Simple Supper: Pork Roast with Dark Cherry Balsamic Sauce



 This recipe was inspired by a darling baker, who'd just made strawberry balsamic jam.  I thought it would be perfect with pot roast, and my friend encouraged me to go for it. But when I got to the grocery, the strawberries were overripe.

 

Oh, no.

 

What would I cook for supper?

 

I found the answer on the grocery shelf, a rather unattractive can of dark sweet pitted cherries.

I made a few last-minutes purchases, then came home and began to cook supper.

 

Pork Roast with Dark Cherry Balsamic Sauce

 

1 Boston butt (4 to 6 servings)

1  (15-ounce) can dark sweet pitted cherries in heavy syrup.

1 (13 oz) jar Bonne Maman Cherry Preserves

paprika, salt, pepper

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons light brown sugar

3 tablespoons beef consomme'

1/4 teaspoon onion salt

2 tablespoons unsalted butter (for sauce)

1 tablespoon olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter (to sear pork)

 

12 - 24 fingerling potatoes

6 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks

fresh chives,  snipped [1 - 3 tablespoons]

 

Pour canned cherries, including the juice, into a heavy saucepan.

Add 1 jar of cherry preserves, 3 tablespoons beef consomme',

vinegar, sugar, butter, and onion salt.

Stir well, until jam and preserves are blended.

Cook on low flame and reduce the liquid.

(I tend to burn everything, so I always use a flame tamer.)

 

Meanwhile, prepare the roast. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Season the roast with salt, pepper, and paprika.

Sear the meat in 1 tablespoon oil and 1 tablespoon butter.

Brown on all sides, and remove meat to a baking dish.

Add carrots, potatoes, and remainder of beef consomme'.

Cover meat with foil and bake 2 hours or until done.

 

While the meat cooks, stir the sauce.

It should reduce in about 30 minutes. Remove from the flame.

 

Fifteen minutes before the roast is done,

remove foil and drizzle cherry-balsamic sauce over the roast and vegetables.

 

Pour sauce into a gravy boat.

Remove roast from oven and let it "collect" itself.

Drizzle with more sauce, if desired.

Garnish with snipped chives.

 

 

 

The sauce is sweet and savory, perfectly balanced.

 

The next day, if you have leftovers, shred (or slice) the meat and make po'boy sandwiches.

 

Use the sauce for dipping.

 

 

 

 

We didn't have leftovers.

Not even a scrap.

 



 



You can find the printable recipe HERE.

A Foodtastic Friday contribution.

 

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Roasted Chicken

Last Friday, middle Tennessee was under a tornado watch. The Channel 4 radar showed a solid block of red over the mid-state. As the wind whipped over this bare hilltop, I hid in the kitchen. 

Like most foodies, I am obsessed with recipes. I cook when I'm happy, sad, stressed, and just for the heck of it. But when stormy weather hits, I bake my way though the storm.

Since it was Friday, I'd planned to roast a chicken (that way, we can enjoy sandwiches and salad all weekend). Most cooks have a basic recipe for chicken. It's the little black dress of poultry: classic, versatile, and works for all menus and occasions. Roasted chicken can be dressed up or down--the accessories are endless, down-home vegetables or exotic ingredients.

Best of all, once you've popped the hen into the oven, you can goof off. It's the perfect recipe for people who are hungry but exhausted.

It's even better if you need a distraction.

While softball-sized hail pummeled the farm, I gathered ingredients.

The weather often influences my menu. When it's cold and rainy, I need comfort food. During the chilly fall months, there's nothing like roasted chicken with apples-potatoes-and-carrots. But this dish is equally welcome on a blustery day. As tornado sirens blared in the distance, I slathered the hen in buttery forgetfulness.

As my mother always says, "Add flavor at every opportunity!" During the storm, I called her several times. She reminded me to place bacon, apple cores, and parsley in the hen's cavity (and also to season the cavity with the same attention that I give to the breast: butter, sea salt, and freshly ground pepper).

After I seasoned the hen, I added the final touch: layers of apple-smoked bacon.

To keep the breast from browning too quickly, I covered it loosely with tin foil. Basting is optional. I added beef broth, but any broth will work. I set the oven timer so I will remember to baste. But many tired, weather-worried cooks might not hear the oven dinger go off. If you fall into this category, you might want to keep an egg timer in your apron pocket.

During the last forty-five minutes of cooking, I uncover the hen so it will acquire a lovely patina.

There's much to be said for cooking during a tornado. I was fortunate that the electricity stayed on.  Bad weather cooking can be a time to experiment. I made crackers, but they were horrid, so I'm rethinking the recipe.

I also baked an asparagus quiche and whole wheat sunflower seed bread.

We sat down to eat and joined hands, whispering prayers for victims of the storm. 

Basic Roasted Chicken

. . .

What You Need:

1 hen

2 cup chopped onion and celery mix

4 to 8 slices bacon

1 cup beef broth

1 stick butter, melted

4 T butter to sautee vegetables

Spices to taste: paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, lemon pepper

sea salt & pepper to taste

thyme

parsley

Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees. Prepare vegetables. Wash hen in sink (remove giblets) and place in large roasting pan. Pour butter (1 stick, melted) over hen and rub all over skin. Make sure you lift the skin over the breast (gently) and push butter beneath the surface. Season hen with spices, salt, and herbs. In a separate pan, sautee onions and celery in 4 T butter. Set aside.

If you are adding cut-up vegetables (see below) to the roasting pan, place them around the hen. Be sure to place vegetables in the cavity--such as apple cores, parsley, etc. Pour sauteed onions/celery over hen and cut-up vegetables.

Arrange uncooked bacon slices over the breast. Add a sprinkling of sea salt and pepper. Cover hen with ten foil and place in 325 degree oven. Cook 2 - 3 hours or until the juices run clear (when the thigh is pricked with a fork). You might want to remove the foil during the last 45 minutes of roasting. Remove from oven and let the hen "rest" for about 20 minutes. Slice and serve.

Variations--Ways to Spiff up a basic roasted chicken:

Cornbread-biscuit stuffing

Peaches or apricots

rosemary

mushrooms

lemons and lime

oranges

dried berries and raisins

turnips

pomegranate

sprouts

white wine

leeks and chives

For a rustic, rainy-day version add:

2 cups chopped apples (peel if you dislike the texture)

3 potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks (do not peel for a rustic version)

4 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks (for added nutrients, do not peel)

                   Print This Recipe

Leftover roasted chicken is a marvelous thing on a sunny Saturday.

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