Fan Appreciation Night

Wow, the month of November got swallowed up before I could write about Thanksgiving or some of Jackson's newest restaurants or my favorite holiday food gifts. Fortunately, there's plenty of time left in December for me to cover a lot of that stuff. But one meal I'd like to revisit is a dinner G and I made one Sunday evening for friends and fans of this blog. I got to prepare some beautiful vegetables from the farmer's market and a big hunk of pork in addition to a casserole dish full of cheesy potatoes. It was an excellent beginning to winter.

Roasted Pork Loin with Braised Vegetables

Soak pork loin or tenderloin in:

1 quart water
2 cups apple cider vinegar
Half cup of salt, dissolved
Half cupe of brown sugar, dissolved
Cracked peppercorns

For 6 to 8 hours

Before cooking meat, prepare any combination of root vegetables you like by cutting into half inch cubes. I picked carrots, onions, turnips, and threw in some apples as well. Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper and spread on the bottom of a roasting pan.

Remove pork from brine, pat outside dry, sear in a hot skillet on the stove top and transfer to roasting pan. Cover pork loosely with foil and bake at 350 degrees for approximately an hour and a half until internal temperature reaches 150 degrees. Let rest before cutting.

Scalloped Potatoes

4 potatoes (about 3 lbs.), peeled and sliced thinly
1 small onion, cut into thin strips
1/4 cup flour
2 tbsp butter, plus 1 tbsp for topping
2 cups half and half
6-8 oz. white cheddar, shredded

In a medium saucepan, melt butter.  Whisk in flour, cook for a minute as you would a roux.  Add half and half and bring up to a simmer.  When the sauce is just about to boil add the cheese, when it's melted remove the sauce from heat.  In a buttered casserole dish, layer potatoes and onions adding sauce, salt and pepper after each potato layer.  Top the dish with remaining butter and leftover cheese if desired.  Cover and bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes, remove top and bake for another 15 until golden brown on top.  Let set for about 10 minutes before eating.

Winter Salad

Fresh green leaf lettuce
Sesame sticks
Dried cranberries
Olive oil, balsamic vinegar, pepper

Toss greens (mine were the last of the season), in oil and vinegar, salt and pepper.  Top with sesame sticks and dried cranberries and serve immediately.