically provides richness.

Given such a simple definition, chowders can take advantage of whatever ingredients you have on hand. Potatoes and cheese are good choices in the winter. Hard squashes like acorn and butternut make delightful fall chowders. A couple of years ago, I had an incredible tomato chowder in August, and fresh corn chowder is hard to beat. And given the season's notorious unpredictability, heartier chowders that warm your bones still may find a welcome place at the table on days when a cold snap catches you by surprise — as it did in some parts of the country last week.

The origin of the word "chowder" is somewhat ambiguous. Most authorities, including the Oxford English Dictionary, assert it originates from the French term faire la chaudiere, which literally means "make something in a cauldron." Others claim the word is from the Old English word jowter, which refers to a fish peddler.

The first chowders were based on seafood: miscellaneous fish, cod, oysters, shrimp, crab, clam and even lobster, which was once known as a poor-man's food. Until the 20th century, seafood of all sorts was cheap and plentiful in New England, and chowders were made of whatever was in the day's catch or could be collected on the shores.

Because of the abundance of clams — and their ready accessibility to anyone, fisherman or not — New England clam chowder became the ideal example for chowders. It is a lusciously thick, creamy broth with chunks of clam, potato and onion.

From its beginnings in New England, chowder spread westward across the continent, and was modified and adapted along the way. Potato chowder, corn chowder and potato-corn chowder are the most common variants, but chowders made of mixed vegetables, kale and spinach have also popped up.

Chicken chowder, usually mixed with corn, potatoes or both, also is common. And when chowder reached the West Coast, salmon chowders became popular. One of my favorite chowder variations is cheddar chowder, which is made by cooking bacon, browning onions in the bacon fat with some flour, then heating cream and milk, and melting sharp cheddar into the mix.

Most of the New England clam chowders I've eaten have been either too thin or thickened with a roux, which can give chowder a gravy-like character. I prefer a soup with the consistency of half and half.

An old chowder-head taught me to put oyster crackers in a plastic bag, pound them into fine crumbs with a beer bottle, and use them to thicken the chowder. This works beautifully with clam chowder. Unlike many soups, chowders have few ingredients, so there is no place for subtlety. Chowder should step up to you and look you squarely in the eye with no hesitancy or hidden agenda. And because there are so few components, they should be the best and freshest you can find. You can't hide poor ingredients in these simple bowls of honest fare.

This is an old favorite of mine with a history nearly as long as that of chowder itself. It makes a hearty winter dish, by highlighting the deep, earthy flavors of new potatoes. However hard you scrub the potatoes, you'll still taste the earth they were born in, and that's the way a potato should taste. There's a reason the French call them pommes de terre, or apples of the earth.

New Potato Chowder

Ingredients:

6 strips bacon

1 medium onion, coarsely diced

3 cups chicken broth

1 pound mixed baby potatoes, cut into ½ -inch dice

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup heavy cream

1 teaspoon ground mustard

Additional salt and pepper to taste

In a large soup pot, cook bacon over medium-low heat until semi-crisp. Drain bacon, chop coarsely and reserve for garnish. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of grease.

Add diced onion and cook until it begins to brown. Increase heat to high, add a bit of chicken broth and deglaze the pot. Add remaining chicken broth and bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium, add potatoes and salt, and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.

Remove 1 cup of potatoes and mash thoroughly with a bit of the stock to loosen them up, then stir back in along with the heavy cream and mustard, and return to a simmer.

Adjust seasonings and serve, garnished with chopped bacon.

Serves 6

__________

George’s notes:

• When most of us think of chowder, New England-style fish or clam chowder is what comes to mind, but they are only two of the dozens of home-style chowders you can make from this book. Once you discover the diversity of ingredients you can cook into a chowder and see the scope of styles and colors open to you, you will wonder how we ever came to think there were only one or two chowders in the world.
• Authentic chowder is characterized by generous chunks of local seasonal ingredients served in a moderate amount of broth. Another basic characteristic of chowder is its ease of preparation—even chowders that take more than an hour to make don't require anything more than keeping an eye on the pot. A big pot of chowder is perfect for a large gathering of family and friends, and because chowder truly is best when made ahead, you'll have plenty of time to enjoy your company.