Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Roasted Pork, Red Cabbage and Potatoes

Growing up, my mom would make a Czech dish similar to this, with the pork and cabbage. I was craving it and it turned out to be very simple (and tasty) to make.


Pork:
1 ½ lb pork loin
2 garlic cloves, slivered
½ yellow onion, sliced
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Make shallow slits in pork and stuff with garlic slivers. Season with salt and pepper.

Place pork and onion in shallow a casserole dish. Uncovered, bake for about one hour, until juices run clear or internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.

Red Cabbage:
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp vinegar
2 Tbsp water
1 Tbsp EVOO
¼ tsp caraway seeds
¼ tsp salt
Pepper
2 cups shredded red cabbage
¾ cup chopped granny smith apple

Over med-high heat, in a large skillet combine sugar, vinegar, water, oil, caraway seeds, salt and a dash of pepper. Wisk together and cook for 2-3 minutes. Stir in cabbage and apples. Cook, covered for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cabbage should be tender-crisp.

Potatoes:
2 large red skinned potatoes, cubed
EVOO
Salt and Pepper

In a skillet over high heat, heat a few drizzles of EVOO until it ripples. Add potatoes. Brown and crisp all sides. Turn heat to low, cover and cook for 15-20 minutes, until potatoes all cooked through; mix occasionally. If potatoes seem to be burning, add a little water or broth to create steam.

Plate sliced pork aside cabbage and potatoes. Drizzle pork with juices from casserole dish and top with onion slices.

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Creamy Macaroni Salad



About 5 cups of cooked macaroni pasta, cooled
¼ cup slivered radishes
½ cup grape tomatoes, halved
1-4.25 oz can of sliced olives, drained
2 green onion sprigs, thinly sliced
2 Tbsp minced fresh parsley
2 Tbsp minced fresh cilantro

Dressing:
½ cup mayo
1 Tbsp vinegar
½ Tbsp mustard
1 tsp garlic powder
Salt and pepper, to taste

Cook pasta according to package directions; drain and cool. In the meanwhile, prepare the vegetables and make dressing.

In a small bowl, whisk ingredients for dressing together. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Toss dressing with pasta until coated; mix in veggies.