Brown Sugar and Honey Glazed Pork Loin Roast with Vegetables

Over the years, I've learned to watch the sales cycles that our local stores run.  Usually every 4 months they cycle items,  (chicken 1st month, beef 2nd month, fish 3rd month, pork 4th month, chicken 5th month, beef 6th month, and etc.).  Last week the local store was running a special on boneless pork loin, 99 cents per pound.  I found a 8.6 pound bag, marked down from $32.59 to $8.51.  And, I had a $2 store coupon on meat purchase.  SCORE ! A total savings of $26.08.  When I opened the bag, there were 6 beautiful pork loins.  I individually wrapped and vacuumed sealed and froze them, so we can enjoy them later.  Wish I would have purchased 2 bags.

Anyway, the other night, I made a brown sugar and honey glazed pork loin roast with vegetables.  It was so good.  A nice 2 pound roast will easily feed 4, (even 6 if you add enough vegetables).  Since the vegetables were from our garden, a very inexpensive meal.  Let me show you how I did it.

You will need:
2 pound pork loin roast
4 Tabs. brown sugar
2 Tabs. honey
2 Tabs. vegetable oil
2 pounds carrots
2 pounds potatoes
2 or 3 apples
salt, pepper, garlic powder

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Line a baking sheet with foil, (this is for easy clean up).

Clean and chop carrots and potatoes. 

Note:  Yes those are white carrots you see.  This year we planted multi-colored carrots, so we have orange, white, and red carrots.

Place the carrots on the baking sheet and drizzle with 1 Tablespoon of oil, sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of pepper, and 1 teaspoon of garlic powder.  Mix well to coat all the vegetables.

In a small bowl, combine 1 Tablespoon of oil, brown sugar,  honey, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of pepper, and 1 teaspoon of garlic powder.  Stir together.  Glaze will be thick.

Make sure your pork roast has any excess fat removed.

Coat the roast with the brown sugar glaze.

Place the roast in the center of the vegetables.

Clean, core, and quarter the apples, and place around the roast.

Bake in the 375 degree oven for about 40 to 50 minutes, (until the internal temperature reads 150 degrees at center of roast).

Remove from oven.  Remove roast.  If the vegetables still need a few minutes, place them back in the oven.  Mine were done within the 50 minutes.

Allow the roast to rest for 5 minutes, before slicing.

Notice how nicely browned this roast is on the inside, with less than 1 hour.  And it's very moist.  And the glaze on the outside is delicious.

If you have a larger crowd to feed, you can cook a larger roast, and increase the ingredients, or just add more vegetables.  People don't mind a small amount of meat, as long as they have plenty of vegetables on their plate.

Give this recipe a try, and your family will enjoy the new way of cooking pork roast.


Enjoy !

Moist Tender Pork Loin Roast Dinner

This is a delicious and super tender pork roast dinner, and the best part is it's all done in ONE pot.  You almost don't need a knife to cut the meat.  It easily feeds 6 people with only a 2 or 2 1/2 pound pork loin roast.  You don't need to make the gravy, but I've included the gravy recipe, just in case you want to make it.  It's so easy.

You will need:
A 2 pound, (or 2 1/2 pound) pork loin roast
1 small onion
1 1/2 Tabs Italian seasoning
1/4 teas crushed red pepper flakes
1 can (14 1/2 ounces beef broth)
1/8 teas ground black pepper
2 teas salt
1 bay leaf
1 pound baby carrots
6 to 8 small potatoes
1 Tabs water
4 teas. cornstarch

Pre-heat the oven to 325 degrees.

Slice the onion, very thin
Wash and quarter the potatoes, (I like to use red potatoes, but you can use whatever you have on hand). 
In a small bowl mix together the Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, ground black pepper, and salt.

Note:  If you want to stretch the meal to feed more people, just add a few more potatoes

Using a paper towel, dry off the pork loin.  Cut about 6 horizontal cuts down the center of the roast, and stuff each one with a slice of onion.  Reserve the rest for the pot.

 Place the roast in a dutch oven, and sprinkle the seasoning mixture over the roast.

Pour the beef broth around the roast.

I am using my homemade beef broth, but you can use store bought.

Place the remaining onions slices, the pound of baby carrots, the quartered potatoes, and the bay leaf around and over the roast.

Place the cover tightly on the dutch oven, and bake for about 2 1/2 hours.













Once the vegetables are tender, remove the meat and vegetables and meat to a serving platter.  Cover with foil to keep warm while you are making the gravy.

We like lots of carrots so we always use the full one pound of baby carrots, when we prepare this roast.

Now, it is time to make the thickening agent for the gravy.

In a small bowl, mix the water and the cornstarch, and blend until smooth.  Remove the meat and the vegetables to a serving platter.

 Bring the pan drippings back to a boil over medium heat, and reduce down to half, (about 10 to 12 minutes).  Add the cornstarch thicker, and blend in until smooth and the gravy begins to thicken, (about another 5 minutes).  Remove from heat and serve over meat.

And dinner is ready, without a lot of fuss.  Add a green salad and you have a complete balanced meal.  So yummy, and this will fill any tummy.

The key to stretching a little meat, it to add lots of vegetables with them.  Try this delicious pork loin recipe.

Egg Rolls

 We like to order egg rolls when we have Chinese.  And our favorite place doesn't charge too much for an order of 2, (compared to other restaurants).

And buying frozen egg rolls, are 1/2 the price, (you get 4 for the same price as 2 in the restaurant), but the quality isn't quite the same!

However, for $6.00, I can make 18 to 20 egg rolls.  I can also freeze them, (then I can have them on hand to reheat whenever we feel like having egg rolls).  That works out to be 30 cents each, (compared to 75 cents each for frozen in the store, or $1.50 each in the restaurant).  And I don't have to worry about all the preservatives.  It doesn't take much time.  Let me show you.

You will need:
20 egg roll wrappers
1/2 pound of ground pork, or chicken, or beef
2 tsp. fresh ginger chopped
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tsp. sesame oil
16 oz bag shredded carrot & cabbage coleslaw mix (you will only use 3/4 of the bag, so you can even buy a 12 oz bag)
4 green onions
1 egg

First, chop the green onion.
Finely chop 1 teaspoon of ginger
Mince the 2 cloves of garlic

If you don't have fresh ginger, you could always substitute bottled ginger, but fresh is so much better.

In a saute pan, over medium heat, add the ginger, garlic and 1/2 pound of ground meat.  (I am using pork, but you can use ground chicken or ground beef).

Make sure to break up the meat and mix everything together well.

Cook the meat well.  You can smell the wonderful flavors of the ginger and garlic - yummy.

In a small bowl mix together 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, and 1/4 cup soy sauce.

Pour over the meat mixture and mix well.  Continue cooking for another 30 seconds.  Remove from heat.

In a large bowl, add about 3/4 of the bag of coleslaw mix and the chopped onions.  Mix together.

In the summertime, I would use fresh sliced cabbage and fresh grated carrots from the garden, (it tastes so much better).

Add in the meat mixture, and stir well.

In a small bowl, lightly beat 1 egg with 1 teaspoon of water.

Lay your egg roll wrapper in front of you, so it looks like a diamond.

Add about 3 tablespoons of cabbage/meat mixture.  You don't want to overfill, or the egg roll will split.

Fold the bottom point up over the filling.

Tuck the wrapper point in under the mixture and slightly roll once.

 Fold the left and the right points up and over the the top of the wrapper.

Roll the wrapper once more, then brush the beaten egg along the top point.

Continue rolling, and your egg roll is now complete.  Repeat with the remaining wrappers.

All my wrappers are filled.  I got 18 egg rolls.  (If I had used 1 more handful of coleslaw mix, I would have gotten 20 egg rolls.)  Now you need to decide, are you going to fry you egg rolls or bake them.  I have chosen to bake mine.  If you choose to fry yours, just heat 2 to 3 inches of oil in a large frying pan to 350 degrees.  Fry a few egg rolls at a time for 2 - 3 minutes each side.  Drain on a paper towel and serve.

If you are going to bake you egg rolls, preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.

Brush the egg rolls with olive oil.

Bake for 10 - 15 minutes, Until golden brown.


Note:  If you want crunchy egg rolls, brush the egg rolls with the rest of the beaten egg.

It's been about 13 minutes, and my egg rolls are now done, and ready to serve.

If you want to freeze your egg rolls, let them cool.  Then place them in the freezer, single layer on a baking sheet for 1 hour.  Remove them from the freezer, and place them in a freezer zip lock storage bag with the excess air removed, (that way they don't stick together).  Label the bag with the type of filling, (i.e.: pork, chicken, or beef, and the date).  Then when you're ready to serve, just heat and eat.

The egg rolls have a nice mixture of vegetables and meat.  How much filling, and what type of filling is your choice.

A little sweet and sour sauce, and your all ready for the big football game, or to celebrate Chinese New Year, or even a quick lunch.

Give these egg rolls a try, and you'll find them a quick and delicious treat.

Enjoy !

Herb Roasted Pork Roast

Last post, I explained how I do my mustard glazed pork chops, (or roast).  In a previous post, I explained how I save and dry the herbs from my garden to make mixes to use in cooking.  One of our favorite dinners is a pork roast with an herb mixture rub.  You probably already have these ingredients in your pantry.  This recipe serves 4 to 6 people.

You will need:
1 boneless pork roast (1 1/2 pound)
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tabs olive oil
Freshly grated lemon peel

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees

In a small food processor, blender, or spice grinder combine the garlic, thyme, rosemary, basil, black pepper, and salt.

Note: my garlic was quite large, so I sliced it in half, not necessary.  Also my dried herbs are from my garden - but store bought are fine.  I also like to use fine sea salt, but any kind of salt is fine to use.

Pulse until the garlic is finely minced.  Already the salt has brought out the oils in the herbs and this mix smells wonderful.

Note:  you can also mince the garlic by hand, and chop the rosemary by hand then combine the herbs in a small bowl.  It just takes a little more work.

 In a small bowl add the olive oil.

 Add in the minced garlic and herb mixture.

 Grate in the peel from one lemon, (approximately 1/2 Tablespoon).

 Stir everything well.  Smells wonderful.  The fresh lemon peel has really given the herbs a fresh touch.

Place the pork roast into a size appropriate pan, and rub the oil and herb mixture all over the roast.   Bake uncovered, for approximately 40 minutes.

 You will know your roast is done, when an internal temperature is 140 degrees, (this is medium).

 Notice that you take the reading from the end, directly into the center.

 Remove the roast to a cutting board, cover with foil, and let rest for 10 minutes, (so the juices will evenly distribute back into the roast, and it will be juicy).

 Now you are ready to serve a delicious, juicy, tender pork roast.

Tonight I am serving my pork roast with a tossed green salad and roasted carrot slices, (from my garden).

Give this herb rub a try, and your family will enjoy a juicy pork roast a new way.

Enjoy !